By Isaac Ceja / Real America News
When muralist Carla Roque was 12 years old, her parents let her paint the ceiling of her room as if it were the sky.
“We had gone to Las Vegas and I saw for the first time that the ceiling of Caesar’s Palace casino was painted like the sky and I thought, oh my God, that’s cool,” explained Carla, who said she felt at that moment that Something changed in her perception of seeing things, because the painting of the ceiling inside the casino made her feel as if she were outdoors looking at the immensity.
Carla is now an artist with a master’s degree in illustration from Cal State Fullerton and has over 20 years painting murals.
As part of the “Making a Beautiful Difference” mural project, last week, the muralist along with several students painted a new mural at Sunkist Elementary School in the city of Anaheim.
For Carla it is always important to have a positive and authentic message in the works in which she participates.
“The power of positive messages when you read them after a while becomes ingrained in your thoughts since you see them all the time,” explained the artist. “It’s something you see that changes you and can transform the way you think about things.”
A few days ago, around 20 primary school students helped the artist paint a mural in her school, they put on shoe covers, special t-shirts and each started the work with a glass of paint.
The mural has a variety of bright colors that bring to life the message: “If you can dream it, you can do it.”
“We tried to select messages, both last year and this year, that children can identify with to continue to inspire them to not give up, to try and to feel part of the school community,” said Stephanie Shumate, principal of Sunkist Elementary.
This mural was Carla’s 17th this school year, but she mentioned that last year she painted 23 pieces for schools in the Anaheim School District (AESD).
The school district received funding from California through a grant called Expanded Learning Opportunities Programs (ELO-P). This money can be used by districts to have after-school and summer enrichment programs.
In addition to students participating in the mural process, Carla shares with students the background of the murals, helps students understand the cultural contributions that the works have, and students can experience the lasting influence that a work leaves. on the wall of a school site.
While painting, many students had fun, while third grade student Noel Álvarez tried to remember what he had done to deserve to be part of the mural.
Faith Hernández, a sixth-grade student, says that instead of expressing her feelings with words, she finds it easier to do so through drawing.
“I love it. I feel like instead of having a small canvas. “I had a whole wall that I could paint on,” the student said. “I thought it was very exciting because every time people walk through here they will see something that I had a special role in.”
Hernández says she feels lucky because she recognizes that not all school students can be part of something similar.
According to a literature review by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), several psychological studies found positive associations between artistic activities and the development of social skills, such as helping, sharing, caring, and empathizing with others.
The idea to create murals in schools came from Dr. Yadira Moreno, Director of School, Family and Community Engagement for AESD, when she asked that artist Carla paint something that would inspire students.
“She invited me to create a proposal to create works of art that would be encouraging, uplifting and that will focus on positive messages, full of color and beauty,” the artist explained. “It’s just something to help kids in their daily experience feel good and positive and uplifted.”
Last year, Dr. Yadira Moreno and muralist Carla Roque were honored by the city of Anaheim for their work on the mural project.
The artist says she is excited by the impact her projects have had on the student community in Anaheim, but says the response to her murals has surprised her.
“This is what I have always been doing and maybe it is what I will always do,” Carla expressed. “Because the work is on a larger scale where people appreciate it better.”