On the path of marigolds : living traditions of Mexico's Day of the Dead = En el camino de los cempasuchitles : tradiciones vivas del Dia de los Muertos de Mexico / Ann Murdy ; with an essay by Denise Chavez ; and a conversation with the author by Cesaro Moreno ; Spanish translations by Reverie V. de Escobedo and Raul Escobedo O.
Photographer Ann Murdy has been documenting the celebrations around Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) in Mexico for more than twenty years. A native of Los Angeles, she first started collecting Chicano art in the 1980s and was drawn to Mexico by the vibrancy of its culture and traditions. She loved the rich colors she found everywhere, from the brilliant reds and blues of the papier-mache flowers adorning the ofrendas or altars to the dead to the dusky yellow of the marigolds lining pathways leading to the ofrendas in both private homes and cemeteries. As Murdy's hauntingly beautiful images show, in Mexico death is considered a part of life and something to be celebrated rather than feared. El dia de los muertos (which actually lasts two days on November 1-2) is a time to gather with friends and families to feast, pray, dance, and honor the lives of those who have died. From the preparation of the food and flowers to the sanctification of the public and private spaces, to the ceremony itself, Murdy captures the spirit, beauty, and magic of this sacred observance.
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