The Art of Remembrance
Días de los Muertos
at L10 Arts & Cultural Center
10 Lafayette Ave. Brooklyn, New York
Join us in honoring and celebrating the lives and memories of our ancestors through a series of free community programs.
The Art of Remembrance: Días de los Muertos offers interdenominational and multicultural opportunities to explore grief, death, mourning, remembrance, and the many ways we celebrate and honor those who have passed.
Joining us in celebration are the residents of L10 Arts & Cultural Center: Brooklyn Public Library’s Library Arts & Culture, the Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) and 651 ARTS. Through art, reflection, storytelling, and community gathering, The Art of Remembrance invites us to consider the ways we remember, mourn, celebrate, and carry forward the lives of those we have lost.
scroll for full programming below
October 15-November 5, 2026
Community Ofrenda Visiting Hours
Monday-Friday, 11am-5pm
October 15, 2026
Días de los Muertos Opening Ceremony
Hi-ARTS at 5pm
Sunday, November 1, 2026
Días de los Muertos Altar Activations
Hi-ARTS, 2-6pm
Day Month Year, 2026
Event Title
Brooklyn Public Library, time
Day Month Year, 2026
Event Title
Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA)
Inspired by the vibrant traditions of Mexico and other Central American communities, Día de los Muertos is a multi-day holiday in which families and friends gather to remember loved ones who have passed away, celebrate their lives, and keep their memories alive. A central tradition is the creation of altars, or ofrendas, adorned with photographs, food, candles, marigolds, and other meaningful mentos to invite the spirits of the departed to join in celebration.
Community Altar Visiting Hours
This community altar will serve as a collective space for remembrance, reflection, meditation and communal mourning. We invite you to visit and contribute offerings for a loved one. You are invited to bring photographs, a cherished memento, flowers, a poem, drawing, or piece of art. Audiences can also expect guided prompts for prayer, affirmations, on how to engage.
Open flames are not prohibited in the building. You are welcome to bring a battery operated candle. Please do not leave any perishable food items or open beverages on the altar.
If you would like us to print a photograph of a loved one on your behalf, please submit their photograph here.
October 15-November 5, 2026
Hi-ARTS |4th Floor
Altar Visiting Hours
Monday-Friday, 11am-5pm
Opening Ceremony
Join us in blessing our ofrenda with one another in community. The evening will begin with altar meditations curated by spiritual curator, coach and nomad Donney, and a blessing of the altar lead by Rasu Jilani, Pries of Ifa Yamoja. Janis Russel, Director of the Lafayette Inspirational Ensemble will lead us in song, and the evening will conclude with closing remarks by Hi-ARTS Executive Director, Aaron L. McKinney.
Free & Open to the public
Donny
Donny (he/him) is a visionary: a multidisciplinary starlight of talent, created to heal and transform the world, with every project, every interaction, and every intention. Working professionally as a Creative for the past 15 years has given him the platform to do and pursue all the things he loves with tireless vigor. In addition to his artistic career and Spirit & Flow, Donny is pursuing his 200Hr Yoga Instructor certification through the newly accredited Black Boys Om.al.
October 15, 2026
Hi-ARTS 5-8pm
4th Floor
Ceremony Program
Altar Meditations by Donny
Altar Blessing by Rasu Jilani, Priest of Ifa Yamoja
The music still lives! with Janis Russell, Director of the Lafayette Inspirational Ensemble
Closing Remarks by Aaron L. McKinnney, Hi-ARTS Executive Director
Rasu Jilani
Executive Director, Brookyn Arts Council
Priest of Ifa Yamoja
A native New Yorker of Caribbean heritage, Rasu brings more than 15 years of experience advocating for the Brooklyn cultural and creative community to the organization. Rasu is also a reputable facilitator in the cultural sector, the founder of Coup d’état BROOKLYN and Coup d’état Arts, and was a producer for Afropunk.
Janis Russell
Director, Lafayette Inspirational Ensemble
Since 2001, Janis Russell (she/her) has been the Director of the Lafayette Inspirational Ensemble, a multi-racial, interfaith choir based out of LAPC. She is also a nationally known jazz and blues singer in her own right. She is most known for her moving contralto tones, but her vocal range spans from soprano to baritone, and she is equally comfortable in jazz, gospel, country, and classical.
Download our Días de los Muertos Reading List.
Curated by our partner and neighbor Brooklyn Public Library’s Library for Arts & Culture.
Ceremony and ritual continue with an afternoon of Altar Activitations. Donny’s meditations will continue to fill the space for those looking for a moment of guided calm. Hi-ARTS Marketing Associate and Altar Curator will host shrine making and marigold folding for visitors of all ages. Hi-ARTS Alumni Tanya Birl-Torres will lead a movement workshop, and Eingel Manuel will host several tarot reading workshops. After a performance by Hi-ARTS Alumni Raquel Almazan, the evening will conclude with open time to engage with the altar and one another.
In between activities, visitors are invited to mingle, meditate, pray, journal, tend to the altar, and/or participate in shrine making and marigold folding.
