Please join me today for a conversation with Chicana artist and altarista Ofelia Esparza and her daughter Rosanna Esparza Ahrens at 6pm PST on the Vincent Price Art Museum’s Instagram Live (https://www.instagram.com/vpam_arts/). We will be discussing the process of creating sacred spaces and their connection to health, resiliency, and spirituality.

Please continue reading for some more information on Ofelia and please make sure you tune in at 6pm here on @vpam_arts' livestream! If you can’t make it at that time, the livestream will be available in @vpam_arts’ stories for 24 hours!

Ofelia Esparza is a Chicana artist and 4th generation altarista (altar maker), whose work is informed by a deep spiritual belief in the traditional process. For over 40 years, Esparza has shared her cultural knowledge as an educator in the East Los Angeles neighborhood of City Terrace and at the renown art center Self Help Graphics & Art, where she first created public altar installations for Dia de los Muertos and Noche de Ofrenda. The National Endowment of the Arts has recognized Ofelia Esparza as one of ten National Heritage Fellows for 2018.

Ofelia was born and raised in East Los Angeles, where she has lived her whole life since 1932. The cultural traditions such as altar making was passed down by her mother and grandmothers, and she in turn passed them along to her own nine children, who continue to develop their own talents within the custom of altar making.

#MeditationMonday is a part of #VPAMRollCall a digital initiative dedicated to hearing from the many people who form our community. Through online conversations, blog posts, and activities, we check-in with artists, community members, and students at East Los Angeles College in an effort to promote virtual wellness and dialogue.