GTA is beautifying Guam through village murals.
GTA held a ribbon cutting ceremony on May 2 in Sinajana to unveil the newest mural as part of its village mural project.
With over 15 years of art experience, Geraldine Datuin created her first ever mural that embodied the Chamorro Culture. She said it was inspired by a real life person and a true story, the mural is titled “A Young Cruz Woman”.
“The story really is about a girl who has grown up you know close family and friends she actually was raised in a nearby village and she uses dance to connect with her culture and also she has been dancing for so long which is why this her dancing and it’s a way she connects with her CHamoru identity but also she found a way to sustain her livelihood,” said Datuin. “So, I think the pairing of those is beautiful and I think she’s done really well for herself and I think she’s a very resilient young woman and I’m so proud of her.”
According to Datuin, many of the paintings and artworks she has created centers around indigenous people as well as details that showcase natural elements found on the island.
“This is centering around an indigenous chamorro woman and how she connects with her culture but also you see a lot of natural elements like to emphasize a connection to the indigenous land that we all live on on Guam,” Datuin said. “So, this is an … flower native to Guam and that is an important piece in all of my paintings, just to make sure people are aware of protecting the land that sustains us here.”
Additionally, she shares that she put off doing murals for so long but when GTA reached out to her she knew she had the support of the company and friends that supported her along the way as well as the guidance she has received over the years.
“It was hot, it was very hot but the village people and the community were all very kind and encouraging why they drove by,” Datuin said. “I’m just really passionate about it and I’m so proud of it. I’m so happy I’m super happy about it.”
Her artwork can be found on Instagram @datu.sigwarz.
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