Marigold & Lavender. Graphic design by Bernardo Velez.

[Graphic design by Bernardo Velez. Text: "Marigold & Lavender. Artists & activists bring together Día de los Muertos and Transgender Day of Remembrance. Mourn the dead; fight like hell for the living. Nitery Theater. November 6-11, 2017. Free admission. Please RSVP. Website: marigoldandlavender.wixsite.com/home." Image: A person of color in calavera makeup, wearing marigold and lavender flowers in their hair, holding up a protest sign in the shape of a transgender symbol. The trans* symbol consists of a circle with three extensions: a Venus symbol, a Mars symbol, and a compound Venus/Mars symbol. Within the circle of the trans* symbol are the words: "Mourn the dead; fight like hell for the living."]

For more info, here is a newspaper article written

by Felicia Hou about Marigold & Lavender in the

DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS

OCTOBER 31-NOVEMBER 2

Día de Muertos is a joyous and sacred celebration honoring our deceased loved ones. It is a uniquely syncretic tradition, straddling both indigenous practices of the Americas and the influence of colonial Catholicism. Each year between October 31st and November 2nd, altars filled with cempa-súchil (marigolds), feasts, and other relics invoke the return of our beloved dead's souls to the world of the living.

The celebration is made up of two individual celebrations: Día de Los Fieles Difuntos (All Saints Day), commemorating the spirits of lost children, and Todos los Difuntos (All Souls Day), honoring adults that have passed on. Rituals and traditions are meant to honor and memorialize the dead, as well as herald the joyful return of ancestors into the living world in order to partake of the prepared feasts in private homes, graveyards ... and even theaters.

[Image: A trail made from marigolds. Camino hecho de flor de cempasúchil. Photo by: Raul David Salomon Garcia.]

In the traditions of radical queer Chicanx feminism, Día de Muertos is also an occasion to recognize the longstanding and ongoing history of colonial violence against indigenous peoples, structural and hate violence against trans* lives, state violence against immigrants and refugees, and police violence against Black lives. To honor the memory of the millions lost to genocide, racism and hetero/cis-sexism, Día de Muertos is a call for solidarity in the struggle for justice.

TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBRANCE

NOVEMBER 20

This year (2017), at least 28 trans* and nonbinary people have been killed in the U.S. – 24 were people of color.

Before this year, last year (2016) was the deadliest on record for trans* people, with 27 known homicides in the U.S. Again, most victims were women of color. The actual number in any year is likely much larger, as we are commonly mis-gendered by police and media, and because our deaths are often not reported at all. We – who are trans*, gender-queer, nonbinary, genderfluid, gender expansive, gender nonconforming, agender, and who resist-rework-refuse the male/female sex binary and the man/woman gender binary – are literally dying from racist hetero/cis-sexism.

"With so many seeking to erase transgender people – sometimes in the most brutal ways possible – it is vitally important that those we lose are remembered, and that

we continue to fight for justice." – Gwendolyn Ann Smith, Founder of Transgender Day of Remembrance

Transgender Day of Remembrance is an annual observance on November 20 that honors the memory of those whose lives were lost in acts of anti-trans* bigotry and hetero/cis-sexist violence. It is one of many efforts in the everyday struggle for trans* liberation and justice.

| 28 | January 1

| 41 | January 4

| 23 | January 6

| 23 | February 8

| 18 | February 19

| 24 | February 21

| 31 | February 25

| 25 | February 27

| 38 | March 22

| 27 | April 9

| 28 | April 21

| 59 | April 25

| 46 | May 16

| 28 | June 13

| 17 | June 25

| 28 | July 2

| 32 | July 31

| 29 | August 11

| 26 | August 12

| 30 | August 22

| 17 | September 3

| 28 | September 5

| 26 | September 12

| 21 | September 16

| 47 | October 21

| 30 | October 31

Jamie Lee Wounded Arrow

Mesha Caldwell

Sean Hayes

Jojo Striker

Jaquarrius Holland

Keke Collier

Chyna Gibson

Ciara McElveen

Alphonza Watson

Kenne McFadden

Chay Reed

Brenda Bostick

Sherrell Faulkner

Josie Berrios

Ava Le'Ray Barrin

Ebony Morgan

TeeTee Dangerfield

Jaylow McGlory

Gwynevere River Song

Kiwi Herring

Ally Steinfeld

Kashmire Nazier Redd

Derricka Banner

Scout Schultz

Stephanie Montez

Candace Towns

[Text: Jamie Lee Wounded Arrow. 28 years old. January 1, 2017.]

