Muralist Marlon Davila recently visited Cajola and with widespread interest from the community, painted a mural in the city center. Ninety students from the local middle school (INEB), Grupo Cajola scholarship students, and Grupo Cajola board members participated in the project. Cajola’s Mayor Fidel Lucas offered a prominent wall within the town hall for the work.
Davila holds a degree in Fine Arts from Princeton University. His works are an evolution of pop art with a lot to say or tell. He paints from the Mheart and lately his work is infused with his Guatemalan heritage, his ancestors, our planet and nature.
Davila has been a muralist since 2019 and previously painted a two story mural along with 500 students at Community Park School in Princeton, NJ.
After he met Grupo Cajolá in North America Board Member Diana Crowder and Director Caryn Maxim he proposed painting a mural in Cajolá. His personal goal was to deepen his contact with his roots and his heritage.
The mural in Cajola represents Guatemala and the Maya culture and heritage. Its depiction of the past and present community intends to evoke the image of progression through community. Two INEB students, Emanuel and best friend Emerson who helped out in painting, are included in the mural. Hints and original marks from INEB students and Grupo Cajola members are retained in the work, leaving an everlasting source of pride and memories for the participants, their families, and their classmates.
Davila’s visit has exposed a great interest in art among the Cajolenses and has magnified the lack of artistic opportunity in the area. Grupo Cajola invites artists of all genres to contact us and share their craft and ideas for bringing opportunities for expression-through-art to Cajola.
See Marlon Davila’s visit to Cajola in this 2-part video series. Part 1: https://youtu.be/Pz-pplGA4hI?feature=shared
Part 2: https://youtu.be/1iaWtDumrJs?feature=shared
Part 3: https://youtu.be/FWRixwBtJ64
