Inside The New York Botanical Garden
Posted in Photography on October 29 2015, by Matt Newman
Our Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) festivities continue all this weekend with live music, food, dance, face painting, and all the colorful trappings of this important—and fun!—holiday. This is the closing weekend of our FRIDA KAHLO exhibition, so don’t sit home!
Face Painting in the Perennial Garden – Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in Photography on October 26 2015, by Lansing Moore
We’re thrilled to present this year’s eagerly anticipated Giant Pumpkin Carving! Ray Villafane has outdone himself with this spooky and monumental homage to the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) as a nod to FRIDA KAHLO: Art, Garden, Life. The design is based on an early 20th-century satirical cartoon by the famous Mexican printmaker and illustrator Jose Guadalupe Posada. See it in person at the Clay Family Picnic Pavilions, alongside our annual Giant Pumpkin Display, through November 1!
Posted in Programs and Events on October 23 2015, by Vilina Phan
FRIDA KAHLO: Art, Garden, Life goes out on a particularly high note in its closing weekends, with a bevy of exciting Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) activities! Live performances from Calpulli Danza Mexicana, Jarana Beat, and The Villalobos Brothers with Los Chinelos de Morelos dancers take over the Conservatory lawn and steps throughout the weekend. Giant skeletons, La Catrina puppets, and Los Zancudos de Zaachila stilt dancers will be roaming the Garden for all to enjoy. In addition see the Day of the Dead ofrenda, or altar, honoring Kahlo in the Conservatory, and Humberto Spíndola‘s The Two Fridas come alive (literally) in the Library Rotunda. You’ll also have fun with hands-on activities such as mask-making and face painting.
And because Halloween is right around the corner, we are pleased to welcome back master carver Ray Villafane, who will carve a giant pumpkin inspired by the Day of the Dead. Come watch, and enter for a chance to win a carving from the master himself.
Come to the Garden this weekend and celebrate a wonderful Mexican tradition with us!
Posted in Photography on October 22 2015, by Matt Newman
Here’s a first look at our gargantuan record-breaker from North American grower Ron Wallace, a 2,230-lb. pumpkin from Rhode Island that you can see here now and throughout the next two weekends of our Giant Pumpkin Carving and display!
North America’s heaviest pumpkin in the Visitor Center – Photo by Ivo M. Vermeulen
Posted in History on October 21 2015, by Sarah Henkind
In celebration of Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, on the weekends of October 24 & 25 and October 31 & November 1, Bronx-based artist Lucrecia Novoa and the Mascaraviva puppeteers parade her giant skeleton and La Catrina puppets throughout the Garden. Inspired by both the traditional and modern representations of the skeletal character, Lucrecia’s puppets—made especially for this occasion—provide the perfect photo opportunity and interactive experience. Catch them wandering throughout the Garden from 12 to 4 p.m.!
But who is La Catrina? The referential image of death in Mexico, it is common to see La Catrina featured in Día de los Muertos celebrations, where death is treated with familiarity and hospitality instead of dread.
La Catrina was originally drawn as a satirical cartoon (1910–1913) by famous Mexican printmaker and illustrator Jose Guadalupe Posada. The etching was intended to make fun of Mexican elite who were adopting European fashion and attitudes. Named “La Calavera Garbancera,” the image was meant to represent the large gap between social classes, and was inspired by Mictecacihuatl, the Aztec goddess of death and Lady of Mictlan, the underworld.
Here is an image of Posado’s La Calavera Oaxaqueña, which is similar in style to the Catrina:
Here is a sneak peak at Lucrecia’s interpretation of Catrina:
Posada’s creation might have given La Catrina her form, but it was Diego Rivera, muralist, and husband of Frida Kahlo, who named her. Diego’s mural, “Sueño de una tarde dominical en la Alameda Centra (Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Central)” (1946–1948), features an image of Catrina right in the middle of the artwork, next to Frida. Because of Diego’s popularity, La Catrina rose to fame, and is a now iconic representation of the Mexican willingness to embrace death- and to even laugh at it. After all, there is something a bit humorous, if also a tad creepy, about a skeleton dressed in opulent fashion. Images and more information on the mural can be found here.
We do hope you will come out to celebrate the lives of loved deceased ones, especially Frida Kahlo, as we prepare to say goodbye to the exhibition on November 1!
Posted in Programs and Events on October 21 2015, by Lansing Moore
This weekend NYBG is thrilled to welcome back the Master Carver himself, Ray Villafane, who will once again lead our annual Giant Pumpkin Carving Weekend with a live demonstration of his remarkable skills and daily Q&A sessions with his team of carvers—with a special twist in honor of Día de los Muertos!
This year’s larger-than-life pumpkin tableau will represent this traditional holiday from Mexico and will remain on display alongside the largest pumpkins in North America—some weighing more than a ton—as part of the Giant Pumpkin Display from October 24 through November 1. It’s all part of the first Día de los Muertos Weekend on October 24 & 25! Click through to view details about this special weekend celebration and see more photos of the programs and activities to come.
Posted in Programs and Events on October 16 2015, by Matt Newman
Time’s running out for FRIDA KAHLO: Art, Garden, Life, and there’s so much going on in the final weeks of October that you won’t want to let this one pass you by. Fall’s presence is undeniable as you walk through the Garden, tinging the trees with reds and yellows, and Halloween is fast approaching. More importantly, Día de los Muertos is just around the corner. It would be an understatement to say that we’re celebrating the holidays with style.
Alongside this weekend’s schedule of outdoor tours, music, food, and other exhibition programming, we’re preparing for the coming week of after-dark events and lively holiday fiestas that all begin with Frida for Families: A Spooky Nighttime Adventure. On Friday, October 23, grab tickets and bring your little ones (don’t forget their costumes!) for a night of trick-or-treating in the Garden, hands-on Halloween fun in the Adventure Garden, live costumed performers, giant puppets, and more. It’s a safe and exciting way to celebrate the holiday a little early.
For adults, join us during our Frida al Fresco LGBT night on Thursday, October 22, and don’t forget to register for our last Frida Look-Alike contest of the exhibition—accepted entrants get free admission to the evening event and a chance to win prizes from NYBG Shop!
Posted in Programs and Events on October 8 2015, by Matt Newman
Autumn for families in the Garden is one of the most colorful times of year to stop by, from the changing leaves in the Forest to our much-loved tradition of giant pumpkin carving in late October. And new this year, we’re taking things a step further with a full schedule of fall FRIDA KAHLO programming geared toward families who’re looking for something more than the average Halloween outing!
Take a break from the haunted houses and join NYBG in the coming weeks for some of the most lively Día de los Muertos activities you’ll find in New York.
Kids and adults alike are welcome at the Garden in late October, when we highlight the Mexican Day of the Dead with two festive weekends of stilt-dancers, live music, food, and fun for all ages—with events throughout the garden on October 24, 25, 31, and November 1. Our first Día de los Muertos Weekend also happens to feature a fan-favorite in Ray Villafane, who returns to the Garden with his team of artists for two days of live pumpkin carving—some of the biggest and heaviest gourds in the country!—creating creepy creatures inspired by traditional calaveras characters.