A Cuban woman arrived in the late 1990s through the diversity immigrant visa program .

After 27 years in the United States, Ana Arango started to paint memories of her transition from her homeland to Central New York.

“I left Cuba crying, very young, with a baby in my arms and one suitcase,” said Arango. “A suitcase filled with hopes, a lot of uncertainty and little experience.”

At La Casita Cultural Center , 33 Latinos - mothers, fathers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters, cousins, couples and friends - came together in May to create Corpórea , a collective art installation born from each participant’s story of resilience, inspiration and memory.

“It helped me trust myself even more and gave me the opportunity to express in that painting what I sometimes haven’t been able to express,

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