“FAMILIA / FAMIGLIA” - The Grand Street neighborhood has historically served as a home to many cultures. Its intersection with Graham Avenue has acted as an epicenter for these communities to come together - allowing multiple cultures to co-exist and exchange with one another. Through this project, the Grand Street BID endeavors to honor the culture and historical importance of this intersection with artwork that feels representative of the community even as it continues to change and evolve.
To find the right artists to carry out this vision, the BID recruited art production & mural company Dripped On Productions. Dripped On found two artists with deep ties to both the neighborhood and the Puerto Rican and Italian-American communities; Danielle Mastrion and SON-CORO.
Danielle Mastrion is an Italian-American artist, born and raised in Brooklyn, whose work often amplifies local communities and icons. Her work on this mural reflects her Italian-American culture, like the horn that wards off the evil eye, local Italian business signage, and Italy’s national flower, the white lily. She chose to paint a portrait of her grandmother who originally immigrated to Williamsburg and settled on Grand Street with her family, as a representation of that era. This figure is seen enjoying a cup of coffee with the woman to her right, bringing time and cultural traditions together.
SON-CORO is a Puerto Rican-born, local resident of the Grand Street neighborhood. He has been painting murals here for years, balancing multiple careers outside of his art practice while rapidly developing his painting skills. He often paints Puerto Rican themes in his murals, “it is something in my heart and I can’t get it out.” Son chose to paint a portrait of his wife acting as a character called “Musaraña”, a combination of imagery from icons Celia Cruz and Iris Chacon. The two women sharing coffee represents a cultural bridge that crosses the two street signs; a bridge, not a border, that cascades over a vibrant gradient of color.
The Grand Street BID hosted a community meeting in May to hear people share stories about what they would like to see represented & what it means to be in a community that is constantly changing. This input was used to help the artists design the mural, leading to the creation of a beautiful and vibrant piece of artwork that is representative of the fabric of our community.
The sharing of the coffee is representative of cultures coming together, collaborating, and existing together in this area for many years. The two women are shown enjoying a shared cultural staple while laughing and conversing, enjoying a moment of joy and peace. The coffee crosses the intersection, between the two street signs, to connect the cultures and represent that all cultures can thrive when they share, communicate, and share commonalities.
