Our Stories: Art At Home by Laura Alvarez

When I reflect on the presence of Art in my life, I can only say it was always there. My mother is an artist and my father is a scientist who loves art. Our vacation consisted of always visiting old historic european places and museums. We appreciated art as a family.

Growing up, everyone always encouraged me to use my imagination and participated in my crazy inventions, theatre productions, ballet choreographies and costume making projects. They encouraged the development of my imagination and creativity by empowering me.

My  community involvement began at fourteen. As a student in high school, I spent an entire summer of environmental volunteering, riding bikes through my hometown in Spain, trying to stop uneducated farmers from starting fires that would burn the forest, and identifying illegal spills. Later, I went on to France to work on a project where we built a recreation park out of an old castle and restored a historical washing place at a little lost town in the middle of Normandy. When I look back, I realize I’ve always been involved in some kind of community-advocacy roll.

Living life is a traumatic experience for most of human beings. If you find the way to channel frustration, ideas, creativity, imagination, fears, instead of burying them in the depths of your soul, you can overcome everything.

Whatever kind of Art form that attracts you, that’s the one is going to save you from being angry, frustrated, or incomplete.

I landed in New York eight years ago and never imagined that I could be a part of something like BxArts Factory, a project that brings together both of my passions, Art and Community. I believe Art means nothing without Community and vice versa.
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By bringing art to Bronx households, I hope that everyone we work with feels as empowered and free as I felt growing up.