13It is About Art to Communicate Thoughts and Feelings

13
It is About Art to Communicate Thoughts and Feelings
Associated with Immigration and The Border Wall
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Abstract
Art is a powerful tool for communicating experiences and
evoking emotions. It is one of the oldest forms of human
communication, used to express thoughts and feelings about big
and small things. The earliest known cave paintings date back
more than 30,000 years. Today, art continues to express
complex emotions and experiences, from the joy of seeing a
beloved person to the fear of being separated from family
members. This essay demonstrates that art such as murals and
installations have the power to communicate, spark change, and
exhibit resistance and resilience by claiming spatial ideologies
through the construction of visual subjectivity. Furthermore, it

aims to add layers of visual discourse by validating the role of
digital photography in transforming borders. Through digital
photography, the act of resistance seizes and holds the capacity
to spread art beyond the place it was created and produced.
Thus, photography can be part of the force to transform space
and place beyond the physical borderland.
Images do not only serve as a visual to interpret subject matter
regarding marginalized issues. Still, they should be viewed
through multiple lenses, models, and approaches as they get
produced through multi-layered scuffles, lived experiences, and
generational memory. Through the use of relevant literature, the
essay also discusses images of artwork that were created on the
U.S-Mexico border wall between 2011 and 2017 in response to
migratory policies and further militarization of the border.
Introduction
The boundary between the United States and Mexico has long
been a site of political contention, with the two countries
jostling over the right to control it. But the borderlands between
the two countries, though they are physically distinct, are not
just political or geographical spaces: they are also artistic
(Rivera, 2020). The borderlands are a series of sites where
artists have explored the borderlands' human, political, and
cultural complexity. And the borderlands have become a place
where artists have sought to make sense of the world around
them and help us understand the complexity of our world and
our place in it. However, much of the stuff people remember
from art across borders is the outright protest art that
vehemently tackles themes like human rights, immigration, and
bi-national policies. Even the fence itself has been used as a
canvas for influential paintings and installations. Nevertheless,
border art has continued to use the wall and the people who
cross it as a concept, developing performances pieces or other

multimedia works meant to challenge perceptions of the
international border (Garcia, 2018). The nexus between arts,
culture, and immigration have long been studied in cultural
studies and the humanities. The use of art to spearhead social
change and spur inventive problem-solving skills is nothing new
in today's society. For instance, in the city of Boston, many
local artists have recently been using art to express their
feelings, thoughts, and concerns about the issue of immigration
as it affects so many of us (Bentz, 2020).
According to Gloria Anzaldua, borders are historic colonization
sites where dominant forces have been enacted, represented, and
misinterpreted historical truths. Borders are viewed as
psychological as much physical as they are, and this is because
they are formed through hegemony, sexual orientations, and
subjugation (Sheren, 2021). They are also seen as spiritual,
social, sexual, metaphorical, and economic sites as they are the
limits by which people are forced to live (Mehlomakulu, 2017).
Through the use of digital photography, plenty of art images
have circulated on social media platforms and traditional
broadcasting outlets urging individuals to view the wall as a
normalized division that holds an untold certainty. Artists
exploit the U.S. and Mexico border as a form of art, such as
paintings, to counterattack the power organizations (Marlin-
Bennett, & Marlin, 2019). The wall made at the Southern border
of the U.S. is perceived as a symbol of xenophobic abuses that
is often used to demonize and dehumanize the brown bodies that
cross it.
History of border art
The emergence of border art can be categorized into many ways
that utilize numerous mediums. However, this essay examines
art created on the U.S. and Mexico borderland (Heidenry,
2017). The background of this art can be attributed to its
attempts to develop a façade and installations that would
connect the two physical places and an illusion to eliminate the
border entirely. The first artist to use art to protest against the
border wall was Ana Teresa Fernandez, a performing artist and

