MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Next week isn’t just Halloween, it’s Dia de los Muertos — Day of the Dead, a Mexican holiday celebrating loved ones who have died.

Nov. 1 and 2 are All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day respectively. To celebrate, two local artistic venues have extensive exhibitions.

The Minnesota Center for Book Arts has To Life: A Day of the Dead Celebration in the Open Book Gallery. This is exhibit is the result of a competition, asking artists to submit postcards depicting their vision of Day of the Dead.

The results are wonderfully diverse, some whimsical:

(credit: Amy Rea)

Some more contemporary:

(credit: Amy Rea)

Some more eerie than others:

(credit: Amy Rea)

And the winner of the competition, by Nuno Nunez, a detailed piece of cut paper art.

(credit: Amy Rea)

The MCBA exhibit will be open through Nov. 6, and it’s well worth a visit. The hundreds of postcards on exhibit were submitted from all over the country and from a wide range of ages.

The other exhibit opens Nov. 1 and runs through Dec. 4. The Minneapolis Institute of the Arts has its annual Young People’s Ofrenda: Expressions of Life and Remembrance exhibit.

(credit: Minneapolis Institute Of Arts)

(credit: Minneapolis Institute Of Arts)

The ofrendas themselves are so interesting, with varied viewpoints and items for honoring the loved one. But the students also create videos where they talk about what they’ve learned, why they chose the person for their ofrenda, what they observe when the visit the Institute to see artwork honoring the dead throughout the centuries, and what it all means to them. When the exhibit opens, the videos can be found on the Young People’s Ofrenda site.

(credit: Minneapolis Institute Of Arts)

What else is happening in our state? Be sure to check out the 10 p.m. newscast on WCCO-TV on Sunday, where you can learn more in the weekly segment, Finding Minnesota.