Art We There Yet
  • Home
  • MURALS
    • MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating the Great Outdoors

      April 3, 2022

      MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating a Way of Life

      February 27, 2022

      MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating the Sea

      January 15, 2022

      MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating Action

      January 8, 2021

      MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating Teamwork

      December 27, 2020

  • MUSIC
    • MUSIC

      The Story Behind “Chan Chan”

      February 25, 2022

      MUSIC

      The Story Behind “Wanderer”

      January 31, 2022

      MUSIC

      The Story Behind “Here We Listen”

      January 30, 2022

      MUSIC

      A Song from the Bonneville Salt Flats

      February 10, 2021

      MUSIC

      A Song from the US-Mexico Border

      June 8, 2020

  • WORKSHOPS
    • WORKSHOPS

      A Mural Celebrating a Way of Life

      February 27, 2022

      WORKSHOPS

      A Song Celebrating Growth

      February 20, 2022

      WORKSHOPS

      A Song Celebrating Inner Strength

      February 6, 2022

      WORKSHOPS

      A Song Celebrating Healing

      March 24, 2020

      WORKSHOPS

      A Day Painting New Beginnings

      March 16, 2020

  • FILM
    • FILM

      New Orleans from the Streets | An Experimental…

      May 13, 2020

      FILM

      The Himalayas | An Experimental Film

      March 1, 2018

  • PHOTOGRAPHY
    • People of the Americas
  • BEFORE THE AMERICAS
    • Before the Americas Project

      The Story Behind “Emotion”

      November 1, 2018

      Before the Americas Project

      A Mural Celebrating Perspective

      June 10, 2018

      Before the Americas Project

      The Story Behind “Be”

      May 27, 2018

      Before the Americas Project

      The Story Behind “Paso A Paso”

      May 7, 2018

      Before the Americas Project

      Soundscapes of China & Nepal

      March 14, 2018

  • SKOOLIE GUIDES
  • ABOUT
    • The Project
    • The Bus
    • Our Story
    • Bring AWTY To Your Community
    • Contact / Press
  • Store
    • AWTY Goodies
    • Fill The Tank
    • Prints from José
    • Music from Cora
  • SUPPORT
  • DONATE
Art We There Yet
  • Home
  • MURALS
    • MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating the Great Outdoors

      April 3, 2022

      MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating a Way of Life

      February 27, 2022

      MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating the Sea

      January 15, 2022

      MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating Action

      January 8, 2021

      MURALS

      A Mural Celebrating Teamwork

      December 27, 2020

  • MUSIC
    • MUSIC

      The Story Behind “Chan Chan”

      February 25, 2022

      MUSIC

      The Story Behind “Wanderer”

      January 31, 2022

      MUSIC

      The Story Behind “Here We Listen”

      January 30, 2022

      MUSIC

      A Song from the Bonneville Salt Flats

      February 10, 2021

      MUSIC

      A Song from the US-Mexico Border

      June 8, 2020

  • WORKSHOPS
    • WORKSHOPS

      A Mural Celebrating a Way of Life

      February 27, 2022

      WORKSHOPS

      A Song Celebrating Growth

      February 20, 2022

      WORKSHOPS

      A Song Celebrating Inner Strength

      February 6, 2022

      WORKSHOPS

      A Song Celebrating Healing

      March 24, 2020

      WORKSHOPS

      A Day Painting New Beginnings

      March 16, 2020

  • FILM
    • FILM

      New Orleans from the Streets | An Experimental…

      May 13, 2020

      FILM

      The Himalayas | An Experimental Film

      March 1, 2018

  • PHOTOGRAPHY
    • People of the Americas
  • BEFORE THE AMERICAS
    • Before the Americas Project

      The Story Behind “Emotion”

      November 1, 2018

      Before the Americas Project

      A Mural Celebrating Perspective

      June 10, 2018

      Before the Americas Project

      The Story Behind “Be”

      May 27, 2018

      Before the Americas Project

      The Story Behind “Paso A Paso”

      May 7, 2018

      Before the Americas Project

      Soundscapes of China & Nepal

      March 14, 2018

  • SKOOLIE GUIDES
  • ABOUT
    • The Project
    • The Bus
    • Our Story
    • Bring AWTY To Your Community
    • Contact / Press
  • Store
    • AWTY Goodies
    • Fill The Tank
    • Prints from José
    • Music from Cora
  • SUPPORT
WORKSHOPS

A Day Painting New Beginnings

by Art We There Yet? March 16, 2020
FacebookTwitterPinterest

“A person’s a person, no matter how small.”
-Dr. Seuss


Early March found us at the border between the US and Mexico.  We knew that it was a stretch to go so far south, given that our goal is to reach Alaska this summer. 

