The Mexican tradition of Day of the Dead, celebrated to honor loved ones who have passed, has grown into a cultural phenomenon recognized worldwide. From Pixar’s Coco, now available in nearly 50 languages, to calavera-inspired merchandise ranging from T-shirts to tote bags, the holiday has captured global attention. Yet, for much of its history, Day of the Dead remained largely unknown outside of Mexico and Mexican communities abroad.

One artist has played a crucial role in bringing this tradition to broader cultural awareness: 93-year-old Ofelia Esparza, widely regarded as Los Angeles’ preeminent altarista. On October 18, the Vincent Price Museum in East L.A. will showcase her first solo exhibition, Ofelia Esparza: A Retrospective, celebrating a lifetime of altar-making, painting, and cultural storytelling.

Story Highlights

• Ofelia Esparza, born in 1932 in East L.A., learned altar-making from her Mexican-born parents.

• She grew up creating ofrendas for Day of the Dead and nacimientos for Christmas.

• She taught at City Terrace Elementary and later became a key artist at Self-Help Graphics in East L.A.

• She consulted on Pixar’s Coco, inspiring the film’s marigold bridge between the living and the dead.

• The exhibition features multiple ofrendas, never-before-seen paintings, and a recreated nacimiento.

• The retrospective celebrates Latino culture and connects communities through ancestral remembrance.

Early Life and Artistic Roots

Born in East L.A. in 1932, Ofelia Esparza was the first-generation daughter of a family from Huanímaro, Guanajuato. She recalled that her childhood was so infused with Mexican traditions that she often wondered where she truly lived.

“I used to ask my mother, ‘Estamos en Mexico? Are we in Mexico?’” Esparza said, recalling the confusion of living between two worlds.

Her mother, noticing her interest in drawing, nurtured her creativity from a young age.

“My mother started saving the meat wrappings—the butcher paper. She would cut out the edges and iron them. So that was my paper,” Esparza said.

Her family celebrated Day of the Dead with colorful ofrendas decorated with marigolds, photos, and found objects. At Christmas, they created elaborate nacimientos, or nativity scenes. Surrounded by folk art, Esparza cultivated her artistic talent but never imagined it would become a career.

Later, she married Amado Esparza and raised nine children. She pursued a teaching career at City Terrace Elementary School. Reflecting on her journey, she said,

“In my family, I was always the artist. In my class, I was the artist. But I think where I was really validated as an artist was at Self-Help Graphics.”

Sharing Day of the Dead Beyond East L.A.

Self-Help Graphics, a community art center co-founded in 1970 by Sister Karen Boccalero, became the platform where Ofelia Esparza gained recognition as a master altarista.

“When Sister Karen learned I grew up making altares at home, she asked me to help lead workshops and create ofrendas for the center’s Day of the Dead celebrations,” Esparza said.

Through this work, her artistry reached international audiences. “Self-Help Graphics sent me to Glasgow, Scotland in 1996. I was in Chicago at the Mexican Museum. It was just tapping into the community,” she recalled.

Her expertise also contributed to Pixar’s Coco. Animators told her that the iconic marigold bridge connecting the living and the dead was inspired by how she described ofrendas as bridges between generations.

“People—especially people native to their regions—have celebrated ancestors. We are linked, we are connected,” Esparza said, reflecting on how universal the practice of honoring the dead is across cultures.

What to Expect at the Retrospective

The retrospective will showcase multiple ofrendas dedicated to people who impacted her life, including Sister Karen Boccalero and members of her family. Visitors will also encounter never-before-seen paintings and a recreated nacimiento—a Christmas tradition as significant to Esparza’s family as the Day of the Dead.

“It’s like a family reunion in a way. It’s just the times and places I had never imagined I would revisit them all at the same time, and it’s wonderful,” Esparza said, speaking with tears in her eyes.

Her daughter, Rosanna Esparza Ahrens, added,

“We’ve been here and we belong here. During this time, come to this space to see yourself reflected, and you could spend more than just a walk through a gallery. This is an experience.”

For Ofelia Esparza, the exhibition represents more than art—it is a way to connect people at a deeper human level.

“This remembrance and this kind of work just connects us at a deeper level as human beings,” she said.

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