Update. Remembering who we lost. So moved to share this ofrenda Maureen Flannery and the group made at St. John’s today. Maureen’s collection of folk art objects from regions of Mexico for Dia de los Muertos are featured here. Those paper marigolds in the cross were made at the workshop led byLoretta Line. At the base of the altar you see Susan in the photo with me and the girls.
The Salon Series at St. John’s, in collaboration with Roots Salon producer, Jamie O’Reilly presents a NEIGHBORHOOD EVENT
The Creation of a Community Ofrenda: A Cross Generational Workshop
Family and Community event in Old Irving Park
Saturday Oct 25, 10am – Noon
Church hall, sanctuary, garden
St. Johns Episcopal Church
3857 N Kostner, in Old Irving Park Chicago
Free of charge with weekend pass
PH 773.725.9026
www.stjohnschicago.com
Featured artists/workshop leaders:
Maureen Flannery, Karen Hoyer, Cheryl Kreiman, Loretta Line
Traditionally, during the Day of the Dead, Mexicans create an ofrenda honoring those that have departed. In this family friendly two hour workshop, appropriating Mexico’s Day of the Dead traditions to honor our dead, Old Irving Park and the extended community are invited to cross neighborhood and ethnic borders. and create an ofrenda for the St. John Episcopal Church’s sanctuary and garden. The event is part of End of Life/Afterlife, a 4 day arts festival Friday October 24 – Monday 27, held at the church.
Led by area artmakers and cultural artists, this workshop will provide participants with background information on the Day of the Dead tradition and encourage each person to prepare an ofrenda –memorial altar and contribute to the community ofrenda. The ofrenda artwork will be displayed in two places. In the church’s sanctuary it will become a part of the All Saints Day Service. In the church’s garden, neighborhood residents will be invited to visit and contribute mementos to remember the dead throughout the following week’s Halloween celebrations.
Participants will be invited to cross this cultural border, to look at end of life from a different perspective, and perhaps find comfort in this new way of thinking. They will explore the history of the Purepecha and Aztec cults of the dead, the Celtic festival of Samhain, and the Church’s attempts to morph them into All Soul’s and All Saints Days. At this time, when the threshold veil is thin, we will approach the border between the physical and spiritual worlds where the secular and sacred interweave and share their gifts.
Chicago Artist Month link: http://www.chicagoartistsmonth.org/creation-community-ofrenda-cross-generational-workshop
Read more about the series on this blog.
End of Life/Afterlife Series
Fri Oct 24 from 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM
Sat Oct 25 from 10 AM – Noon
Sun Oct 26 church services
Mon Oct 27 at 7 PM
Admission prices will $15 for a single program
Location:
St. Johns Episcopal Church Hall, Sanctuary and Garden
3857 N Kostner, in Old Irving Park Chicago
PH 773.725.9026
www.stjohnschicago.com
Cultural arts producer Jamie O’Reilly continues a year-long collaboration with St. John’s Episcopal Church in Old Irving Park with End of Life/Afterlife, a 4 day arts festival, Friday October 24 – Monday 27. Exploring themes of life and death. the festivals of Samhain (All Soul’s Day) and Day of the Dead, in original art, poetry, music, theater and classic literature, the events are open to the public. Admission prices will $15 for a single program.
Events range from a juried art exhibition and community ofrenda-making workshop, to a performance of original stories, poetry and music, to a theatrical reading of classic American literature of the 18th and 19th centuries, performed by Chicago actors. All events will held at the church.
