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12
washington county arts guide
❘
december 2012 – february 2013
By Cari Hachmann
W
hen considering the
request to create a
mural for the new
Virginia Garcia Memorial
Health Center in Cornelius,
Hector H. Hernandez pondered
how to best honor the life of the
girl for whom the facility was
named and the ongoing efforts
to improve wellness in the
community in which she too-
briefly lived.
Garcia was the six-year-old
daughter of migrant farmworkers
traveling from their home in Mission,
Texas to work in Oregon fruit fields in
1975, settling in a Washington County
migrant camp. Along the way, the little
girl cut her foot. Although the wound
could have easily been treated, cultural
and economic barriers kept Virginia
from getting the health care she
needed. She died of blood-poising on
Father’s Day, while her own father
toiled in the nearby fields.
Her story spurred the community to
action, and within a month the first
Virginia Garcia Health Clinic opened in
a converted garage in Cornelius.
Hernandez was a logical choice for
the mural when the new $13.7 million,
42,000-square-foot clinic was being
planned. An artist dedicated to
honoring heritage and reflecting the
dreams and voices of people in diverse
communities, he has also been working
in health education for the past seven
years.
The Portland muralist brought 25
years of experience to his creation of a
colorful mosaic piece called “Revival of
Hope and Wellness.” The mural now
decorates the front wall of the new
center, which was dedicated in October.
Hernandez held several
conversations with clinic staff members
and patients to develop
the mural’s theme before
infusing his own artistic
flair. He then began the
five-month process of
capturing Virginia
Garcia’s life and legacy
through tiny pieces of
ceramic tile.
From left to right,
against a blue backdrop,
the rectangular mural begins with an
Agave plant, a symbol of the earth’s
energy that evolves and spreads. A
mosaic depiction of the Garcia family
at center represents what Hernandez
calls the nucleus of society.
Out of the family, like migrants from
the south, a kaleidoscope of butterflies
soars towards the horizon. Sons and
daughters of migrant farmworkers play
and follow the butterflies in the
strawberry fields where their
parents work.
Among the children, there
are flowers – bright tulips that
dot Oregon’s verdant
landscapes.
An acorn shaped tulip
represents one small child,
Virginia Garcia, and the
eventual logo of the Virginia
Garcia Memorial Foundation.
The tulip sprouts wings and transforms
into a butterfly which flies towards the
sun, rising over the horizon and
reaching toward the light, like
sunflowers.
A rose blooming near the sun
symbolizes Garcia’s little life reaching
the light in the same way we all do over
the course of our lives, said Hernandez.
“It symbolizes how we can devote
our energies to that light,” the artist
said. “She passed away, but there is a
message of hope out of her tragedy.”
– Cari Hachmann featured other
prominent murals in Washington
County in the 2012 Fall Arts Guide.
Muralist Hector Hernandez creates a bittersweet tribute to life, wellness and hope at a new clinic in Cornelius
Putting the pieces together
Portland artist Hector H. Hernandez spent five months working on his mural at the Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center.
Chase Allgood
“She passed
away, but there
is a message
of hope out of
her tragedy.”
Hector H. Hernandez
Hernandez’s mural uses butterflies to
represent the migrating farm families who
come to Washington County.