St. John the Divine observes Día de Muertos, creating
a space for community to mourn COVID-19 deaths
BY HAEVEN GIBBONS
An altar dressed with colors
of the sunset glows amid
the candlelight. Black and
white photos of people’s faces line
the table behind a ceramic skeleton
painted with the same oranges
and yellows of the tissue-papermarigold
fl owers that bloom in
asymmetric patterns around the
altar.
A space at the foot of the altar
leaves room for people to leave
photographs and mementos of
those they have lost and candles
in tall jars wait to be lit.
For the fi rst time, The Cathedral
Church of St. John the
Divine observed Día de Muertos
to mourn the people who died
from COVID-19 and to honor
the heroes of the pandemic. The
cathedral brought in New Yorkbased
artist Sebastian Gamez to
build two Día de Muertos altars
in recognition of how COVID-19
unequally affected many racial
and ethnic minority groups
and to celebrate the New York
Mexican-American and Latinx
communities. The altars will
remain in the cathedral through
the end of November for people
to come, leave mementos, light a
candle and remember those they
lost.
Día de Muertos is a holiday
Día de los Muertos altar by New York based artist Sebastian Gamez.
dating back to the Aztecs. It is
traditionally celebrated on Nov.
1 and 2.
“Many people think the Day of
the Dead is contributed to death,
but it’s a celebration of life, so I
draw inspiration from that and
from past fi gures who have died
who have left so many wonderful
things for us,” Gamez said.
The altar saturated in shades
of orange and yellow is a richly
traditional Mexican altar. It is
customary to decorate altars
with marigolds, the fl ower of the
dead, photographs of lost loved
ones, candles, painted skulls
and offerings of the deceased’s
favorite things. The altar also
includes Día de Muertos bread
with crossbones engraved on it,
fruits, and tequilas, Mexican hot
chocolate and mezcal.
Gamez said he wanted to
showcase tradition since it is
the fi rst time the cathedral has
PHOTO BY HAEVEN GIBBONS
observed the holiday. Gamez’s
grandmother would always build
an altar, and he grew up going to
the cemetery on Nov. 2, All Souls
Day, with his family.
“I’ve heard that you die twice,
once when you die and again
when a person says your name
for the last time, so remembering
them means a lot to the families,”
said Garrett Borawski, who attended
the cathedral on Nov. 2
during a memorial service.
Real marigolds bloom from
planters at the base of the altar
and candlelight refl ects off the
velvet tablecloth. On top of
the table, a picture of Gamez’s
grandmother, Doña Fernanda,
sits in the middle of an extravagant
frame covered in the same
monarch butterfl ies that border
the altar. Día de Muertos bread is
in a bowl below the frame.
“We called my grandmother Mi
Nanda,” said Fernanda Gamez,
Sebastian’s sister. “She was too
vain to be called grandmother.
She was a powerful woman born
in 1911. She was a force to be
reckoned with.”
Fernanda and Gamez honor
their Mi Nanda each year by
lighting a candle and putting
her favorite foods around an
altar.
Creating these altars at the
cathedral is a chance to show
communities that didn’t know if
they had a home in the cathedral
that they are welcome, Gamez
said.
Clifton Daniel III, the right
reverend and 10th dean at The
Cathedral Church of Saint John
the Divine, called the 125-yearold
cathedral a house of healing
and reconciliation, and urged
people to look at and leave a note
or ofrenda at one of the “magnifi -
cent” altars.
Fifth Avenue to kick off holiday season
with grand opening of light display
BY EMILY DAVENPORT
Fifth Avenue is getting an early start
to the holiday season with a grand
opening ceremony next week.
On Nov. 17, Fifth Avenue will celebrate
the beginning of “Fifth Season”
at the Pulitzer Fountain, located at 764
Central Park South across from The
Plaza Hotel.
This holiday season, Fifth Avenue will
be decked out in all sorts of holiday decor
created in New York by the artisans of
Harlequin Designs, including 32 handcrafted
in-Brooklyn animal sculptures
across from the Plaza Hotel, as well as
5,000 feet of lighting, a skating rink, and
24 handmade icebergs surrounding the
Pulitzer Fountain, all of which will be accompanied
by music from Paul Brill. This
experience will build on last year’s theme,
Make It Bright, which included oversized
lit toys including a teddy bear, dreidel, and
red truck adorning Fifth Avenue from
47th – 60th Streets.
The Nov. 17 event will feature a musical
performance by The Brooklyn Youth Chorus
and a light show to bring the installation
to life. Season hot beverages will be available
from Angelina Paris, and caroling is
encouraged. This year’s charitable partner
for Fifth Season is City Harvest, and large
toy installations that line the Avenue will
allow tourists and patrons to donate directly
to New York’s fi rst and largest food rescue
organization.
The event is open to the public and will
start at 6 p.m. For more information, visit
fi fthavenue.nyc.
PROVIDED
A sketch of the anticipated Pulitzer Fountain display
Schneps Media November 11, 2021 3