Join us for a special evening celebrating Oaxacan artistry, memory, and resilience as part of MCASB’s Día de los Muertos programming.

We’ll screen a short film about Maestro José García Antonio, the blind ceramicist and patriarch of Taller Manos Que Ven in San Antonino Castillo Velasco, Oaxaca. For decades, José has shaped clay with his hands—guided not by sight, but by touch, memory, and imagination. Alongside his wife, Teresita, and their children esther, Sara and José, the family studio continues to create world-renowned ceramics, many bearing Teresita’s face as muse and co-creator.

Following the film, Chef Bany Vargas born in Telixtlahuaca, Oaxaca, and raised in Santa Barbara will lead an intimate mezcal tasting and conversation. Sample five small-batch mezcals sourced directly from Oaxacan producers, and explore their stories: the maguey varieties, ancestral methods, and the complex relationship between mezcal, land, and community. Bany will also share how her return to Oaxaca reconnected her to her grandmother’s kitchen—and inspired her own work with traditional chocolate, masa, and mole.

This event is free and open to all. Come honor life, legacy, and flavor with us.

Questions contact: hello@mcasantabarbara.org