Civic Engagement project

 Gabriel Sotelo

Professor Aziz

Art 3170-01

CIVIC ENGAGEMENT PROJECT

El mercadito la Virgen mural

Phase 1: The site

The artwork I chose is called El mercadito la Virgen mural which can be located at El Mercadito on N Lorena St & E 1st St in Boyle Heights, Los Angeles. There is so much artwork located throughout my neighborhood but this piece stood out the most. I feel that this art piece is a reflection to the Mexican culture and is a representation of what our neighborhood stands for.

Phase 2: Field Work

This art piece was made by Mario Torero and is an icon of a peace that can be a representation of hope for the Mexican American community of Boyle Heights. The mural was made to serve as a local community shrine. This piece was inspired by our Lady of Guadalupe, this mural is considered to be a sacred site and serves as a spiritual and cultural point for the community that gives the people of Boyle Heights a sense of pride. Over time the mural has become a shrine for the community and is place to leave flowers, candles or photos of our deceased loved ones by making it more a sacred/social place. The mural has been already restored by the people a few times since the last 40 years where the earliest restoration was in 2008.




Phase 3: Critical Analysis

A lot of artwork that is in my neighborhood is based on the Latino/Mexican American communities and is heavily based on the culture and people who live in the area. The art mural of the Virgin Mary brings out the culture and faith of the people that makes it a cultural identity for the Mexican community. Originally it was commissioned by a group of taquero vendors who wanted to honor the Virgin of Guadalupe 40 years ago. 

Phase 4: Proposal

Something that I enjoyed to see in my community was the many different art pieces. Even though a good amount was about religion it was interesting to see the differences between them because I feel that each piece was different from one another and that even besides the religion art work even regular art murals were always so different from each other. The one thing I did not like to see was all the gang related graffiti that would rather be along a building or open wall. The one thing I would suggest is to do a clean sweep of all gang related "art" only because I know how bad it can get in LA with gangs rivalries or territories. 

Resources

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MX6orQZI864&t=148s 

https://boyleheightsbeat.com/a-late-night-virgen-de-guadalupe-celebration-at-el-mercadito/ 

https://www.instagram.com/p/CRiMgCHA_WY/ 

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