painter. Ana was born in Tampico, Mexico, and at the age of
eleven, her family moved to the United States. She has used her
knowledge of art to strive to transform spaces in ways that
challenge individuals' understanding of art. The second artist
Marcos Ramirez of Mexico, who migrated to the United States
in 1983, has accomplished many things by participating in
programs that promote the utilization of art in resisting
migratory regulations.
In addition, decorative borders have been used as an artistic
device since ancient times, when they were carved into stone,
pottery, and other objects. Also, civilizations such as the
Romans and Chinese used to practice border drawing and
painting as an art form. In the middle Ages, European artists
such as Tiepolo, Rubens, and Rembrandt assimilated borders
into their artwork. It is, therefore, crystal clear that these
artistic depictions of borders reflect a transformation in
political climate and alterations in global borders and identities.
Conversely, border themes have ranged from the most accurate
interpretation; the division between nations, continents, and
seas, to a symbolic connotation seen as a separation between
good and evil, a divider between life and death, the passage
between night and day, and the passage between the living and
the dead. In recent years we have seen a surge in what could be
termed artivism, which is bringing art and activism together to
protest the inequalities created by the border wall (Bristol,
2020). These activists use art to address key concerns by
involving the community and other artists. They use new media
technologies that facilitate their engagements with various
groups. Most of the interesting examples in artivism focus on
the US-Mexico border, a space that has always been under tight
scrutiny recently. The work of these artists is to express the
non-nation state identity and provide a critique of the late
capitalist conditions of the border economy.
Through the artivists' collaborations, there have been numerous
festivals and interventions on the border, such as the Border -
hack festival that began in 2002. It aims to protest the

inequalities and hazardous conditions faced by Mexican
immigrants. The Tijuana Calling online exhibition also uses
new technologies to discover concerns around the border. One
of such exhibitions that use new technologies is the Turista
Fronterizo which collaborates between multimedia artist Coco
Fusco and Cuban-American performance and media activist
Ricardo Dominguez (Kroth,2019). The electronic board game
slightly resembles the monopoly format, except its properties
spaced along the San Diego-Tijuana border. The game, which
can be played online show on the board, comments on the socio-
political realities associated with each particular location. This
kind of work encourages individuals to critique the structural
inequalities developed by the border economy and helps them
take the best cause of action (Taylor, 2017). Another example is
Ricardo Miranda’s work, his project A Geography of Being, an
interactive installation consisting of a video game accompanied
by sculptures that have electronic circuits capable of reacting to
the game. Miranda's game narrates the experiences of a young
undocumented immigrant by positioning the player in the role
of undocumented youth who needs to learn about the hardships
faced by other young persons.
Using art to communicate about immigration
It always takes a creative eye and an audacity in order to draw
the lines and turn a symbol meant for divisions into a unifying
message. Over the last decade, the world has seen many border
walls that have been used as protests tools through the use of art
(Peng & Selvachandran, 2019). It is, therefore, correct to say
that Donald Trump was not the only president to dream of
building a border wall; there have been other walls ranging
from the berlin border wall to the present-day West Bank.
Border walls have been used to shut out people whose religion,
race, ideology, or economic status does not match that of the
elites. For artists, the case is different; wherever the anti -
immigration departments see opportunity, artists, on the other
hand, see a canvas. For instance, two professors from California
have transformed part of the U.S-Mexico border into a place

where people can interact rather than viewing it as an obstacle.
Art is a medium that, in its various forms, constitutes
distinguished means of communication that allows dialogues in
formal, informal, and culturally plural contexts within society.
It has opened windows through which people have come to
understand social connections (DiGiugno, & Sewall, 2019,
December). Art has been used to communicate ideas and
feelings about immigration throughout history. The Irish
Catholics were the first people to use the word immigrant back
in 1768 when it was applied to refer to people barred from
owning land. In the 19th century, artists used art to document
and explore the immigrant experience in the United States. In
the 20th century, artists such as David Salle used art to discover
immigration in Europe and the Americas. Art has a long history
of being used to express political and social beliefs. In the
United States, many artists have used their work to capture,
explore and express their experiences with immigration. One of
the most high-profile examples is the artist collective
Undocumented Nation, which uses art to demonstrate the
experiences of immigrants who live in the United States without
legal authorization. The collective uses art to explore the
experiences of those affected by the border wall, a major
symbol of the US-Mexico divide in immigration debates.
Expressing feelings and thoughts about the border wall through
art
For a very long time, the border wall has been a place used by
artists to express themselves through murals, paintings,
sculptures, and much more. For instance, the exhibition entitled
"Art on the Border,” which featured original artwork from
artists from both the United States and Mexico, served as a key
reminder of the diverse issues at the border (Herzog, 2021). The
exhibition has been on view at the Museum of the Border at the
Brownsville Southwestern University campus in Brownsville,
Texas, since September 28, 2018. The major purpose why the
wall was built by the U.S. government was to keep people out.
Nonetheless, some people have still found ways to climb over

