Despite all reports to the contrary, Dรญa de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is not a Mexican version of Halloween. (Like we couldnยt come up with our own holidays or something, sheesh.) No, Dรญa de los Muertos is exactly that, a day for the dead, a celebration in which Mexican believers honor loved ones who have passed on. Among its many traditions are paintings and sculptures of skulls and skeletons, often in comic, irreverent poses. Manos Magicas, with its annual ยDรญa de los Muertosย exhibit, is one of the few galleries in town that offers genuine, authentic Mexican one-of-a-kind Dรญa de los Muertos folk art. This yearยs collection includes whimsical, playful work by Kathy Ortiz (wreaths of multicolored sunflowers with tiny skulls at the center of each flower), vibrant paintings by Hunter Roth and Charles Barbier, and tiny colorful skeletons by Francisco Juarez. Manos Magicas owner Madeleine Crozat-Williams hand-picks the artwork during her twice-a-year buying trips to Mexico. She gets paintings, sculptures, tinwork and textiles directly from the artists, many of which arenยt available anywhere else in Houston. 10:30 am. to 5:50 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. For information, call 713-802-2530 or visit
www.lasmanosmagicas.com. Free.
Mondays-Saturdays, 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Starts: Nov. 1. Continues through Nov. 11, 2007
This article appears in Nov 1-7, 2007.