The Wallis in Beverly Hills will observe Día de los Muertos with the first Family Fest of the season on Saturday, Nov. 1, starting at 11 a.m.,  a time to remember loved ones, share stories, and celebrate life.  The family-friendly afternoon will be filled with plenty of activities, festive music, dance, and foods inspired by the rich cultural tradition. 

The day of remembrance and gratitude will feature performances and arts and crafts activities from Self Help Graphics & Art, Pacifico Dance Company, Lil Libros, Color Me Face Painting, and City of Beverly Hills Community Services Department.
Event highlights include:

  • Lil’ Libros authors will do story time from the Lil’ Libros collection and share arts, crafts, and learning activities inspired by the Día de los Muertos learning portal.
  • Altar-building workshops with Self Help Graphics & Art, offering both miniature and full-scale creations for kids and families.
  • Face painting by Color Me Face Painting, featuring Día de los Muertos–inspired designs.  Color Me Face Painting specializes in providing artistic, detailed, high-quality face painting, with a wide range of services including glitter, airbrushing, and UV glow painting. A dance workshop and performance by the Pacifico Dance Company will feature traditional styles. 

Admission is free to the public. For more information and to make reservations, visit www.thewallis.org. The museum advises wearing comfortable clothing and shoes and bringing a blanket in case of a picnic.  

Día de los Muertos

Día de los Muertos Family Fest (Courtesy The Wallis)

On Sunday, Nov.  22, the Palm Springs Art Museum will open The Female Form: Tom Wesselmann & Mickalene Thomas, from the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation, the first major exhibition to explore the work of the two artists side by side. 

Centered around questions of desire, visibility, and agency, The Female Form stages a rare conversation between Tom Wesselmann (1931–2004),  a defining figure of American Pop Art known for his stylized nudes,  and Mickalene Thomas (b. 1971), one of today’s most influential contemporary artists whose portraiture reclaims space for Black women in art history. The exhibition examines how the female body has been idealized, consumed, eroticized, and ultimately reclaimed. 

Thomas has often discussed the pop artist’s influence on her practice, particularly in how he approached form and composition, and their mutual interest in the female body, desire, and pop culture.  Thomas was included in a major group show on Wesselmann at the Fondation Louis Vuitton, but the exhibition at PSAM is the first one exclusively dedicated to exploring the relationship between the two artists. The exhibition will feature more than 70 works, all from the collection of philanthropist, businessman, and top collector Jordan Schnitzer.