Marigold & Lavender

About

Events

EVENTS

November 6-11, 2017

Visual Art & Altar Exhibition

The Marigold & Lavender Project

Gallery Hours

Mon Nov 6 - Sat Nov 11 | Nitery Theater

Mon Nov 6

4:00-8:00 | Gallery open

5:00-6:00 | Artist talk

Tue Nov 7

12:00-4:00 | Gallery open

Wed Nov 8

12:00-4:00 | Gallery open

Thu Nov 9

5:00-9:00 | Gallery open

7:00-8:00 | Performance

Fri Nov 10

5:00-9:00 | Gallery open

7:00-8:00 | Performance

Sat Nov 11

12:00-4:00 | Gallery open

[An image of two small sculptures of La Calavera Catrina: one wearing green, the other wearing red, both with flowers in their hair and holding a bouquet of flowers.]

Please RSVP for artist talk

and performance events

(see below).

Opening Reception & Artist Talk

The Marigold & Lavender Project

Visual Art & Altar Exhibition

Mon Nov 6 | 4:00-8:00 | Nitery Theater

The visual artists and altar-makers will present on their artwork, sharing the development of their pieces and talking about the rituals and practices related to the dead that inspired their work.

Light refreshments served.

[An image of a gray-blue, yellow & orange calavera against a background of marigold flowers.]

4:00-5:00 | Opening reception

5:00-6:00 | Artist talk

6:00-8:00 | Visual art & altar exhibition

Mourn the Dead

Fight Like Hell for the Living

Marigold & Lavender Project Performances

Thu Nov 9 - Fri Nov 10 | 7:00 | Nitery Theater

The Marigold & Lavender Project brings together the traditions – old and new – of Día de los Muertos and Transgender Day of Remembrance. These performances remember the dead as a way to reclaim, decolonize, and honor our cultural traditions and to demand the end of anti-trans* violence. Join our spoken word artists, musicians, storytellers, actors, and performance artists to imagine and create a just world.

A person in calavera makeup holding up a transgender symbol w/ the words "Mourn the dead. Fight like hell for the living."

5:00-9:00 | Visual art & altar exhibition

7:00-8:00 | Performance

PERFORMING ARTISTS

Áine Josephine Tyrrell

Director, Singer, Writer & Co-producer

Áine (she/her) is a singer, director, set designer, writer and scholar. Her current research is on ISIS terrorism in France and EU counter-terrorism policy as performance.

Elisa Marina Alvarado

Actress, Director & Community Organizer

Elisa (she/her) is a founding member and Artistic Director of Teatro Visión which celebrates over three decades of creating and performing theater of self-determination and hope. Elisa has taught theater for Teatro Visión, San José State University, and San Francisco State University and many community organizations. teatrovision.org

Emily Francis

Dancer, Choreographer, & Painter

Emily (she/her) is a scientist, choreographer, dancer, and painter. Her work addresses the union of chaos and organization, multiplicity, collective behavior, and outliers.

Jasmín Espinosa Jaimes

Writer / Storyteller

Jasmín (she/her) is a Chicana storyteller born and raised in the South who loves to share stories from her life and those that have touched her life in one way or another. Her favorite activities include daydreaming and complaining.

Kari Barclay

Performer

Kari Barclay (he/him & they/them) is a theater director, performer, and community organizer from Washington, DC and Durham, NC. He is currently community engagement intern for the SF Mime Troupe. His next work CAN I HOLD YOU is an original script about queerness and asexuality, premiering in February at Stanford. karibarclay.com

Karina Gutiérrez

Actor & Co-producer

Karina (she/her) is an actor, director, writer, and scholar interested in Latinx and Chicanx performance, history, and other cuentos.

Kevin Alexander Martinez

Spoken Word Artist / Performance Artist

Kevin (he/him) is an actor and storyteller from LA. His work examines the Latinx Diaspora and attempts to piece together a narrative of collective memory, trauma, and healing. He's queer, confused, and can't roll his r's but he's trying his best.

Roxa Meyer

Classical Pianist / Composer

Roxa (they/them & she/her) is a musician and composer who expresses through music whatever they cannot through words. When not at the piano, you can usually find them laboring over physics problems, fighting for environmental justice, or smashing the gender binary.

