Somos Borincanos is an ever-growing art spectacle on the ATL BeltLine
ARRRTADDICT is one of the many incredible artists in Atlanta keeping the city beautiful through her untouchable artistry. Somos Borincanos is a huge ongoing project on the BeltLine that both honors and celebrates the artist’s Puerto Rican roots. The space radiates its important message beautifully, highlighting the importance of truth, family, and community.
The multi-mural installation tells the story of the Taino tribe, documented in Puerto Rico, Cuba, Jamaica, and other islands across the Caribbean. The Taíno were the first group of people encountered by Christopher Columbus during his 1492 voyage. ARRRTADDICT told Secret Atlanta that the need for truth was a driving force behind the installation, as well as a need for representation.
“I started realizing how much our history isn’t told,” she said. “I felt like it was time to tell the correct story. I think we’re in this era right now where we’re realizing that a lot of history has been told from the colonizer.”
She added, “It was really important for me to tell this story, to honor my ancestors, and provide representation for Puerto Ricans, and all the Taino islands in the Caribbean.”
Somos Borincanos is a love letter to all the Caribbean islands, and she hopes visitors who share her heritage feel liberated and united with a community that has been ignored in the history books for way too long. “Right now, things can feel really segregated,” she said. “It creates a lot of division. I wanted to do this piece to unify everybody in the Caribbean by this one thing that we all have in common.”
There’s even a tribute to ARRRTADDICT’s late grandmother. With a touching Instagram post revealing, “My heart feels full as I feel like I have a place to now bring flowers to her right next to my house.”
With several murals already complete and beyond beautiful, the installation is an immersive street art experience! But it doesn’t stop there, as ARRRTADDICT will continue adding more to the piece, with major plans already in the works. Somos Boricanos will soon be a treat for all the senses, with an audio element being added by the end of the year. Mesmerize your mind with the murals, as you listen to the enchanting sounds of the Puerto Rican coqui frog.
“I knew to bring this experience to life, the sound element had to be added. I really want to immerse people in Atlanta, or from Puerto Rico, and make them feel what it possibly could of felt like to be a Taino back then in the rainforest. So we’ll be working with the BeltLine to keep adding things every year.”
In other ARRRTADDICT news, she recently collaborated with Skittles for Pride Month, creating an incredible loud and proud mural in Five Little Points.
You can find Somos Borincanos on the BeltLine at the Edgewood Avenue Bridge. Follow ARRRTADDICT on Instagram, or check out her website and store, here!