Food serves as a tangible and sensory link to our cultural and familial heritage. It can bring us closer to our deceased relatives bypreserving their traditions, memories and the emotional connections we had with them. Sharing food can be a meaningful way to honour and remember those who have passed away while also reinforcing the sense of continuity within a family or community.

Food has the power to evoke strong emotions and memories. Cooking or eating a dish that a deceased relative loved can be a way to feel close to them, almost as if they are present in spirit. The taste and smell of familiar foods can trigger a sense of comfort and nostalgia, bringing back fond memories of times spent with loved ones.

Visit our Saturday Farmers Market to find recipes shared by our vendors honouring loved ones passed.

Join us in the Children’s Garden for a weekend filled with exploration, curiosity, and meaningful lessons about the circle of life in the natural world. Come learn about decomposers and life cycles of different plants and animals – you’ll see how everything is interconnected!

A lot of the fresh cut flowers you see at the Farmers Market maintain their beauty long after their life cycle ends. Flower varieties including Statice, Strawflower and Celosia, to name a few, keep their vibrant colour once dried and are excellent for dried flower bouquets. Come join us at the Garden Market to make your own Everlasting Bouquet! All flowers provided are grown by local flower farmers. Click on the button below to sign up!

“Space for Grief” is an award-winning, public art installation that explores community bonding and healing through grief. With a vision to foster empathy in the face of life’s transitions and losses, “Space for Grief” seeks to spark meaningful conversations and bolster support structures in our personal spheres, communities, and workplaces. As a placemaking initiative it invites visitors to explore the multifaceted world of grief and its causes, expressions and supports. Industrial machinery and organic plant material create a surreal environment for reflection and meditation, while prompts guide visitors to reflect on experiences in their lives. Accompanying soundscapes, composed specifically for the installation, act as a soundtrack for one’s memories.

“Space for Grief” is presented by Method Collective with collaborating artists, Rakat Zami, Calla Lee, Ziyan Hossain, Mimosa Haque and Fran Quintero Rawlings.

In Honour of All Beings – Community Installation, Altar and Guided Walk.

This is a three-part art installation designed by Emily Pleasance that focuses on our relationship with the natural world and our ecological grief.

First, Emily has created a welcoming and intimate space that invites you to come sit with her, relax, and play with some rocks! This space will be open during the hours of the festival. While playing with this extensive and uniquely colourful rock collection, Emily will guide the community through conversations about our relationship with nature and what it means to have ecological grief.

Second, when you are ready to leave the space and explore the rest of the festival, you will be invited to choose a rock from the collection to add to the Alter of All Beings. This community altar is a space for you to honour any lost beings of the natural world. The altar will be preserved after the festival.

Finally, for anyone who wishes to explore the park after the festival, Emily invites you to join her on a Forest Bathing Walk. Here she will be guiding the community through sensory-based invitations, all of which invite you to be with nature.

Join the Natural Burial Association to learn about eco-friendly alternatives to end of life planning​. Your final resting place can be in nature, in a meadow or forest and your last act can be giving back to the earth. That’s natural burial. They will be creating an art installation that embodies their work. Visit them and learn more​.

Come join Dr. Gokoomis (Grandmother) Jacque/line Lavallée and Dr. Hopi Martin Oshkaabewis (Sacred Helper, Messenger, Fire Keeper, Lodge Caretaker) in Ceremony by the Sacred Fire to mourn the loss of our loved ones who have passed back into Spirit. We will also be honouring the more than 10,000 Indigenous children who did not make it back to their families from residential schools. Please prepare some of your loved one’s favourite food to share, along with your own feast bundle (bowl, cup, spoon), a shaker or drum if you have one, and something to sit on outside.

GROUNDED STRANDS: Join Maria, from Philotimo Life, to learn about the ways beads have played a role in many cultures for meditation. Visitors will explore their emotions, their connection to grief and the way it plays a role in their lives. Guests will have the opportunity to craft their own meditation beads (prayer beads, worry beads, etc.), to reflect their own personal style, emotions and approach to processing your personal experiences. At the end of the workshop, you will get to take home a personalized keepsake.

