xavier cortada

Bodega de la Familia

Bodega de la Familia, a comprehensive neighborhood drug crisis center in Manhattan's Lower East Side is working with neighborhood youth and families to create a mural of community expression.

Under the direction of Miami artist and drug educator Xavier Cortada, Lower East Side youth created "Esperanza," a movable mural integrating the "voices" of others in the community.

Bodega solicited the ideas from youth who participated in focus groups and developed a pictorial assessment of their neighborhood. These kids interviewed friends, family, teachers and police, asking them to discuss how they feel "connected" to their community. According to Cortada, "the youth served as liaisons to bring voices of other individuals in the community to the mural." Their efforts included outreach to others in the community, asking them to express themselves in writing or drawings that will then be incorporated to the mural.

On June 27^th and 28th, 1997, Cortada returned to the Bodega to work with youth in sketching and then painting the images on the community mural, integrating the drawings and writings from members of the neighborhood as a whole. In the end, the mural served as a mirror, reflecting today's "sense of community" as perceived by those who are determine the community's future tomorrow.

From an agency perspective, the mural development process, which came about from a series of planning meetings between the artist and Bodega staff since November 1997, also served to develop youth-driven community outreach and integration strategies which are aimed to develop a brighter future.

For more information about the Bodega, contact: Carol Shapiro, Executive Director Bodega de la Familia 272 East Third Street NYC, NY 10009 212-982-2335--phone 212-982-1765--fax

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