it, see the other side, or walk around it.
Using this space, artists such as Laura Nelkin traveled to the
U.S.-Mexico border and back, authenticating the data she
gathered and how the wall affected her feelings and thoughts.
Nelkin used photographs, paintings, and installations to
communicate her feelings about the wall and the issues it raises.
She further states that the wall is more than just a physical
barrier between two countries; it is also a symbol of political
division. The wall, which the Trump administration proposed to
prevent illegal immigration, has generated controversy and
protests (Villazor & Johnson, 2019). A good example is Artist
J.R., who uses art to communicate political and social messages
about the border wall and the political climate of the United
States. From JR's lessons, the wall exhibits: ‘The Wall in
context with the current political climate and J.R.'s artistic
practice.'
The wall is also a canvas on which artists from both countries
paint murals, stage performances, and install exhibits that
explore the complex themes of immigration, globalization, and
the human condition. For instance, the Border Wall Mural
Project is a collaboration between the Museum of the Border
and the Museo de la Ciudad in Tijuana, Mexico and is preserved
at the Museum of the Border in San Ysidro, California (Juárez,
2020). The exhibition consists of 20 murals that tell the border
wall story from different perspectives and provide an
opportunity for audiences to experience the impact of this
divisive artifact in person. The wall has become a symbol of the
current political climate, with some individuals using it to
demonstrate their political beliefs. Other people use the wall to
express their emotions about the political situation. This project
explores the role of art in communicating messages about the
wall (Khanlou, et al., 2018). It uses art to communicate feelings
and thoughts about the wall and explore how people use and
perceive it.
Artists and activists also use the border wall to protest politics.
Possibly, one of the most fundamental roles played by the

artists and activists is the way they use art to protest the
neoliberal policies enforced on the border region by the U.S.
government (Strehovec, 2021). For years, the U.S. acquired
cheap labor from the south of the border, and most of it came
from Mexican immigrants (Tellez & Ramirez, 2018). One of the
reasons it became easy to get cheap labor is the U.S. policies
enacted through NAFTA, which drove poor Mexicans from their
land and forced them to look for jobs in the local factories
owned by foreigners (Taylor, 2017). This turned out to be a
compelling factor that brought together artists who lived around
the border regions and from other places to fight the U.S.
government's harsh policies imposed on the people. Their work
is to provide nuanced and complex takes on the situations of
those who live around the border region.
How the use of art has impacted the people along the border
wall
The border between the United States and Mexico is 2,000 miles
long, but the border begins in their living rooms for many
Americans. The countless murals, sculptures, paintings, and
other works of art that line the US-Mexico border tell stories
about the people, the history, and the culture of the two
countries. These works of art are often installed by
organizations that work to raise awareness about the border and
its importance to the United States, Mexico, and the world. But
these large-scale art installations have also impacted how
people interact with the border (McKenna, 2019). The goal of
these installations was to increase awareness of the border
region, increase tourism, and improve the quality of life for
border residents.
The scale and scope of these works were unprecedented and
created a unique form of public art that was on display to
thousands of people every day. The murals often feature
international solidarity and cross-border exchange scenes, and
the sculptures frequently depict migrants and the environment.
In some cases, art on the US-Mexico border is explicitly
political, with installations and performances exploring the

history of the US-Mexico border, the current state of border
security and immigration, and the role of the U.S. in the world.
The presence of art on the US-Mexico border has changed
people's perceptions and ideas about the region and, in some
cases, has led to increased interest in the natural, human, and
environmental dimensions of the US-Mexico borderlands.
Future directions on the use of art in activism
In every debate over who an immigrant is, perspective is very
fundamental. According to people's perspectives, depending on
one's vantage point, an undocumented immigrant can be a
dreamer, a fugitive, or a refugee. On the other hand, a border
wall can be viewed as a shield or a needless division that splits
families apart (Rivera, 2020). With most of the anti-immigrant
sentiments coming from the upper political class, barriers in the
way of immigration reforms are inevitably real. Therefore,
observing how the wider community participates in border art
can provide a critical direction for the future. The future work
on border art considers the opinions of how others would
interpret the artwork and understanding of who the audience for
that work is.
Another future direction would involve creating art pieces on
the border with a community of artists collectively coming
together and deciding what visual layers they should contribute
to border art. Such contributions would be performing those art
pieces or developing installations. Future articles will explore
how the art installations have inspired activism and how they
have been used to raise awareness about social issues in the
region and the world (National Communication Association,
2020). Art at the Crossroads aims to promote an inclusive
understanding of the past, the present, and the future of the US-
Mexico border region and its people.
Conclusion
Artists have continued to expose the cracks and the border
wall’s vulnerability, including Chicano's work, who installed a
huge eraser at the border in the early 1980s, Guillermo's public
performance, and the Trojan horse that Tijuana-based artist

