New social justice art project inspired by Black Lives Matter movement on display
By Cornell W. Barnard
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SAN RAFAEL, California (KGO) — A new social justice art display went up in the North Bay on Saturday. The public art piece created by local youth was installed in the wake of controversy, near the scene of a violent confrontation surrounding a mural honoring Breonna Taylor.
It’s the creation of the Marin nonprofit “Youth in Arts.”
The piece is called “regeneration” and is inspired by the words freedom, justice and liberty.
The three-paneled design includes the names of George Floyd, Ahmad Aubrey and Breonna Taylor.
“Hopefully they can look at it and see themselves in it. I love the imagery,” said Orin Carpenter.
Orin Carpenter is talking about this new eye-catching social justice art project that’s hard to miss along Terra Linda’s Freitas Parkway: three painted panels, inspired by the “words, freedom, justice and liberty.”
“And then we decided to go from there. ‘What do those three words look like?'” Carpenter added.
Carpenter says that question helped inspire a group of young people to create the piece called “Regeneration.” Carpenter is the mentoring artist on the project, which is sponsored by Marin nonprofit, Youth in Arts.
“It was such a great process watching these kids with different backgrounds come together with one common goal,” Carpenter said.
“It’s subtle but powerful,” said Youth in Arts Executive Director Kristen Jacobson.
It was first created in 2020 as chalk art, which was removed by the city.
Neighbors then re-created it which sparked a confrontation when a man tried to wash it off while brandishing a gun.
Look closely at the mural, and you’ll see the names of George Floyd, Amaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor — now icons of the Black Lives Matter movement. But it was a chalk art mural honoring Taylor and calling out her murder that sparked an act of violence in 2020.
Back then, a man was caught on camera, trying to remove the mural on Freitas Parkway with water. He’s seen pointing a weapon at community members who tried to stop him.
“This entire process is in response to that community tension and the need for conversation and healing,” Jacobson said.
Jacobson says two years later, that healing has begun on this corner, the art symbolizing not only social justice but community equity and maybe even a chance to start a conversation about our differences.
“It’s that phrase, beautiful tragedy — that’s what make us who we are. I’m hoping people see that and it lights the fuse to have those conversations,” said Carpenter.
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