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Frank Paga (left) and Crystal Clarity (center) worked alongside 15 high school students, including Adam Palermo (right), to design and paint an anti-violence mural on the exterior walls of the office of Community League of the Heights (CLOTH). PHOTO: Gloria Pazmiño
Residents of Northern Manhattan will now have a constant reminder of their talented neighborhood youths every time they walk past the Community League of the Heights (CLOTH) offices on the corner of Amsterdam Avenue and West 159th Street. A new anti-violence mural was unveiled this past Thurs. Sept 1st during a dedication ceremony attended by community leaders, residents and youth artists.
The mural, titled “Weaving Change Beyond the Shadows,” was created by lead artists Frank Paga, 39, and Crystal Clarity, 28, who worked alongside 15 high school students during a series of workshops where the artists learned about the community, its struggles and needs.
The mural, 70 feet wide and 14 feet high, stretches around the corner of the CLOTH offices and is filled with images inspired by Lisa Baez, whose daughter Cheyenne Baez, 17, was shot and killed in Harlem last year.
The mural was designed to address the devastating impact of gun use in New York City and showcase the alternatives such as afterschool activities, education, sports, and community involvement.
Adam Palermo, 18, who helped create the mural, said that learning about Baez’s daughter and hearing her story was an important source of inspiration. “It was interesting to take her story and turn it into images. It was emotional [too],” he said.
The mural, painted in bright, textured tones, shows different scenes through which a cloth is extending through the painting, as a way of signifying how the community is much like a patchwork quilt. The concept, also a nod to CLOTH’s mission, is whole in some places and torn in others but mended by figures that are restoring peace.
“This project was about collective work. We should be responsible [enough] to keep and mend the tapestry of our community and fix what’s broken,” said Clarity. “That’s what this mural symbolizes, people carrying the community and realizing there are alternatives to gun violence.”
The mural was made possible by the Groundswell Community Mural Project, as part of their 2011 summer leadership institute program which engaged approximately 100 youths as paid apprentices on mural projects throughout the City. The organization’s mission is to give voice, ideas, and perspectives that are underrepresented in public dialogue.
During an emotional speech, Yvonne Stennett, executive director of CLOTH said the young people of Washington Heights and Inwood are dedicated to showing that they’re working towards peace and moving beyond violence.
“Our children want to move the community beyond the negative image it has had for so long. This neighborhood is truly a rich community that’s culturally exuberant,” she said. “Let’s celebrate by allowing them to learn what it means to live in a safe a peaceful community.”
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