Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) Ofrenda Installation
Con Ganas (With Heart) by Marie Elena Castro

Scholz Family Works on Paper Gallery
October 30--November 29, 2009

California artist Marie Elena Castro will create the ninth annual Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) ofrenda (memorial altar). The installation will honor the artist’s deceased father, a craftsman whose notable creations included the carnival floats paraded in the streets during Semana Santa (Holy Week) in Mexico. Recalling her father, Marie Elena said, “He would fix everything with wire. He was born in the United States, raised in Mexico, was proud of being Mexican and American, but, because of his upbringing, was the epitome of a "Mexican man". He loved words. He loved learning. He loved creating.” In the gallery installation Castro will blend symbols of her father’s attributes with traditional ofrenda elements offered in memory of relatives during the annual early November All Souls Day celebration.

The artist spoke on October 29 at 6:30 p.m. in the Annenberg Auditorium of the museum as part of the annual campus celebration of the Day of the Dead. See the Education, Public Programs, Special Events, page for more information.

The exhibition and October 29 celebration are co-sponsored by the Snite Museum of Art and the Institute for Latino Studies.

Darkness and Light: Death and Beauty in Photography

O'Shaughnessy Galleries
November 1--December 20, 2009

Since the medium’s invention in 1839, photographers have focused their cameras on all aspects of our world. Certain genres have become very popular, such as portraits, landscapes, urban views, the human figure, contemporary society, violence, and major events both public and private. Running through all these images are underlying themes, including those of both death and beauty. This exhibit, selected from the Museum’s permanent collection of photographs, will examine various aspects of these two ideas in thought-provoking images from around the world, ranging from 1844 to the present.

A full-color catalogue of all the images, plus essays by curator of photography Steve Moriarty and professor of theology Larry Cunningham, will accompany the exhibit.

Soft-cover copies are available to current Friends of the Snite Museum at the $60 level or above, or those who join or upgrade to the $60 level or above. To become a member please contact the Friends Office at (574) 631-5516. Check the Publications page to see if a PDF of the catalogue is available.

Bill Kremer: Sculptural Vessels

Milly and Friz Kaeser Mestrovic Studio Gallery
November 1–December 20, 2009

Notre Dame Professor William Kremer was invited to exhibit his ceramic sculptural vessels because of admiration not only for his work, but also for the very ambitious way that he has advanced the creation and collection of ceramics at Notre Dame.

Most notable was his construction of the ND anagama wood-fire kiln in 1998-99. The kiln was the catalyst for a number of important developments, the principal one being Peter Voulkos’s 2001 residency, during which he created ceramic sculptures that were subsequently fired in the anagama kiln. The major work created, Notre Dame, 2001, was acquired by the Snite Museum of Art through the generosity of ND alum Mr. John C. Rudolf ’70 and is displayed in the Museum. The Museum also acquired two Voulkos platters created during his ND sojourn—one by purchase, the second as a gift of the artist.

Similarly, Paul Soldner and Don Reitz also created artworks that were fired in the anagama kiln during ND residencies, some of which were added to the permanent collection.

In addition to his engagement with national peers and students, Bill steadfastly continues to make pots, to explore wheel-thrown sculptural vessels, to compose and perform music and to race sailboats (very successfully).

The exhibition and catalog are funded in part by both the Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts, College of Arts and Letters, and the Humana Foundation Endowment for American Art.

As of November 18, 2009 the catalogue was still in producation, with no estimated delivery provided.