Carson Dedicates Mural That Celebrates Diversity

Carson dedicates its first mural today, celebrating the city’s mix of cultures.

The mural, painted by 24-year-old Eliseo Silva, who emigrated from the Philippines seven years ago, is splashed across the side of the Manila Business Center at 22030 S. Main St. Called “Roots and Wings,” it shows the Carson City Hall at one end and Rancho Dominguez and the city forefathers at the other end. In between is a vast array of symbols and images that represent the multiethnic mix of Carson, population 84,000, where 25% of the residents are African American, 25% Asian Pacific Islander, 25% Latino and 25% white.

Toward the top, three ancient priestesses cradle multicolored roots that are red, white, brown, black and yellow. “This is the main theme, nurturing one plant with different roots,” said Silva, a graduate of Otis College of Art and Design who has worked on two other murals in Los Angeles.

A brightly colored phoenix, known in the Philippines as a sarimanok, flies out of one corner of the 43-foot by 22-foot mural, representing hope. The city’s Fine Arts Commission set aside $5,000 for the mural, which Silva started one month ago and finished with the help of nearly a dozen Carson high school students.