Día de los Muertos presented by Taqueria Arandas

Discovery Green hosts Día de los Muertos on Friday, Nov. 2, 2018, 6-10 p.m. (Photo: Katya Horner)

Discovery Green hosts Día de los Muertos presented by Arandas Bakery on Friday, Nov. 2, 2018, 6-10 p.m. This first-annual festival celebrates Day of the Dead, a Mexican holiday where families and friends gather to celebrate, remember and prepare special foods in honor of those who are no longer living.

The event features hands-on art activities, artist demos and cultural performances, and culminates in a procession to the festival’s centerpiece: A custom, three-tiered altar - designed by Houston street artist and muralist Angel Quesada - where visitors are invited to place items associated with their departed loved ones. Other highlights include a concert by San Diego-based Mexican folk-rock quartet Jarabe Mexicano, performances by J-Dance Company and Nueva Luna Ballet Folklorico, and samplings of pan de muerto, a typical Mexican sweet bread (pan dulce), from Arandas Bakery.

The Día de los Muertos festival coincides with the preview night of Art @ Discovery Green, the park’s annual fair featuring more than 75 fine art and contemporary craft vendors. This year’s featured artist, street artist GONZO247, will be onsite selling his studio work.