GRIEF MEMORY MOSAIC: You’re invited to share your experience with grief with others at the Good Mourning Festival. In this activation, you will be presented thoughtful questions that are designed to be introspective and encourage conversations. You will be provided with stickers and notepads to answer questions presented to you on a bristol board. As the festival progresses, the boards will transform into vibrant canvases filled with the answers and collective wisdom, stories and feelings of those in attendance. Our goal through this activation is to help encourage meaningful conversations and create connection with other attendees.

Threads of Time is an interactive art installation that invites participants to actively express their emotions, wishes, thoughts, and expectations regarding end-of-life. Within this participatory artwork, participants will be faced with a weaving loom with a textile-in-progress symbolizing the tapestry of life, which has a beginning and an end. As part of their interaction, participants will be encouraged to write their reflections and thoughts on cards, which they will be able to weave into the tapestry. This collaborative creation not only highlights the shared human experience but also serves as a reminder of the individuals’ thoughts, wishes, and needs that arise from life’s progression towards the end of life and culmination of life.

In partnership with Sketch Night, a community-driven initiative dedicated to nurturing creativity, and Luz Paczka, a health designer, our aim is to encourage community members to engage with their personal experiences of grief through the exploration of shapes, lines and colours. Using creativity as a bridge to understanding and healing, individuals will be provided with a zine that will act as a guiding platform to express the wide range of emotions that accompany the experience of grief. In addition, visitors can also participate in a communal art piece. Through this shared creative process, we hope to shed light on the interconnectedness of our experiences of loss and the impact of community support.

Poetree Forest is an interactive installation centered around grief and hope. We invite our guests to take leaves (poems) from the trees that resonate with them in their current journey with grief.

Mammalian Diving Reflex is presenting Walk With Me While I Remember You on November 4 & 5 at Evergreen Brick Works.

Moving through a nature path, we follow a series of young people as they direct us through the inexorable web of love, grief and hope. Vast, subtle and gently unfolding, this performance offers profound moments of meaning and glimpses of lives lived and lost.

Through this one-on-one participatory walking performance, patrons will be led through a natural environment and given the space to listen, reflect and share. Walk With Me While I Remember You is a loving tribute to the joys and heartaches of life, family, and finding connections where we least expect.

To create this performance, Mammalian Diving Reflex are looking to collaborate with young people who have either lost a loved one, are currently living with a life-limiting medical diagnosis or have a loved one experiencing it.

With the support of mental health counsellors, this event is an opportunity for young people to discuss their experiences and share relevant stories, thoughts and insights with a one-on-one audience.

Tender Possibilities, led by Farhia Tato, is a poetry reading group that creates an intimate space for togetherness. As a community arts initiative, it serves as a response to pressing social challenges by offering solace, understanding, and connection. Through careful curation, Farhia selects five poems inspired by a theme. We invite the group to listen, respond, and engage in various ways. Our belief is that grief is a profound expression of love that acknowledges the transformative impact of loss. Join us as we explore the healing potential of poetry within the realms of mourning.

The Artisan Market highlights Mexican and Latin American craft artisans. Here’s a list of vendors that you can expect to see there:

• Tej Essentials 
• Mariana Aramburu 
• Somi 
• Pedacito 
• Talis 
• Fashion Monsters 
• Everly 
• Coralia Fashions 
• Drop Tha Bomb 
• Ezra’s Dragon 
• Borojo Crafted Designs 
• Pre&Peri 
• Asiri’s Treasures 
• Glyph Productions 
• The Wounded Healer 
• Artesano 

Drop by the Food Court to celebrate Mexican and Latin Food produced with local ingredients! Tamales, carnitas, arepas, churros and nopales are just some of the delicious foods that you might find. Here’s a list of the vendors that you can expect to see there:

• Pimenton 
• Tapioca Toronto 
• Mad Mexican 
• Tienda Movil 
• Panchos Bakery 
• I Love Churros Food Truck  
• Don Tito Food Truck 
• ChocoSol Traders 
• Titas Mexican Food 
• Tropical South 

Drop by faceART’s face-painting booth and be transformed into a calavera (skull) for the celebration! La Catrina has become the referential image of death in Mexico, and it is common to see her embodied as part of the celebrations of Day of the Dead.

