Mundo Latino returns to the State Fair of Texas this fall marking 30 years of celebrating Hispanic culture in Dallas, a milestone its founder helped plan before his death earlier this year. Rafael Luna, who organized the exhibition and dedicated nearly three decades to it, died in January at age 67. This year’s anniversary presentation carries out the ideas he discussed with his family before he passed.
According to The Dallas Morning News, Mundo Latino will celebrate its 30th anniversary at the 2026 State Fair with an exhibition revisiting its history, past themes and the contributions of both Luna and Cindy Benavides, who first envisioned the project before Luna joined her in developing it. Luna’s surviving relatives implemented the plans he left behind, and his daughter Erica Luna told the paper he had readied them for the task. “He had prepared us for all of this,” she said, per the same account.
The exhibit is moving into a new home this year. Per Big Tex, Mundo Latino: Día de los Muertos will be presented in the Hall of State during the 2026 State Fair of Texas, after previously being housed in the Women’s Museum. That relocation actually began in 2025, when the exhibit first moved from the Women’s Museum to the Hall of State, according to CultureMap Dallas. Sponsorship of the current presentation comes from the Law Offices of Domingo Garcia, per Big Tex.
A Retrospective Built From Three Decades of History
The 2026 anniversary display will include photographs and material from Mundo Latino’s previous exhibitions, highlighting Luna and Benavides’ legacy, the Dallas Morning News reports. The exhibit will also include an altar where visitors can leave photographs honoring deceased relatives, friends and others connected to Mundo Latino over the years. Luna wanted the exhibition to represent more than Mexico, hoping visitors would come away understanding the breadth of Latino identity, according to the outlet’s reporting…