But our schedule didn’t allow us to move west yet, giving us a large swath of time in the region.  We knew exactly where we wanted to go.

migrant-camp-us-mexico-border-tent-city-matamoros

“Tent City”, a migrant camp on the US-Mexico border

We went to “Tent City”, a migrant camp that has built up in the Mexican town of Matamoros, just across the river from Brownsville, Texas.  The camp is a direct result of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP), which requires many individuals – including asylum seekers – to stay in Mexico throughout their court proceedings.  

The camp is filled with families seeking asylum, and the children have been out of school for months.  UNICEF does activities, and other organizations have tried to step in with mini-lessons and enrichment activities.  But it’s no substitute for full-time school, and the damage is being done.  


The Art Workshop

We worked with Angry Tias & Abuelas to gain access to a tent and tarps, so that we could provide an extended painting workshop. Usually this workshop is a one-time event lasting two hours.  In Tent City, we provided the workshop five days in a row, at least three hours per day.  This gave the children hours upon hours of painting time.

It was necessary.

Children in this situation are dealing with a lot of trauma.  Trauma from whatever made their family leave their home country.  Trauma from the journey.  And now trauma from the conditions, uncertainty, and dangers living in the camp.

Our hope with the workshop was many, many-fold.  We wanted to provide these kids with the opportunity to process their emotions and experiences through art.  We wanted to provide an escape, a distraction from the stress of living life in limbo.  And simply the chance to be a kid, playing with paint and imagining other worlds.


Conditions in the Camp

There were a lot of challenges that went with this workshop.  Not only with the space, but also with the things kids would say.  

  • “I don’t want to paint my house or my country.  Because if I think about that, it makes me sad.”
  • “We can’t go home, because if we do, they will kill my Dad.”
  • “That’s the United States, right?” (Pointing across the river) “That’s where I want to be.”

Conditions in the camp are unacceptable. Everyone is living in tents, slowly disintegrating under the hot Mexican sun.  Every person we spoke to has had their court date continually rescheduled, stretching their cases on for months.  In that time, tent flies rip and zippers break. Children grow requiring larger clothes and shoes.  When it’s dry, dust whips up and coughing becomes a common sound throughout the camp.  When it rains, mosquitos come out in force.    

We connected with a few individuals and families in the camp.  The first man we met was from Nicaragua, and we actually know people in common.  We met another Nicaraguan family, who we spent time with over food and discussing the political situation in Nicaragua.  We connected with a man from Cuba who has harrowing stories from his journey north.  People in the camps are lawyers, pharmacists, engineers, mechanics, and teachers.  

And there, in the midst of it all, are children.


Our Thanks

Deepest thanks to Mary for sponsoring this workshop.  Without your support, five days of 3-hr workshops wouldn’t have been possible.  Thank you to Angry Tias and Abuelas for helping us gain access to the tent, and for providing tarps.  Our greatest thanks to Dave Dittman for joining us and helping everything run smoother. Thank you to Ayudandoles a Triunfar for allowing us to store the workshop supplies in Matamoros, rather than trucking them across the bridge every day.  


art-we-there-yet-skoolie-bus-travel

Did you know?

The AWTY Patreon Family is the beating heart behind the Art We There Yet project.

Patrons pitch in $1.50/mth to help cover project costs…

…And they get a mountain of goodies in return!

40+ unreleased demos from Cora
90+ photographs from Jose
Untold stories straight from Cora’s journals
Early access to all new videos & songs
Downloads of new Cora Rose albums
Credits in the final film and book

Get Access
FacebookTwitterPinterest

You may also like

A Mural Celebrating a Way of Life

A Song Celebrating Growth

A Song Celebrating Inner Strength

A Song Celebrating Healing

A Song Celebrating Friendship

A Day Painting Optimism

Student Artwork Gallery

About The Project

About The Project

Art We There Yet is a project to create art and music inspired by the Americas, celebrating our shared humanity and giving back to communities along the way. Aboard a school bus converted into an art and recording studio, we are traveling 30,000 miles across 23 countries of North, Central, and South America.

Never Miss A New Story!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • Spotify
  • Press
  • Sponsors
  • WAYS TO SUPPORT
  • Contact

Art We There Yet 2020 - All Rights Reserved


Back To Top