Our Pavilions will be buzzing with an exciting array of music, dance and storytelling. These performances bring communities together by creating something big through the arts and sharing Día de los Muertos customs to this multicultural country.

Creato will host an interactive community ofrenda that will have both digital storytelling and artmaking components. The digital ofrenda installation will showcase images and voice recordings previously submitted by members of the Creato community about their loved ones and Dia de los Muertos traditions. These stories will highlight the varying cultural and family traditions from Dia de los Muertos celebrations across Latin America and the Caribbean. The family-friendly, in-person, art-making component will invite attendees to write or draw on a piece of paper prompting them with thoughts and questions related to the ideas and themes of the day. The creations will be added in real-time to the communal and growing ofrenda installation.

A lot of the fresh cut flowers you see at the Farmers Market maintain their beauty long after their life cycle ends. Flower varieties including Statice, Strawflower and Celosia, to name a few, keep their vibrant colour once dried and are excellent for dried flower bouquets. Come join us at the Garden Market to make your own Everlasting Bouquet! All flowers provided are grown by local flower farmers. Click on the button below to sign up!

Join us in the Children’s Garden for a weekend filled with exploration, curiosity, and meaningful lessons about the circle of life in the natural world. Come learn about decomposers and life cycles of different plants and animals – you’ll see how everything is interconnected!

The Sipping Container will be selling delicious non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages during Day of the Dead.

Come join Dr. Gokoomis (Grandmother) Jacque/line Lavallée and Dr. Hopi Martin Oshkaabewis (Sacred Helper, Messenger, Fire Keeper, Lodge Caretaker) in Ceremony by the Sacred Fire to mourn the loss of our loved ones who have passed back into Spirit. We will also be honouring the more than 10,000 Indigenous children who did not make it back to their families from residential schools. Please prepare some of your loved one’s favourite food to share, along with your own feast bundle (bowl, cup, spoon), a shaker or drum if you have one, and something to sit on outside. Ceremony preparations will be happening on Thursday, November 2 from 9am – 4pm and Friday, November 3 from 1pm – 4pm. The Sacred Fire will be lit Saturday, November 4 and Sunday, November 5 from 9am – 3pm.

Poetree Forest is an interactive installation centered around grief and hope. We invite our guests to take leaves (poems) from the trees that resonate with them in their current journey with grief.

Agave is the plant used to make tequila and mezcal. We will be offering an opportunity to try a variety of mezcals and tequilas generously provided by Mezcal Agua Santa and Tequila Herradura. We will learn about the history, methods of production, similarities and differences between the two spirits from Carmen Marron, owner of Mezcal Agua Santa and Eder Sanchez, Bar Manager at the 2023 MICHELIN Guide Toronto Exceptional Cocktail Award Winning restaurant Quetzal.

Mezcal Agua Santa is a Mexican and female-owned company. Tequila Herradura was born in 1870, and is one of Mexico’s most historic and renowned tequila producers, since 19th century.

All ticket holders are invited to attend the entire session to learn about the agave spirits. Snacks will be provided. Must be age 19+ to participate.

Please note there is very limited parking available onsite. If you do drive, please come early to allow time to find a spot. We will not be issuing refunds if you miss your session.

Mammalian Diving Reflex is presenting Walk With Me While I Remember You on November 4 & 5 at Evergreen Brick Works.

Moving through a nature path, we follow a series of young people as they direct us through the inexorable web of love, grief and hope. Vast, subtle and gently unfolding, this performance offers profound moments of meaning and glimpses of lives lived and lost.

Through this one-on-one participatory walking performance, patrons will be led through a natural environment and given the space to listen, reflect and share. Walk With Me While I Remember You is a loving tribute to the joys and heartaches of life, family, and finding connections where we least expect.

To create this performance, Mammalian Diving Reflex are looking to collaborate with young people who have either lost a loved one, are currently living with a life-limiting medical diagnosis or have a loved one experiencing it.

With the support of mental health counsellors, this event is an opportunity for young people to discuss their experiences and share relevant stories, thoughts and insights with a one-on-one audience.