Ramirez erected. These are some of the most prominent art
installations as they aimed to integrate the people of the two
nations. The work has sought to alter perceptions of the border
and its role in the world. The installations often feature
prominent themes of migration and border security, often in the
context of a security or surveillance state. In some cases, the
installations have become a major draw for visitors to the
region, serving as a reminder that the US-Mexico border is an
active place with ongoing human and environmental impacts.
The installations have also served as a platform for artists and
activists to raise awareness about issues such as the
militarization of the border and the effects of U.S. immigration
policies on the region.
Art changes people’s perceptions and ideas about the world. It
can help to break down stereotypes, open people’s minds, and
spark conversation about complex topics. Art is a powerful tool
for social change. In the past, activists have utilized
installations, performances, and street theatre to raise awareness
and encourage political action. In the digital age, this tactic is
even more effective. Today, we have the ability to use digital
art to create experiences that are impossible in the physical
world. Many social activists use art installations to encourage
people to think about the day's political issues and reflect on
how their actions can affect the world around them. Thus, art
has always been and will continue to be a historical account of
events and cultural events. The impacts of art on social change
can engage people when they occur and become agents of an era
of shifting ideologies.

References.
Bentz, J. (2020). Learning about climate change in, with and
through art. Climatic Change, 162(3), 1595-1612.
Bristol, M. (2020). Political Art at the US-Mexico Border.
https://www.panoramas.pitt.edu/art-and-culture/political-art-us-
mexico-border
DiGiugno, A., & Sewall, J. O. (2019, December). Using
Performance Art to Communicate Humanity's Influence on the
Planet. In AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts (Vol. 2019, pp. ED51B-
0842).
Garcia, C. S. (2018). Borderlands Art Practice: Performing
Borderlands Spaces Through
Art///Food///Performative///Writing///Pedagogy. The
Pennsylvania State University.
Heidenry, R. (2017). Art on the Border. Balance.
http://magazine.art21.org/2017/04/07/art-on-the-
border/#.YmSfbnZBzIU
Herzog, L. A. (2021). 5. Globalization of the Barrio:
Transformation of the Latino Cultural Landscapes of San Diego,
California. In Hispanic Spaces, Latino Places (pp. 103-124).
University of Texas Press.
Juárez, M. (2020). REMEX: Toward an Art History of the
NAFTA Era.
Khanlou, N., Bender, A., Mill, C., Vazquez, L. M., & Rojas, L.
(2018). Youth experiences of cultural identity and migration: A
systems perspective. In Today’s Youth and Mental Health (pp.
57-76). Springer, Cham.
Kroth, M. (2019). 10 Border Walls that Artists have Turned into
Powerful Protests. https://www.afar.com/magazine/10-border-
walls-that-artists-have-turned-into-powerful-protests
Marlin-Bennett, R., & Marlin, R. (2019). Art-Power and Border
Art. Arts and International Affairs, 4(2).
McKenna, S. (2019). As the US Debates the Wall, Two Sister
Cities Divided by the Border Work to Preserve and perpetuate a
shared identity. https://www.yesmagazine.org/social-
justice/2019/02/28/border-wall-trumped-by-art-community

Mehlomakulu, C. (2017). Expressing Emotions through
Creativity: A 6-Step Art Process.
https://creativityintherapy.com/2017/06/expressing-emotions-
creativity-6-step-art-process/
National Communication Association. (2020). How Art
Installations on the US-Mexico Boeder Affected People’s
Understanding of the Border.
https://www.natcom.org/communication-currents/how-art-
installations-us-mexico-border-affected-peoples-understanding-
border
Peng, X., & Selvachandran, G. (2019). Pythagorean fuzzy set:
state of the art and future directions. Artificial Intelligence
Review, 52(3), 1873-1927.
Rivera, N. (2020). “Painted Over in Brown: Border Art as
Visual Discourse of Resistance”
https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cj_etds/130/
Sheren, I. N. (2021). The Conceptual Border. In Portable
Borders (pp. 23-58). University of Texas Press.
Strehovec, J. (2021). Art State, Art Activism and Expanded
Concept of Art. Cultura International Journal of Philosophy of
Culture and Axiology, 18(2), 55-73.
Taylor, C. (2017). How activists Artists on the US-Mexico
Border Contest Donald Trump’s Wall. The Conversation.
https://theconversation.com/how-activist-artists-on-the-us-
mexico-border-contest-donald-trumps-wall-79300
Tellez, M & Ramirez, A. (2018). How Artists can Shape
Understanding of the US-Mexico Border.
https://www.latinousa.org/2018/01/18/artists-can-shape-
understanding-u-s-mexico-border/
Villazor, R. C., & Johnson, K. R. (2019). The Trump
administration and the war on immigration diversity. Wake
Forest L. Rev., 54, 575.
Spring 2022 Environmental Communication Comm

