About this Event
The event will begin with a moving live performance by musician Juan Usera and The Sambuco Tribe, setting the tone and making space for remembrance and renewal. Following the music, Bronx-based artist Tijay Mohammed will lead an interactive chalk art project aptly named “Message to my Ancestors,” transforming the pathway into a vibrant canvas that honors history and sparks imagination for the future.
Local artists will work alongside Tijay Mohammed, including Adrienne George, Musah Swallah, Noel Hefele, and Yoshiko Mori.
This unique gathering blends art, music, and community in a powerful act of reimagining, bringing people together in a shared experience of creativity and remembrance.
Tijay Mohammed's "Message to my Ancestors" project is sponsored by Bronx Council on the Arts and AnkhLave Arts Alliance, Inc.
The event is made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
This event is part of Van Cortlandt Park Alliance’s initiative. VCPA invites the community to reimagine the park’s Enslaved African Burial Ground site as a memorial space that fosters long-term healing and restoration. Phase 1 of this project was supported by a generous grant from the Mellon Foundation.
Juan Usera is a fourth-generation Bomba practitioner and culture-bearer from Santurce, Puerto Rico, a community educator, researcher, college professor, musician, and performer. He specializes in Puerto Rican and Caribbean music and culture and has over 20 years of experience developing highly engaging cultural activities and arts programs throughout the New York tri-state area. Juan is the founder and director of La Tribu del Juey Sambuco (La Tribu), an Afro-Caribbean music and dance ensemble and arts in education company. La Tribu has been featured at Lincoln Center and El Museo del Barrio among many others. He is the recipient of a NYSCA Folk and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Grant, City Parks Foundation grant, and NYFA City Artists Corps grant among others.
Ghanaian-born artist Tijay Mohammed currently resides in Bronx, NY. As an artist he has a strong passion for exploring issues that affect community and humanity at large. His work explores the concept of 'excess' in the production and consumption of products, and offers a solution through the integration of materials reuse and up-cycling. Tijay has spearheaded workshops and community-oriented projects for esteemed organizations, including the Studio Museum Harlem, Brooklyn Museum, Sugar Hill Children’s Museum of Art & Storytelling, Children’s Museum of Manhattan, Wallach Art Gallery, Lehman College, University of Ghana, and Pinto Community Centre in Trinidad and Tobago.
Event venue & nearby stays
Enslaved African & Kingsbridge Burial Ground, John Kieran Nature Trail, The Bronx, United States
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