Thao P. Nguyen

Solo Performer, Writer, & Co-producer

Thao (they/them > she/her) is a solo performer, writer, and producer. They make art about whatever pisses them off — racism, sexual violence, white power, hetero/cis-sexism, and people who don't say "please" and "thank you." thaosolo.com

Victor Yañez-Lazcano

Visual Artist

Victor Yañez-Lazcano (he/him & they/them) is a second year MFA Art Practice candidate currently investigating, through different mediums, the various aspects that have contributed to the formation of his identity—specifically as it pertains to being a second generation Mexican-American raised in the rural midwest. yanez-lazcano.com

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Performing Artists

VISUAL ARTISTS

~~Bernardo Velez Rico~~

Visual Artist / Graphic Designer

Bernardo (he/him) is a Mexican-American mixed-media artist who seeks to humanize the Mexican immigrant experience by publicly staging narratives sourced from oral histories, first-hand experiences, and the unedited, intertwined history of the U.S. and Mexico. bernardovelez.com

~~Eda Benites & David Albán Hidalgo~~

Writer/Installation Artist & Writer/Poet

Eda (she/her & they/them) and David (he/him & they/them) are amigxs Andinxs. This is their first artistic collaboration in which they attempt to speak to legacies of pain and violence in the Andean region. Dedicamos nuestro proyecto especialmente para nuestras amigas del Mercado San Pedro, Cusco. Eda is a writer and installation artist, and David is a writer and poet.

~~Emily Francis~~

Painter, Dancer & Choreographer

Emily (she/her) is a scientist, choreographer, dancer, and painter. Her work addresses the union of chaos and organization, multiplicity, collective behavior, and outliers.

~~Finn Sonder~~

Inkwork & Tattoo Artist

Finn (they/them) enjoys surfing, whittling small boats, backpacking through deserts, serving up crepes at French House, and dressing up like a 14 year old boy who stole a whole lotta stuff from his grandpa's closet.

~~Jen Marrero Hope~~

Visual & Fiber Artist

Jen (they/them/frustrated gender groans) is a multimedia artist who draws, knits, sews, and laser cuts pretty things of questionable utility. They yell a lot about including marginalized folks in academic science and occasionally moonlight as a biochemist.

~~Sophia Xiao~~

Visual Artist

Sophia (she/her) is a visual artist and biology major who finds inspiration for her art in the people who surround her. She believes that true creativity lies in finding the fantastic in the ordinary, and she strives to do just that in her work. sophxiao.weebly.com

~~Stanford Women's Community Center~~

Artist Collaboration

The Women's Community Center exists to facilitate the success of students at Stanford by providing innovative opportunities for scholarship, leadership, and activism. wcc.stanford.edu

~~Talia Flores~~

Photographer & Videographer

Talia is a sophomore and an artist. On-campus, she is a fellow at Stanford’s Institute for Diversity in the Arts and a member of the Stanford Spoken Word Collective. Find her on Twitter @tal_ora.

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Visual Artists

Presenters

THE MARIGOLD & LAVENDER PROJECT IS PRESENTED BY

[Image: Text reads "NExT," The N, E, and T are capital letters and the x is a lowercase letter. Letters are white on a black background.]

Nitery Experimental Theater (NExT)

Nitery Experimental Theater (NExT), a project of the Stanford Theater and Performance Studies Department, aims to present bold and relevant performance meant to challenge, transform, and cultivate meaningful artistic expression. NExT is also committed to diverse communities, aesthetics, and politics that exist within the Stanford community. By building connections between student-artists and the Department of Theater and Performance Studies (TAPS), NExT intends to foster performance as an integral forum for community conversation. Performance at NExT may be raw, political, provocative, or even playful. NExT is not a new home for performance; NExT uses performance to make Stanford a new kind of home.

JUST ART: Stanford Artist/Activist Collective

JUST ART is a collective of artists, activists, artist-activists, and/or artivists. The collective's goal is to end oppression and to enact social justice by creating art and engaging in political action. We approach our work from an intersectional lens and center the stories of those who experience multiple vectors of oppression — racism, misogyny, hetero/cis-sexism, ableism, classism, xenophobia, religious oppression, etc. In April 2017, JUST ART produced 20 Minutes of Action a show created by Stanford artists of color in response to Brock Turner's "20 minutes of action," Donald Trump's "locker room talk," and the misappropriation of the term "rape culture."