Five Things to Do This Weekend

1 Attend a group art opening.

The Taos Abstract Artist Collective (TAAC) debuts its fall exhibition at the Stables Gallery in the Taos Center for the Arts on Saturday with an opening reception from 4 to 8 p.m. Showing the work of 74 artists, the exhibition displays the breadth of media and identity in the collective. “This show falls on the Day of the Dead,” says Lauren Smith, co-founder and board president of the collective. “There’s a wonderfully moody texture to the works in the show that matches the feeling of this season, and this important day of remembrance.”

This year’s collection highlights an abundance of textile works, including some by artists from the research and design studio Futuros Ancestral, and one by the collective’s fall scholar, Roxanne Marquez. TAAC is partnering with the Southwest Black Arts Collective to host Kinship & Collectivity in Contemporary Art Practice panel discussion on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. See the exhibition through November 9.

2 Open an artistic dialogue.

Cara and Diego Romero are giants of their respective mediums: Cara (Chemehuevi) in photography and Diego (Cochiti Pueblo) in ceramics. The married pair of Indigenous artists show their work together in a new exhibition opening Saturday at the Albuquerque Museum. Cara and Diego Romero: Tales of Futures Past explores ideas surrounding Indigeneity and the shared phenomena both artists use to express Native identity’s evolution, like ancestral traditions and pop culture. See the exhibition through February 8.

3 Find inspiration in Dixon.

One of the oldest running studio tours in the state, the Dixon Studio Tour happens Saturday and Sunday. Embudo Valley artist invite collectors and art curious visitors into their creative spaces, where they can buy works directly from artists, and learn more about their processes. The 43rd tour includes jewelry, stoneworks, ceramics, stained glass, textile arts, landscape painting, and fun culinary stops such as Vivác Winery and the Dixon Coop Market & Deli. With riverfront landscapes where giant cottonwoods are at the peak of their autumnal gold, the tour meanders through some truly stunning vistas and welcomes visitors from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. Find a map online.

4 Have a creepy, dancey Halloween.

Albucreepy Trolley of Terror

Author, historian, and paranormal investigator Cody Polston takes spooky seekers on a haunted trip through Albuquerque while sharing terrifying local legends with trolley riders. The journey begins at the Painted Lady Bed & Brew with trolleys leaving Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 8 p.m. Before you board the trolley, enjoy boo-zy beverages at the Painted Lady’s Ghostlight Saloon, which opens at 5 p.m. Get your ticket here.

Taos’ wicked Halloween Ball: Intergalactic Oddity

A portion of the proceeds from this Taos Halloween bash benefit the Taos Community Against Violence organization. It happens at Daleee KTaos Solar Center from 6 p.m. to close on Friday with dance jams by DJ Tymer Buck, a costume contest with an array of categories like scariest and best duo, themed cocktails, and Halloween portraits. Find a ticket here.  

Halloween Party at the Murray Hotel

Wear your costume to the Murray Hotel, in Silver City, and party with live music by Rhythm Mystic and Brandon Perrault, 7 to 11 p.m. on Friday, with a cash bar and a prize for the best dressed. Buy tickets at the door, or by calling.

Ghost Light Groove

Ghouls and goblins, gather and show off your fanciest moves at this dance party at the Lensic Performing Arts Center, in Santa Fe. Starting at 8 p.m. on Friday, it features sets by DJ Raashan Ahmad, Dynamite Sol, and BadCat, a full cash bar, a costume contest (no glitter please) and a night market. Tickets are $40 at the door and $35 here.

Vivác Winery Spooktacular Halloween Party

The Dixon winery hosts a costumed party with karaoke, live music, and special spooky drinks to celebrate the ghostly occasion. Boogie and sip Friday, 4–9 p.m.

Boo-palooza

Families dress up and head to Orchard Park in downtown Farmington on Friday, from 4–6 p.m., for a fun Halloween bash with trick-or-treating, costume contests, vendors, and fun for everyone in the fam.

Garcia Bar takeover

Friday night in downtown Truth or Consequences, Garcia’s Bar transforms into a haunted watering hole with massive spiders, pool-playing skeletons, and monsters galore from 5 to 8 p.m. Teri and Dino Cates, of TLC Pest Control, take over the bar during the event, decorating with a ton of freaky items and creepy crawlies from their own collection, including scorpions and a tarantula. The party features a temporary tattoo chair, fun Halloween drinks, and a little candy too.

5 Honor the dead.

Muertos Y Marigolds Parade

The biggest Dia de los Muertos celebration in the state happens in the South Valley of Albuquerque where marigold-decked crowds celebrate with a procession, offrenda exhibit, and party at the West Side Community Center. People dress in elaborate costumes, including calaveras (traditional skeleton costumes), there are thousands of marigolds featured on parade floats and altars to the dead, and live performances by La Chapuza, Desert Coast, and Los Domingueros, plus food trucks, arts vendors, and a car show. It starts at noon on Sunday.

Dia de los Muertos on the Santa Fe Plaza

On Friday and Saturday, the Santa Fe Plaza honors the dead with papel picados, a traditional paper art from Mexico, mariachi music, community offrendas, and a candlelight parade on Saturday evening before a dance party with Nosotros at 8:30 p.m. There will also be vendors selling Dia de Los Muertos related goods, like masks and offrenda-decorating items, plus a screening of the Pixar film, Coco.

Dia de los Muertos, Mesilla

Celebrate this beautiful holiday on the Historic Mesilla Plaza with a flower-laden tribute to late loved ones. On Saturday, watch the Pixar movie Coco and, on Sunday, see traditional Ballet Folklórico dancers before a candlelight procession. Both days feature local vendors and food trucks around the plaza, and an array of offrendas honoring late loved ones from the community.

For more things to do, check out our online calendar of events.