October 7, 2022 / Documentary Photography
Día de Muertos
Día De Muertos is a Mexican holiday that reunites the living and dead. Families create Offerings to honor their family members that have passed. These altars are decorated with orange flowers (Cempasúchil), photos of the departed, and the favorite foods and drinks of the one being honored. The offerings are believed to encourage visits from the land of the dead and the Cempasúchil flower is believed to guide their souls all the way back home.
In November 2021 I had the opportunity to be in Mexico on this special Holiday and out of curiosity, I decided to document it as a personal project.
I started photographing a few weeks before the celebration. First, I visited The Chinampas of Xochimilco where the Cempasúchil flower is grown and closely followed the route of the flower: from its care to its distribution and subsequent sale in the large markets of the big cities. As the date approached, I traveled to Michoacán, specifically to Lake Pátzcuaro, where I visited all the nearby towns and was able to see up close how the locals began to assemble their offerings and decorated the graves of their loved ones. Finally, during the last night of the celebration, I walked through the streets of San Andres Mixquic, a community located in the southeast of Mexico City and is best known for its Day of the Dead commemorations. On that night many locals welcomed me into their homes, showed me their offerings and shared delicious and typical dishes with me such as Tamales and Pan de Muerto. Día de Muertos is without a doubt one of the most beautiful and special things that I have ever experienced.
