HUNTINGTON BEACH : Art Center Mural to Tell Whole Story

A bigger-than-life hand reaches down to pick up a stone in the ocean. A Native American man touches a sea turtle. A surfer, a tattooed woman, waves, oil derricks, dolphins.

These images are being created on a large mural on a wall in the parking lot of the soon-to-open Huntington Beach Art Center.

The imagery represents the diverse cultures in Orange County, both old and newly arrived, said muralist Yreina D. Cervantez, who is creating the artwork with muralist Alma L. Lopez.

The images depict contemporary beach life and cultural experiences of African Americans, Asian Americans and Latinos.

But Cervantez said: “This is not a historical mural. It’s more like a scrapbook--the telling of a story and the telling of people’s memories.”

Cervantez also said the county’s diversity is visually expressed with myriad wave images on the mural that reflect decorative elements from the different cultures and their influences.

The mural, on a 105-foot-long wall with heights up to 23 1/2 feet, is part of “Community Properties,” the opening exhibition of the long-awaited downtown art center.

After months of delay because of construction problems, the art center is tentatively scheduled to open in late March, art center director Naida Osline said.

Osline said the mural is part of a commitment to present a variety of art projects outside the building and in the community. The art center has three galleries, a studio, a multipurpose room for lectures, a kitchen and a bookstore.

The artists started their work in August by researching the history of the city and county and talking to community people and learning about their cultures and life experiences.

Lopez, a UCI graduate student, also said that instead of using only acrylic paints, the mural will incorporate ceramic tiles with pre-Columbian symbols that represent water and objects in water, such as fish and seashells.

Cervantez, who teaches at Rancho Santiago College, hopes their work will give viewers a greater understanding and appreciation of other people’s experiences and heritages.

“When we begin to understand each other’s stories, we begin to understand each other more,” she said.