The “seven flowers” in this mural stand as a memorial to the Valdez and Covarrubias families, who lived on nearby Hamilton Avenue and suffered the loss of seven family members in a brutal 2006 massacre.  In Mexican culture, marigolds represent the fragility of life and are used as a guide for the spirits to find their way back to visit the living (particularly during the Day of the Dead holiday).

The mural is part of a series by the artist called the “Many Flowers Murals,” created to memorialize traumatic events in the Near Eastside and provide space for the community to come together, grieve, and heal.  Huge, painted flowers are used as a visual metaphor for lives cut short by gun violence, and the murals allow the victims to be remembered as beautiful and special.  The process of creating and inaugurating the murals is important to community togetherness, reconciliation, and rebirth.

Tosca Carranza is a painter, art educator, and Near Eastside resident.