The Movement Workshop has limited capacity, and while drop-ins are welcome, we recommend registering in advance to guarantee your spot.
Free & Open to the public
Donny
Donny (he/him) is a visionary: a multidisciplinary starlight of talent, created to heal and transform the world, with every project, every interaction, and every intention. Working professionally as a Creative for the past 15 years has given him the platform to do and pursue all the things he loves with tireless vigor. In addition to his artistic career and Spirit & Flow, Donny is pursuing his 200Hr Yoga Instructor certification through the newly accredited Black Boys Om.al.
Altar Activations
November 1, 2026
2-6pm
Hi-ARTS, 4th Floor
Activations
2-6pm | Altar Meditations by Donny
2-6pm | Shrine Making & Marigold Folding with MJ Martinez, Hi-ARTs Marketing Associate & Altar Curator
3pm | Movement Workshop with Tanya Biril-Torres
RSVP 3-5pm | Tarot Reading with Eingel Manuel
25 minute readings, first come first-read4:15pm | Performance by Raquel Almazan
6pm | Closing remarks by Aaron, L. McKinney, Hi-ARTS Executive Director
Tanya Birl-Torres
Artist & Facilitator
Hi-ARTS Alumni
Tanya Birl-Torres (she/her) believes in telling stories that move us towards curiosity and connection. Over the last five years, Tanya has shifted from her career as a sought after Broadway performer, and transitioned to Movement Direction, Choreography, and Embodied Systems Facilitator. She has served as Movement Director and Choreographer for many prestigious institutions including The Public Theater (Mobile Unit: Twelfth Night), The Guthrie Theater (As You Like It), Oregon Shakespeare Festival (Peter and the Starcatcher, How I Learned What I Learned) and The Signature Theater (The Red Letter Plays).
Eingel Manuel
Title
Bio
Raquel Almazan
Artist & Facilitator
Executive Director, La Lucha Arts
Raquel Almazan: (they, she, her) is a Latine identifying interdisciplinary artist, facilitator and activist. (M.F.A. – Playwriting, Columbia University. B.F.A. in Theatre from University of Florida/New World School of the Arts Conservatory). Her eclectic career spans playwriting, devising, performance, Butoh dance, dramaturgy and filmmaking.
Closing Ceremony
in partnership with 651 ARTS
As the holiday comes to a close, join us for a casual yet intimate closing and celebration of a vibrant Días de los Muertos. Fret not — the altar will still be open for visits and another round of thematic programming will follow in Spring 2027.
Free & Open to the public
November 5, 2026
Hi-ARTS & 651 ARTS, 6-8pm
4th Floor
Light refreshments will be served.
The Art of Remembrance is a participatory program rooted in memory, lineage, and artistic practice. Audiences and participants are invited to honor artistic, political, and lineage ancestors, chosen family, and community elders through an evolving altar or ofrenda that serves as a site of grounding, reflection, and intention.
The Community Ofrenda, changes and expands seasonally, responding to time, place, and community, and partnerships, keeping the program responsive and alive. As the visual elements shift, so do the offerings and practices around it – reflecting the ongoing nature of remembrance and the living relationship between past, present, and future.
Our Partners
About 651 ARTS
Since its founding in 1988, 651 ARTS has become a trusted convener of contemporary African Diasporic artistic expression, a champion and nurturer for emerging artists and their work and a vital cultural resource for its surrounding community. As it moves forward, part of 651 ARTS’ mission is to preserve the legacy of Black culture in Brooklyn, celebrate the eclecticism of Black performance, and to pioneer new visions of African Diaspora artists. This year – the transition year – is integral for the institution as it continues to lay the framework that will further help to reinforce 651 ARTS’ role as a leader of African Diasporic culture while also establishing it an incubator for artistic innovation in the 21st century.
651ARTS.org • @651ARTS
About 651 ARTS
Since its founding in 1988, 651 ARTS has become a trusted convener of contemporary African Diasporic artistic expression, a champion and nurturer for emerging artists and their work and a vital cultural resource for its surrounding community. As it moves forward, part of 651 ARTS’ mission is to preserve the legacy of Black culture in Brooklyn, celebrate the eclecticism of Black performance, and to pioneer new visions of African Diaspora artists. This year – the transition year – is integral for the institution as it continues to lay the framework that will further help to reinforce 651 ARTS’ role as a leader of African Diasporic culture while also establishing it an incubator for artistic innovation in the 21st century.
651ARTS.org • @651ARTS
About 651 ARTS
Since its founding in 1988, 651 ARTS has become a trusted convener of contemporary African Diasporic artistic expression, a champion and nurturer for emerging artists and their work and a vital cultural resource for its surrounding community. As it moves forward, part of 651 ARTS’ mission is to preserve the legacy of Black culture in Brooklyn, celebrate the eclecticism of Black performance, and to pioneer new visions of African Diaspora artists. This year – the transition year – is integral for the institution as it continues to lay the framework that will further help to reinforce 651 ARTS’ role as a leader of African Diasporic culture while also establishing it an incubator for artistic innovation in the 21st century.
651ARTS.org • @651ARTS