SUNSET PARK — A Sunset Park nonprofit is adding a splash of color to Fourth Avenue through a new mural that portrays women in the neighborhood's diverse immigrant communities.
The mural, titled "We Come from the Future," was designed and executed by artist Vaimoana Niumeitolu on Turning Point Brooklyn's headquarters at 5220 Fourth Ave. near 53rd Street.
The nonprofit, which has been using the building for more than a decade, offers educational, health and social services to those in need, including people suffering from addiction, substance abuse and domestic violence, said executive director Tata Traore-Rogers.
Traore-Rogers wanted to provide "real representation of Sunset Park" through women of color who are part of the diverse and densely-populated neighborhood.
The mural depicts women, both young and old, from Jamaica, China, Palestine and Puerto Rico.
While the piece was unveiled Aug. 29, Niumeitolu continues to add finishing touches, including an artist's note that was recently written in.
Turning Point Brooklyn's Sunset Park Mural
The new mural "We Come from the Future" on Turning Point Brooklyn's building depicts women of different ages and nationalities who make up Sunset Park's rich and diverse immigrant communities.
Diversity of Women in Sunset Park
Traore-Rogers and Niumeitolu wanted the mural to highlight women who were part of Sunset Park ethnic communities. One part of the painting depicts two Muslim students, a Jamaican mother, daughter and grandmother, and a pair of hands that belong to the same Jamaican woman.
Representing Puerto Rican and Chinese Communities
On one side of the Fourth Avenue building, the mural depicts three generations of Puerto Ricans — a mother, daughter and grandmother who live in Brooklyn — and an elderly Chinese woman for two of Sunset Park's most prominent and growing communities.
"The artist and myself [were] very focussed on women being represented accurately," Traore-Rogers said.
Tata Traore-Rogers
Tata Traore-Rogers, the executive director of Turning Point Brooklyn, a Sunset Park nonprofit that provides education, health and housing services to those in need, including people suffering from addiction and substance abuse.
"I could not stand the wall we had," she said, describing it as "brownish" and "depressing."
"As you can see, I like color," she added.
A Note From the Artist
The artist Niumeitolu recently added acknowledgements and a note explaining the mural on the building.
"We Come From The Future is a community mural celebrating the voices, presence and love of indigenous and immigrant grandmas, daughters and granddaughters who live in Brooklyn with roots from Palestine, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, China. We honor you," the note reads.
An Elderly Chinese Woman
To represent Sunset Park's big Chinese-American population, the artist painted the image of an elderly Chinese woman within the mural.
Hands of a Jamaican Woman
Through the mural, Traore-Rogers said she wanted to bring life and color to the nonprofit's formerly drab-looking building. She hopes to also bring murals to Turning Point's other buildings in Sunset Park and Red Hook.
One image in the mural depicts the resting hands of a Jamaican woman.