Tarla Rai Peterson [email protected]
RUBRIC for Grading SEMESTER PROJECT—Literature
Review
A (Exemplary)
B (Acceptable)
C (Developing)
D (Minimal)
Authority of sources
(Students will be able to select sources whose authority is
appropriate to the research topic)
All sources have a level of authority that fits both the research
topic and assignment parameters. Additional, incorporated
sources that reflect multiple (especially unexpected) types of
authority
All sources have a level of authority that fits both the research
topic and assignment parameters
Some/many sources have a level of authority that fits both the
research topic and assignment parameters.
Most/many sources lack a level of authority that fits the
research topic and assignment parameters.
Multiple perspectives
(students will be able to incorporate multiple perspectives)
Student not only selected sources that reflect multiple
perspectives, but also incorporated sources that represented less
traditional perspectives or perspectives contrary to their own
point of view.
Student selected sources that reflect multiple perspectives.
Student selected sources that mostly reflect a single perspective
Student selected sources that only reflect a single perspective
Intellectual property rules

(students will be able to follow intellectual property rules and
standards)
Student always provides proper attribution for sources and
makes very few/no errors in citations & bibliography, even
when dealing with less common source types
Student always provides proper attribution for sources and
makes only occasional errors in citations or bibliography.
Student provides proper attribution for sources, but makes
frequent errors in citations or bibliography.
Student does not always provide proper attribution for sources,
or does not use the selected citation style consistently.
Sources match assignment requirements
(Students will be able to locate *sufficient sources that are
timely and appropriate to assignment parameters)
*minimum is 20
Student exceeded the minimum number of sources required and
found a wide variety/specific types of sources in keeping with
assignment’s requirements.
Age of all sources are very appropriate to topic and
requirements.
Student met, but did not exceed, the minimum number of
sources and variety/type requirement.
Age of sources are generally appropriate to topic and
requirements.
Student met either the minimum number of sources requirement
or the variety/type requirement, but not both.
Age of some sources are not appropriate to topic and
requirements.
Student did not meet the minimum number of sources required
and did not find a variety of sources in keeping with the
assignment.
Age of many sources are not appropriate to topic and

requirements.
8.7/10
Running head: [SHORTENED TITLE UP TO 50
CHARACTERS]
1
[SHORTENED TITLE UP TO 50 CHARACTERS]
4
Art and Life on The Border
Tyson Z. Wilson
[University of Texas at El Paso]
Abstract
The opinions of immigration and the border wall stretch from
one extreme to the other. Interestingly enough many of the
opinions that are most loudly expressed are from people who are
not directly or even indirectly affected. Those most closely
affected by the wall have used art to communicate thoughts and
feelings that often go ignored. This essay reviews previous
research on the use of art to communicate thoughts and feelings
associated with immigration and the border wall. The research
considers different art mediums in which a variety of feelings
are expressed. The review will expand the opportunities for
people to engage with art to express the environment
immigration and the border wall create. Comment by Peterson,
Tarla R: Not sure this sentence belongs in abstract. Abstract
should focus on summarizing this particular review (which is
about art on the border I assume).
Your review, of course, should be more expansive and
providing context for your focal point (which is what this
sentence is part of) is important.
[Art on the Border][Border Environment]

[Border Life]1
Immigration and border issues are not new, but it seems that
more recently the politicization over the border wall has turned
it into a prop for those that have little to nothing to do with the
day-to-day interactions. Using art to communicate feelings and
emotions of those most affected by the border wall and
immigration as a whole allows a myriad of voices to be heard
and the plight of so many to be honored if only in small
increments.
Walls are used to protect, and walls are used to divide, in
regard to the border wall, the opinion of which one it is
intended to be, depends on whose perspective it comes from. In
the search to understand the history of immigration, the border,
and the wall used to define it, we must reflect on the history,
society and culture that are reflected in it (Levi & del Rio,
2016). The border and its subsequent wall are non-tangible for
most Americans and yet the decisions that create how it is
defined do not take into account those that are actually affected.
The relationship between the United States and Mexico directly
affects over 12 million people who live within 100 miles of the
border (Felbab-Brown, 2017). It is important to point out that
the direct impact on those 12 million people has been given
very little consideration on how they are impacted.
There is a thought that comes to mind when discussing the
border wall, that it will keep out the bad things. In this political
environment, it is hard to imagine that the actual physical wall
has only been in place for the last few decades. The buildup of
immigration enforcement and the tactical shift toward walls and
intensive frontal policing in heavily traveled corridors began in
late 1993 (Heyman, 2008). Ironically, the physical wall itself
does not enhance U.S. security (Felbab-Brown, 2017), but in
this political climate it is held up as if it does. In reality, the
wall serves as a visual confirmation of separation. The

