“My parents told me it was a dark and stormy night when they came here on a raft from Cuba,” 11-year-old Caitlin Juarez said as she explained her artwork, made up of a colorful mix of pieces of wood and paper that she painted at Woodrow Wilson School in the Union City school district. “The waves were very violent, and some people died. This,” she continued, pointing to a swirly bit of furniture molding she had found and painted gray, “represents the rapid clouds that swirled over them while they were in the raft.”
Caitlin is one of many students at the school who has been working on a series of artistic works that tell the story of her family’s journey to Union City. Union City and neighboring West New York have a high Latino population, with many people able to recount harrowing immigration stories.
The children’s artwork, as well as community photographs and written stories, will be displayed in a gallery show held at the school’s Performing Arts Center on April 4.
“I love it there, but I love it here, too.” –Adriana Figueroa
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Painting present through past
Adriana Figueroa, 12, talked about a painting that represented her past: a bright rendering of the town square in Putla, Mexico, where her father came from. “It’s a really, really happy place because it’s where all the people come for festivals,” Adriana said. She’s been there before. “I love it there, but I love it here, too.”
Fourteen-year-old Randy Caballos created a collage-like painting that illustrated how his immigration history fit into his life in Union City. He included the Colombian flag; a symbol of his favorite soccer team; a Dr. Pepper “because I like to drink it;” and he and his stepfather sitting on the couch watching a large flat-screen television. When asked why he included the television, Randy said, “It’s not something people in Colombia get to see often because of the poverty line. We’re very lucky here.”
Camila Sierra stood in front of her painting of a man mid-song and explained, “Well first of all, Colombians, they like to sing, and they have duels, and the winner is the one who sings better.” Her next painting, which had the vibrancy of a Gaugin, was a portrait of her and her siblings that illustrated her parents’ best experience in America. “They said when they got here it wasn’t the best experience ever, but that their children really lifted their spirits up.”
Rosa said that the project helped students work through some of the issues immigrants and their families face.
Teaching through art and community
Each participating student is part of the school’s Multiple Intelligences Arts Discipline (MIAD) program that offers art-focused electives that incorporate other subjects – in this instance, history and genealogy – through art.
This particular MIAD, named “Painting the Faces of America,” is led by artist-in-residence Kit Sailer, a professional painter from Jersey City who is no stranger to working with children.
“What is so wonderful to me is to see the light in their eyes when they begin to get the bigger picture,” Sailer said. “Adriana was such a quiet girl before she began researching her family on the internet, and suddenly she couldn’t stop talking.”
Rosa wishes to reach out to residents who may have photos, memorabilia, stories, journal entries, or anything having to do with the history of immigration in Union City, and urges them to send their contributions to Woodrow Wilson School care of Maryellen Rosa at 80 Hauxhurst Ave. in Weehawken, NJ, 07086. Questions may be directed to Marie Llanes at (201) 348-2701.
Gennarose Pope may be reached at gpope@hudsonreporter.com