No Nos Vamos

Each week, a Groundswell team met with senior citizens twice for two hours to plan and execute our mural. The team began the process with a combination of reviewing the history of Los Sures and sharing stories of growing up in South Williamsburg. Participants brought in photos, swapped accounts of their youth and feelings of changes happening in the community. Developing a slue of imagery from these discussions, the team researched murals and conjured up a list of pictures it could use to communicate a visual story, relatable to all who would experience our mural. The Lead and Assistant Artist then developed the design and as a group the team all voted on appropriate imagery, text and composition. After a few revisions, everyone began to paint! It was a very democratic experience that included a lot of discussion, laughs and important aesthetic decision making. Throughout the whole process, everyone tried very hard to represent not only the experiences of the participants, but also the meaning of our work within the shifting cultural landscape of South Williamsburg.