separation that many feel is necessary to feel secure. The wall
verifies the fruition of fears that come to the surface when in
reality is a misled ideal. It is the wall that conceptualizes the
metaphorical walls that have been born of racism, fear, and
avarice throughout the United States” (Antoszek, 2018). That is
the reality, especially in post 9-11. With the creation of
Homeland Security, security of the border moved into their
jurisdiction and a focus on national security in Washington,
created a focus on events as they pertained to it. The terrorism
connected to 9-11 was much harder to create a visual guard of
our county so the border wall bore the displacement of it. A
discourse of this fear was further constructed by labeling others
as threats, criminals, and terrorists; the only way to attack this
fear was to create a visual security (Todd, 2018), of an
imposing physical wall. Comment by Peterson, Tarla R:
Sentence is confusing; think it's because of sentence structure
Another component that must be considered is the
financial/economic gain of private contractors from building an
actual wall. The cost has been estimated anywhere from $12
million to $130 million depending on who is doing the
estimating. The cost associated with this new endeavor during
the last administration was promised to be paid by Mexico. The
reality being that it was just political fodder to excite one side
of the political landscape. The rhetoric around the wall
continued to gain momentum as promises of protecting us from
undocumented immigrant Mexicans and others that are
“pouring” over the border, including “murderers, criminals,
rapists and terrorists,” causing mayhem here (Garcia, 2018).
The use of fear as a tool to instill the need for a wall is in many
ways simply a ploy for the economic gain of an elite few. The
wall itself does not provide the level of safety and security it
promises. Undocumented workers and drugs will still find their
way across any barrier that is built (Felbab-Brown, 2017).
There is often so much focus on the direct impact to humans

that the border wall creates. However, that is a short-sighted
view. The impact on many natural elements such as plants and
animals come at a pretty significant cost. The health of a natural
biome/geographic area is imperative to the life and increase
and/or maintenance of a species (Lasky, Jett & Kiett, 2011).
The border as a defining entity is nothing new. It has long
played a significant role in the US-Mexico border discourse for
years going as far as impacting spatial-social relations between
the two (Antoszek, 2018). For many, the wall created a
separation of families that has had a multigenerational impact.
In many ways an entire culture has grown up around the wall
and has created an identity where the wall and the border are
synonymous (Cortina, 2020). The borderlands are a completely
different dynamic from that of other places in the U.S. and in
many ways the special uniqueness should be celebrated. The
border is a dynamic social institution that creates an
interdependent, mutually beneficial system of personal, cultural,
and economic interactions between and among neighboring
places (Cortina, 2020). It is within this special context that an
entire vulture of art expression is shared on all things border
related from the beauty of the land to the harsh injustices of
American immigration policies that are used to tear apart
families and degrade people of color.
[Vocal Art- The Border Wall and Beyond]. Comment by
Peterson, Tarla R: What is this about? How does it fit in your
paper? Is it a note to yourself?
Art speaks if we listen. Art is a language of its own and is
particularly significant for refugee children and youth whose
languages and cultures may be distinct from those around them
(Chávez Leyva, 2021). In many ways the immigrants of the
borderlands, especially those trapped in detainment centers, are
among the most voiceless. Art allows those who may not have a
voice be heard and listened too (Chávez Leyva, 2021). The

border is another conflict that has been absent from discussions
outside of putting up a wall to block them out and once again it
is a discussion that those most affected are not included in.
Textualizing the barriers at the border in art is not as new as the
wall but set back as far as the US-Mexican War. Following the
Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, 276 engraved
obelisks/monuments were erected along the treaties agreed upon
the border. Though art is universal, its application to a
particular conflict can reveal major biases in interpretations and
depictions (Ganivet & Valet, 2019). Art in its simplest form is
expressed in complex ways through all venues of discourse. The
S.T.E.A.M (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math)
movement has solidified that. Drawing inspiration from how
artists and researchers have used art to raise public awareness
and teach people about science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics, the continues to express its frustrations at the
injustices and ironies alive today (Macias et.al., 2020).
Art can best express the soul of a culture (Ionesco, 2015). The
reality of our country is that we are a nation of immigrants. Art
in all its expressions tells the stories of the hopes and dreams as
well as fears and despair. Immigrants are the very ideal of our
nation and yet, the border and those that live and travel in and
around it are often the recipients of untruths and vilification.
Art can help change the many stereotypes and overcome
negative myths around migration (Ionesco, 2015). In its beauty
of expression, art can and is used as a tool to change the belief
in unfounded rumors and untruths. Art can directly empower
migrants and diasporas, allowing them to express their
experiences (Ionesco, 2015), in ways that create commonalities
between those both within and out of the borderlands.
As discussed in the early part of this paper, walls are given
enormous power. The power to keep out or safe from something
or someone viewed as an infringement of another’s rights. They
serve as preventive defenses that attempt to stop infringements

