The Day of the Dead, or Dia de los Muertos, is still weeks away — celebrated by the Mexican culture on Nov. 1 and 2 — but the Denver Center for the Performing Arts began the holiday of death early.

DCPA teamed up with Los Angeles-based artist, Ricardo Soltero, to hold Catrinas En Mi Ciudad at the Denver Sculpture Park on Oct. 14. The free event displayed Soltero’s statues, giant skull sculptures made by other Denver artists, live music and local Mexican cuisine.

Throughout the park stood countless La Catrina statues, all crafted by Soltero — a niche he carved around 15 years ago.

“My grandfather died when I was three,” Soltero said of his connection to the Day of the Dead. He spent the holiday with his grandmother back in Nayarit, Mexico. “Every year, we would prepare for the celebration. We would clean his tombstone and collect things he used to like.”

Over the last decade, Soltero has made the holiday his profession. He has been the costume and stage-set designer for the biggest Dia de los Muertos celebration in the United States, held at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Los Angeles.

“I’ve been doing Day of the Dead sculptures for years… Now it’s what I do all-year long,” he said.

The sculptures of La Calavera Catrina — a Mexican character closely attributed to the Dia de los Muertos celebrations — stood at various heights throughout the park. Some towered over the yard at 10-or-so feet. Some were more approachable. But, regardless of height, the craftsman ship was a tall order.

Soltero uses wood, styrofoam and other recycled materials to make the statues. He then forms them with paper mache. The process takes around two weeks, depending on the detail involved.

“I’m lucky to live in California,” he joked about the process. Paper mache must be dried in sunlight before another layer can be added. He notes that each statue takes about four-to-five layers. The constant California sun helps.

Soltero’s work will also be seen at the Denver Botanical Gardens around the holiday. He has been making sculptures for them since 2014, he said.

But the purpose of the celebration was more than just a display of work. It was also an act of clearing up misconceptions about the holiday.

Dia de los Muertos is not the Mexican version of Halloween, though recent media like Pixar’s Coco, have helped clear that confusion, Soltero said.

“It’s not Halloween at all,” he added. “It’s about celebrating the life of our beloved ones that are no longer with us.”

Traditional Mexican culture believes that there’s “three deads” in life, Soltero noted. The first is when the soul leaves the body. The second is when the body is buried. The third is when the person is forgotten.

The holiday is to remember those that have passed so they don’t reach obscurity.

“We celebrate our beloved ones and we believe they come every year to celebrate with us,” Soltero said. “We greet them with the things they love — the clothes, food and music… We bring them back to life in our memories.”