The Extraordinary Ordinary People of Richmond, CA (2010) Mural - Judith Baca
The Extraordinary Ordinary People of Richmond, CA (2010) Mural - Judith Baca
“The Extraordinary Ordinary People of Richmond” is the newest mural completed by the UCLA@SPARC Digital/Mural Lab for the City of Richmond, CA. Community members collaborated on the development of the content through sharing stories and experiences in four workshops led by Professor Baca and the SPARC team in Richmond, CA. This process informed the artists on the concerns of the residents of Richmond and the variant perspectives of the community. Individuals were asked to bring memorabilia, photos, and treasured objects; these materials were photographed or scanned into an online multimedia archive. The mural’s content is derived from these stories of the people of Richmond and through their historical materials, i.e. books, films, and photographs.
In this project we make use of the transformative experience of storytelling and coordinated forms of artistic expression to create a greater awareness of empathy, with the goal of fostering a deeper sense of connection and inclusivity among citizens of the East Bay, in Northern California. The purpose is to reduce our society’s empathy deficit by collecting and then sharing stories about the place of empathy in the lives of ordinary citizens – citizens whose backgrounds may be wildly diverse, but who share a common humanity and common citizenry.
Framed Giclée Print: 23.5” W x 17” H