on one’s territory before it occurs. (Levi & del Rio, 2016).
Through resilience and determination as well as a vision for
beauty, artists create an environment of peace, joy,
responsibility, and justice from the mere art they create.
Art not only brings awareness to the world around us, it brings
healing to us as we navigate the world. In a children's detention
center close to the US-Mexico border during the summer of
2018, a group of them fleeing from Central and South America
were being detained. In the stark environment where human
interaction was minimal and the environment of metal beds and
concrete corridors, these children were still able to share
expressions of themselves through art. In spite of the
circumstances, they exhibited life and pride through
representations of landmarks and culture from their home
countries. “There’s a sense of joy and beauty in the art that
reflects everything in the environment they were being denied,”
(Brown, 2019). The cotton balls and scraps of paper they used
to create soccer fields and other cultural objects were not
provided as art supplies, the resilience of children to express
through art is amazing. While no one is claiming that art saves
lives it does point to the healing properties and confidence art
can give to those who have felt powerless and alone (Brown,
2019). The art of these “caged children” (Brown, 2019), have
been displayed all across the United States as a reminder that
children, regardless of their color or origin are just like every
other child.
Murals on walls across the borderlands often have the same goal
of bringing inspiration and empowerment to those that are often
meant to be marginalized. Understanding that opportunities are
intended for all, along with the effort to ensure one feels the
value that they as an individual represent can be expedited
through the use of art. In the Segundo Barrio in El Paso, Tx,
three local artists with varied aesthetics came together to create
a mural, Quinto Sol- The Rebirth, to inspire children from the

neighborhood with memorable artwork (Rivas, 2021). Through
the use of color and cultural symbols, they intend for children
to see the pride in culture and a vision of strength that will
carry them upwards while feeling the honor that such a rich
heritage creates.
Another art expression of frustration and awareness occurred
July 4, 2020. An international coalition of eighty artists used
skywriting to express some of the profound messages in the
simplest of terms (Kladzyk, 2020). Addressing the ironic
celebration of freedom on July 4 as immigrants, many looking
for the same freedoms, are locked in detention centers- “#NO
WALL #NO MURO” and “ESTOY AQUI: SOBREVIVIRE,” (I
AM HERE: I WILL SURVIVE) to highlight the inhumane
conditions in which immigrants face in detention centers
(Kladzyk, 2020).
For US and Mexican audiences alike, the border fence has
great symbolic currency. On art about civil liberties, for
example, with an image of barbed wire, while he used chain-
link fence
Artists have explored the metaphoric possibilities of chain link
as both barrier and permeable interface, as abstract grid, and
part of everyday landscape (Fox,
Border wall art is also used as a tool to not only bring
awareness to the issue of immigration, but it can also be used as
a tool to undermine the intent of the wall’s functions (Casey &
Watkins, 2014). The marginalized viewpoint of those most
affected by the wall is most clearly expressed through the
variety of murals and exhibits on and about the wall and the
people who are forced to interact with it. The art on the wall at
the border is like a healing salve placed on an open wound
(Casey & Watkins, 2014). A lot of the art created regarding the
wall is a reminder of those that have perished in their attempts
to transcend what the wall was trying to prevent.

