The ofrenda is a key part of Día de los Muertos, also known as the Day of the Dead holiday. It is the offerings placed on an altar in a home.
At the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, visitors are remembering lost loved ones with photos and messages on a massive ofrenda made with the help of artists.
“The ofrenda has become this amazing memorial to our community, and to our community’s loved ones,” said Michaela Wright, the director of exhibition content and interpretation at NYBG.
It’s on view through the two-day holiday, on Nov. 1 and Nov. 2, for the garden’s celebration of the holiday, observed by Mexicans in their homeland and around the globe.
It’s all about welcoming back the souls of loved ones who have passed away.
Along a trail though the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden, there are plenty of skulls and skeletons, spirit animals and a giant Catrina made from marigolds. La Catrina is a famous symbol of the holiday.
“She has become this really important figure for Day of the Dead, and you can see her in the parades in Mexico City, these giant Catrinas that sort of parade,” Wright said. “Or people will dress up as her, paint their faces, so we were really excited to bring her to life using, of course, a big skirt of marigolds and beautiful flowers.”
Other symbols along the way are monarch butterflies, plenty of seasonal pumpkins, and, of course, all of those flowers.
“We keep it looking beautiful through regular maintenance, regular watering, and then also, if we need to make any swaps or make any additions, we’ll do that as well,” Colin Kirk, the manager of outdoor gardens at NYBG, said.
Other autumn activities at the garden include the arrival of the great pumpkin — one of the largest ever grown in New England, at almost 2,600 pounds — and kiku, Japanese chrysanthemums trained for months into various shapes and sizes.
New Yorkers can plan their fall visit here.
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