Going Home: El Dia de Los Muertos

21c Museum Celebrates El Día de los Muertos with a Site-Specific Installation by UofL Students


November 1 - 23, 2009
In conjunction with November Trolley Hop
On display on the 7th Street sidewalk,
in front of the entrance to 21c Museum Hotel


To celebrate this year's El Día de los Muertos (The Day of the Dead), 21c Museum has commissioned the site-specific exhibition Going Home by Mary Carothers' students in University of Louisville's 2-D Design Class. The installation consists of 10,000 hand-cut monarch butterfly designs and 14 casts of hands exhibited on the facade of 21c on 7th street. The work is inspired by the 14 Mexican immigrants who died tragically crossing the Arizona desert. The loss of these men, including fathers and sons, marks the single largest tragedy of Mexican immigrants into the United States.

The motivation for this piece comes from the student's reading of The Devil's Highway by Luis Albero Urrea featured as University of Lousiville's "Book in Common." The Yuma 14, as they came to be known, who perished as well as the 12 survivors were lost in the desert, hallucinating and desperate for water, Urrea writes, "They were beyond rational thought. Visions of home fluttered through their minds. Soft green bushes, waterfalls, children, music. Butterflies the size of your hand ..."

The 10,000 paper monarch butterflies serve as a poetic metaphor for migration, noting that these delicate creatures are currently making their journey, up to 3,000 miles, from North America to Mexico. Their significance lies not only in the beauty of the individual but also within their massive quantity that transforms their mass into a topographical landscape.

The artists recognize that the loss of life that continues to increase not only every year between the border of North America and Mexico, but as thousands of people seek refuge from one country into another around the world. The hand castings have been made from immigrants now living in the United States who have come to this land from around the world.

In addition, traditional marigold flowers scattered in front of the altar symbolize the path between the dead and the living. This installation asks the viewer to reflect and contemplate the perilous journey of these men and to recognize the plight of all those attempting migration.

About El Día de los Muertos

Day of the Dead, or Día de los Muertos, is a joyous holiday, that blends native Aztec and Roman Catholic traditions and beliefs to celebrate and honor the lives of deceased friends and family members. In this tradition, death is not seen as the end, but rather a new stage of life. It is now celebrated with cultural variations in areas throughout Latin America and the United States.

This exhibition is presented in conjunction with the Day of the Dead observance taking place on Museum Row organized by the Latin American and Latino Studies Program at the University of Louisville. Other participating institutions include Kentucky Museum of Art & Craft, The Frazier History Museum, Louisville Science Center, and the Muhammad Ali Center.

Participating Artists

Mary Carothers, Associate Professor of Art
Mary Bainbridge
Evan Blum
John Boone
Eric Christensen
Elle Decker
Erin Fitzpatrick
Devon Denham
Megan Franck
John Hayden
Claire Hinkel
Jaclyn Huber
Sarah Klensch
Sarah Nasr
Claire Ogilvie
Kaviya Ravi
Rosalie Rosenthal
Sunny Smith
Alexis Wade
Brigid Watters


 

2009 Exhibitions

Here Now, There Then
Letitia Quesenberry

August - December 2009
Gallery 4
exhibition details
 
To coincide with the exhibition
Creating Identity: Portraits Today.
Going Home: El Dia de Los Muertos
21c Museum Celebrates El Día de los Muertos with a Site-Specific Installation by UofL Students

November 1 - 23, 2009
In conjunction with November Trolley Hop
On display on the 7th Street sidewalk,
in front of the entrance to 21c Museum Hotel
exhibition details

 

 
James Baker Hall: Photo/Synthesis
September 2008 - October 2009
in the Atrium, Galleries 1 & 3
Opening reception Thursday, September 4, 6pm
exhibition details
Nineveh
a sculptural installation by Ezra Kellerman

Presented by 21c & UofL Hite Institute
September 16 - October 17, 2009
Exhibited at The Cressman Center for Visual Art
Opening reception September 16, 2009, 6pm
exhibition details

 

 
Constant World:
The Work of Jennifer & Kevin McCoy

March - August 10, 2009
Street Level Gallery
exhibition details
Click here for exhibition details » Past Highlights & Acquisitions
from our ongoing exhibition
New Acquisitions & Highlights
January 2007 - August 2009
Atrium Gallery
exhibition details

 

 
Ross Gordon: Ceremony Series,
Lamboka Kenya

July - August 2009
Gallery 4
exhibition details
Click here for exhibition details » Paris Kyne: The Colour of Racing
April - June 2009
in the Garage Street Level Gallery
exhibition details

 

 
UK College of Design Proposals to Revitalize Shippingport, Louisville
May 25 - June 8, 2009
Atrium Gallery
exhibition details
All's Fair in Art and War:
Envisioning Conflict

October 2008 - March 2009
Street Level Gallery
exhibition details

 

 
The Photographs of Dominic Rouse
December 2008 - March 2009
in the Garage Street Level Gallery
exhibition details