For the fourth year in a row, Tacoma Art Museum (TAM) is partnering with Centro Latino for a celebration of the traditional Latino holiday Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead. There is a lot planned for this multi-day event that will be presented Oct. 18-Nov. 2 including an exhibit of student art commemorating the day, on view now in the museum’s Community Art Space, and a free community festival featuring dance and music, hands-on art making activities and sugar skull decorating.

Over the years Tacoma has become a center of Dia de los Muertos celebrations in the South Sound that all culminate in a big public procession along Sixth Avenue Nov. 2, where artistically made skeletons on long poles and participants with painted faces give life to the spirits of those who have passed in keeping with the holiday’s traditions observed by Mexican and Latino communities.

With the origins of Dia de los Muertos reaching back 3,000 years or more, when Mexico’s indigenous peoples held colorful and joyful ceremonies to honor their deceased ancestors, Centro Latino’s collaboration with TAM is a partnership perfectly suited for this much-anticipated event.

“Centro Latino has been a wonderful partner in our celebration of Dia de los Muertos these past four years,” said Paula McArdle, director of education and public programs for TAM. “We’re honored to work with them again to observe this important Latino cultural tradition and to help organize related festivities on a citywide scale.”

The festivities begin Oct. 18 when artist Fulgencio Lazo and his team of assistants will create a large and colorful “tapete” (traditional sand painting) in TAM’s lobby. Visitors are invited to stop by and watch the artists in action.

That same weekend in partnership with Northwest Leadership Foundation, local community organizations and schools will install “ofrendas,” ornate altars to honor those who have passed, on the museum’s third floor. The altars will contain a fascinating mix of flowers, candles, light-hearted clay figurines, sugar skeletons embellished with the names of the deceased, and personal messages to the spirits.

On Nov. 2 the celebration peaks with a free community festival at the museum from noon to 6 p.m. during which Patricia Morales, the consul of Mexico for Washington, will speak. There will be music, dancing, opportunities to make art, and lots of delicious and authentic Mexican foods will be available at the museum’s front plaza courtesy of Maria’s Tamales and Josephina’s Restaurant. From there it is off to the Sixth Avenue Dia de los Muertos procession, which offers a whole evening of great fun for the whole family.

For more information on the schedule of events, visit www.tacomaartmuseum.org.