Day of the Dead, also known as Dia de los Muertos, is a celebration that honors loved ones who are no longer here. On Friday, the sounds of the centuries-old Mexican holiday filled the Greer Center for the Arts during the city’s third annual Day of the Dead festival.
Festival Vendors
Dozens of vendors gathered at the event, selling everything from jewelry, Christmas ornaments, and fresh-squeezed lemonade.
“I love it. It brings the community together and different people of different generations,” Mary Lewis with Orchard Twist by Mary said.
Day of the Dead Artwork
The festival also showcased tiny shadow boxes, colorful paintings, and a giant Catrina.
Catrina Face Paintings
For one family, the best part was transforming into living art.
"We're skeletons. My niña the red one, and I am the blue one,” one festival-goer and her daughter told us. “We get to hide behind our mask and still be who we are."
Artist Jasmine Sweet of Jazz’s Beauty Box created the colorful sugar skull face paintings.
“I looked at different traditional ideas from the Catrinas in Mexico to develop my designs so I could stick as true to the culture as possible and have proper representation," Sweet added. "I've always been very drawn to it and like how it looks, but also what it stands for,”
Holiday Meaning
And it’s that deeper meaning that brings families back each year.
“(Dia de los) Muertos is so important to us because we have more than we would like angels waiting for us on the other side. So this is the best way to be able to celebrate and love them and show our appreciation,” a festival-goer said.
Learn More About the Event
This year's festival also featured free dance performance and a free salsa lesson. You can learn more about this year’s festival here.