from OUR TOWN EL SERENO:
by Annette Cruz --
Tony "Piñata King" Dominguez was driving down Alhambra Avenue in El Sereno last month when he recognized one of his art pieces. In this case, a giant paper maché calaca holding a cup of coffee. It stood next to the gold tower on the rooftop of Holy Grounds Coffee and Tea. Curious to know how they obtained it, Tony called Holy Grounds and asked to speak to the owner. Incidentally, Steve Boland (owner of Holy Grounds) and Tony had worked together 10 years ago at Para Los Niños. Steve was Program Director for School Age and Youth Services at the time and brought in Tony to conduct paper maché workshops for the local youth. The kids that attended the center often told this urban legend of a fireman ghost that haunted the building so Tony suggested they create a giant paper maché fireman calaca in his honor. After the Para Los Niños youth center discontinued its programming (and several years in storage) Steve moved the calaca art piece to Holy Grounds. He donated its original fire hat to local fire station #16 on Eastern Avenue but kept the calaca for his new business venture. After adding a coffee cup prop, he dubbed it “Holy Ghost.”
Our TownEl Sereno caught up with Tony on the roof of Holy Grounds recently. Tony was there to reinforce Holy Ghost. If you are not familiar with the art of Tony Dominguez, he started making piñatas as a child, a craft he learned from his neighbor babysitter with whom he would make piñatas with after school at his home in East LA That craft eventually led to Tony’s own piñata company that he started in his early twenties. From there his skills grew into building giant paper maché puppets and other paper maché art. Fiesta Broadway and Neederlander requested his work. Tony even showcased his creations at Beck and Café Tacuba concert in 2000 as part of the stage production at The Greek Theater.
In 1999, Tony Dominguez founded Festival de la Gente, providing a platform for local artists and musicians in East Los Angeles to showcase their talent and help preserve the Mexican tradition of celebration that honors our ancestors. The final Festival De La Gente took place at Barker Block on Hewitt Street in downtown LA in 2008, but the most memorable were those that took place on the 6th Street Bridge that connects Boyle Heights to Downtown. The 6th Street Bridge Festivals attracted over 170,000 attendees. Tony was also involved in the inaugural Dia de los Muertos at Hollywood Forever Cemetery but did not continue on with that group.
OTES: When you started 'Festival De La Gente' did you envision the Day of The Dead holiday and Day of The Dead festivals becoming as popular as they have?
TD: Yes. I spent some of my early adult years working for an ad agency so I understood the importance of branding. At the time I really thought because of my love for music, my community and producing events, I would start my own record label. But in reference to the question, I always knew. I’m a very calculated person and I set my intentions. Ad agencies would buy into the Hispanic advertising market for 30 days in September for Latino Heritage Month and now because of the growing interest for the Dia De Los Muertos, they extend their marketing season well into Halloween and into the month of November.
His vision worked. In addition to ad agencies picking up on the holiday, Disneyland Park has been celebrating Dia De Los Muertos since 2007. During Halloween time, Rancho Zocalo Restaurante in Frontierland displays a tribute to honoring the dead with an area that features cheerful skeletons and brightly colored altars with marigolds and sugar skulls. The Walt Disney Studio’s failed attempt at trademarking “Dia De Los Muertos” is another example of how popular the holiday has become.
Even though Tony no longer produces Festival de La Gente, that hasn’t stopped him from sharing the celebration with the public. In 2011, La Muerte Vive! premiered at The Los Angeles Theater in Downtown Los Angeles. Billed as “rock opera meets cabaret style shows,” the production is also written and directed by Tony and features a large collection of giant Judas style paper maché puppets, a creative adaptation and music score by Santos de Los Angeles and special burlesque performances by Miss Ruby Champagne. This year, La Muerte Vive! comes to MOLAA (Museum of Latino American Art) in Long Beach on October 25th and November 1st. It will feature a special exhibition of celebrity-inspired altars curated by Tony Dominguez. La Muerte Vive! is now on its fourth run and is also scheduled to hit a few additional cities this year. Tony will also lead a Calavera Mask-Making workshop in the Art Studio at MOLAA. It’s free for kids 12 and under on Wednesday, October 29 from 3 to 5pm. For more details and ticket information, check out http://museum-of-latin-americanart.myshopify.com/collections/events. All ticket proceeds from La Muerte Vive! benefit The Museums arts education programs.
In keeping with tradition, El Sereno is preparing for its own 5th annual Dia De Los Muertos event (in its 2nd year with the opening of the pedestrian tunnel art gallery). The celebrations continue with a 2 week altar display in the store front windows along Huntington Drive from October 25 through November 8th. On November 1, the El Sereno Tunnel Art Gallery hosted by Two Poets From El Sereno will open up from 3 to 8pm and display an 11-altar art walk in addition to music and poetry inside the pedestrian tunnel at Pueblo and Huntington. From 3 to 10pm, a street fair will be spearheaded by Red 67, El Sereno Community Arts and Hecho en Mexico Restaurant. The fair will boast a grand community altar, food booths of local restaurants (a taste of El Sereno), community booths, vendors, art for sale, and fashion trucks on Huntington Drive between Pueblo and Portola. The Eastside Bike Club will also have a ghost bike memorial and launch their 6th annual Dia De Los Muertos bike ride from their altar site. This year’s entertainment schedule includes community acts and live music by Viento Callejero, Buye Pongo and others.
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