Houston Bowery wall Mural Summer 2020 Raul Ayala In partnership with: Goldman Global Arts & Groundswell Murals
We are currently experiencing a profound shift in all aspects of our existence. From the internal and external aspects of our psyche, to our embodied, political and spiritual health. These times present us with an opportunity to reflect on how we exist in relationship to each other, how we hold and take care of our individual, social, and cultural essence. This great shift has brutally evidenced the dynamics that have brought us to this point in time and made visible the vocabulary and symbols produced by normalized injustice. Protests in the midst of an unprecedented pandemic remind us of this and allow us to place this shift in the context of History. When monuments are brought down, a sort of portal to a different reality is being created. I see this seemingly aggressive act also an opportunity to manifest different futures: when a symbol that stands for the values of a civilization is put into question, domination and power imbalances are being contested too. This portal allows us to walk through the pain and find futures where we consider the way in which we are not only connected, but dependent on each other, and exist with natural beings and the lands that feed us. For me, building imagination and sharing knowledge alongside a younger generation of artists is a great manifestation of the fruits of this shift. With this mural we are also bringing intergenerational participation into a future that honors our past while actively creating a different path of existence.
To Open a Portal was made possible by: Groundswell Murals:
Goldman Global Arts:
Robyne Walker Murphy / Executive Director
Jessica Goldman Srebnick / CEO, Goldman Properties, Founder/CEO, Goldman Global Arts
Amelia Calsi / Studio Arts Manager Youth Participants: Junior Steven Clavijo, Jennifer Contreras, Cipta Hussain, Maria BelĂŠn Flores, Karina Linares, Gabriel Pala, Gabriela Balderas, Brandon Bendter, Hafsa Habib, Charlize Beltre
Daniel Pezet / Director of Operations Monica QuiĂąonez / Director of Marketing and Communications
