Nicho Box Workshop
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John Peace Library
The library will provide everything needed to create the nicho boxes. Attendees should bring a photo of their loved one or small object of remembrance that can fit in a 3.5x5x1 inch box.
Nichos are a type of Latinx/e folk-art that combines the roman catholic visual design of a “”retablo”” with the iconography and patterns found in pre-colonial Mesoamerican indigenous imagery. They are traditional recesses carved into marble or stone of the temple walls in catholic churches. Usually, inside these spaces, they would feature a specific saint or critical figure of catholic spirituality.
Beginning October 10, the UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures (ITC) will partner with the UTSA Honors College and UTSA Libraries for a month-long observance of El Dia de los Muertos, the Mexican American celebration of the day of the dead. The collaborative celebration will include hands-on demonstrations on making nichos or shadow boxes dedicated to loved ones and will end with an exhibit at the ITC.
In remembering those who have entered the next part of life, the ITC and Libraries invite the UTSA community and the general public to join one of the upcoming nicho-making workshops. The nicho boxes made at these workshops will then be displayed as part of an exhibit at the end of the celebration.