In building the wall, the U.S. government violently thrust a
foreign object into and onto the earth, intruded into aquifers,
and incised fragile and unique terrains. As Part 1 revealed, the
wall divides people from their backyards and animals from their
habitats and migratory ranges. It slashes through the hearts of
nature preserves, a university, and the streets of people’s towns
and cities. It stands as a powerful contradiction to the welcome
we strive for in our homes and communities. It is ugly, and
indeed, it repels and repulses. Conversely, the art on the wall
invites one in and brings one up close, creating an intimacy
with the wall. The very wall that has caused these deaths is used
to name and remember them, as though to bring to the wall
itself a sense of conscience and consciousness (Casey &
Watkins, 2014). Ironically, much of the art on the wall itself is
only on the Mexican side. With little exception, art on the U.S.
side of the wall is often quickly covered or erased.
In order to begin to heal and repair the physical, psychological
and financial damage that the wall has created, a compassionate
understanding and account from both sides affected by the
division the wall creates must be heard.
[Closing Thoughts] Comment by Peterson, Tarla R: Maybe
these are tentative headings?
Why do the border policies between the U.S. and Mexico cause
so much suffering, injustice, and even death (Todd, 2018)?
What has allowed us to perpetuate our fears from one avenue
into the unfair practices and treatment of those seeking a better
life with no intention to cause harm or taking from a system
without equally giving back? Why has a physical wall become
so important to assuring our national security when research and
data confirm it does not? We live in homes with walls to ensure
our privacy and establish property so we can feel secure, but we
don't have the right to stop others from moving into our
neighborhoods and buying their own homes. Yet, that is exactly
what the border wall does. Rather than a line of separation, the

border should be conceived of as a membrane, connecting the
tissues of communities on both sides, enabling mutually
beneficial trade, manufacturing, ecosystem improvements, and
security, while enhancing inter–cultural exchanges (Felbab-
Brown, 2018).
References
Antoszek, E. (2018). The U.S.-Mexico Border as a Palimpsest in
Ana Teresa Fernández's Art. Polish Journal for American
Studies : Yearbook of the Polish Association for American
Studies, 12, 197-210.
Casey, E. S., & Watkins, M. (2014). Up Against the Wall : Re-
Imagining the U. S. -Mexico Border. University of Texas Press.
Chávez Leyva, Y. (2021). “Behind each beautiful painting is a
child longing to be free”: Deep visual listening and children’s
art during times of crisis. Global Studies of Childhood, 11(2),
123-141. 10.1177/20436106211023509
Cortina, J. (2020). From a Distance: Geographic Proximity,
Partisanship, and Public Attitudes toward the U.S.–Mexico
Border Wall. Political Research Quarterly, 73(3), 740-754.
10.1177/1065912919854135
Fox, C. F. (1995). The Fence and the River: Representations of
the US-Mexico Border in Art and Video. Discourse (Berkeley,
Calif.), 18(1), 54-83.
Ganivet, E., & Vallet, É. (2019). Border Wall Aesthetics
Artworks in Border Spaces (1st ed.). transcript Verlag.
10.14361/9783839447772
Garcia, A. C. (2019). Bordering work in contemporary political
discourse: The case of the US/Mexico border wall proposal.
Discourse & Society, 30(6), 573-599.
10.1177/0957926519870048
Heyman, Josiah McC. -- (Josiah McConnell). (2008).
Constructing a Virtual Wall: Race and Citizenship in U.S.-
Mexico Border Policing.Journal of the Southwest; Journal of the
Southwest, 50(3), 305-333. 10.1353/jsw.2008.0010
Lasky, J. R., Jetz, W., & Keitt, T. H. (2011). Conservation

biogeography of the US-Mexico border: a transcontinental risk
assessment of barriers to animal dispersal. Diversity &
Distributions, 17(4), 673-687. 10.1111/j.1472-
4642.2011.00765.x
Levi, D., & del Rio, V. (2016). Walls as a Reflection of Soci ety
and Culture. Focus (San Luis Obispo, Calif.),
12(1)10.15368/focus.2016v12n1.3
Seesaws Help Balance Ups and Downs at the Border. (2019).
News for You (Syracuse, N.Y.), 67(32)
Todd, M. F. (2018). The Economized Immigrant: Biopolitics At
the U.S.-Mexico Border and Beyond
Vanda Felbab-Brown. (2017). The Wall: The Real Costs of a
Barrier between the United States and Mexico. Brookings
Institution Press. 10.7864/j.ctt1vjqq1f
Lots of great ideas here. You need to work on providing a more
linear organization for the benefit of the reader (who isn’t
inside your mind). But, great start.
Also, I think you could strengthen the support for your final
paper by drawing from more references to art as a political tool
in general.
The use of figures is an excellent addition; strengthens the
paper.
Figures
Figure 1. [This mural was painted in December 2020 as a
Christmas present to the Segundo Barrio by artists Francisco
Delgado, Francisco Camacho, and Bobby Lerma. Photo by
Victoria Rivas, Borderzine.com]
Figure 2
[July 4, 2020. An international coalition of eighty artists used
skywriting to express some of the profound messages in the
simplest of terms (Kladzyk, 2020)]

Figure 3
[Border Dynamics, the art installation by Alberto Morackis and
Guadalupe Serrano, leads viewers to meditate on both the action
and the inattention that keep a wall in place (Casey & Watkins,
2014)]

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