Every Autumn, Dia De Los Muertos or Day of the Dead blossoms from the very earth of Los Angeles, a potent integration of ancient Aztec rituals and the Catholic All Saint's Day. Flower shrines or ofrendas appear honoring the dead. Votive candles flicker beside yellowing photographs of the departed and graves are piled high with bright chrysanthemums, baby's breath and cockscombs, symbolizing the blood of Christ. By night fall, groups of friends and families stroll casually through neighborhoods, their faces painted like sugar skulls, wearing black hats tipped at a jaunty angle or flowing veils attached to garlands of fragrant gladiolus and roses. LA has always been intrigued by Dia De Los Muertos, it's in our bones. My writing partner Alix Sloan when she lived in LA, was a curator with the La luz De Jesus Gallery whose owner Billy Shire was one of the first people to bring the curious Day of the Dead artifacts from Mexico; elaborately painted plaster skulls and tableus of skeletons dressed in their Sunday best, enjoying the pleasures of life. My friend Erin, an … [Read more...] about Day of the Dead: A Walk in the Graveyard