A Monkey, A Python, And a Pot of Mole Pages

8/18/2019 A Monkey, A Python, And a Pot of Mole Pages

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by Mercedes Padro


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Introduction.................................................................................

Alphabet of Cultures..................................................................

Burma..............................................................................

Mexico.............................................................................

Guatemala.......................................................................

Thank You..................................................................................

Cont.

7

9

19

23

27

31


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In the making of this book, I first sought out to

change the

world. Inspired by Victor Papenek’s words – I too would

be a social designer creating work with both meaning

Introduction

introduction introduction

what I talk about when I talk about culture

and function. Instead of changing the world, I found that

this book and the people I’ve met along the way have ef-

fected me. People and human interactions are what this proj-

ect is about. In this book, I conducted a series of interviews

amongst people in the Kansas City community who have

or who are going through an E.S.L. or E.L.L. program. I’ve

asked them to share their experiences and stories with us to

encourage cross-cultural awareness within the Kansas City

area. This book is a collection of stories, poems, and illustra-

tions that reflect people, ideas, families, food, and culture.

When I talk about culture, I mean in the following sense;

culture is the way a group lives and exists on a day to

day basis. Culture is an essential part to who you are andwhy you are that person today. Whenever I address culture

the intent is to celebrate – not demean – our differences.


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geometric patternwork

embellishments

detailed

A lphabet of Cultures

a.o.c. a.o.c.

Qatar

Alphabet of Cultures was a sub-project that acted as

the research and creative process for this project.

The goal of Alphabet of Cultures was to promote

diversity and cross-cultural awareness through social media

which included Instagram and Facebook. I posted a handlet-

tered and/or designed letter of the alphabet inspired by a

country along with a short blurb on each country. For example,

A is for Armenia, B is for Burma, C is for Cuba, D is for Den-

mark, etc. The selection process for the country of the day

was influenced by cultures represented within the Kansas City

Community. And other times it was because making a letter

for – lets say – India sounded fun and inspiring. This proj-

ect lasted from February st, to February th, .

As apart of the daily lettering process, I did extensive research

and made mood boards for each country. I learned about dif-

ferent food, customs, and architecture before sketching and

making my final post. The reception for this project was fun be -

cause a lot of people enjoyed seeing their culture representedand celebrated in a public sphere. I also found that people are

curious about groups of people they don’t know much about.


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a.o.c. a.o.c.

Guatema la India

GDay : G is for Guatemala.

Guatemala is located in Central

America with around ,

people that live there. This hand lettering

is inspired by beautiful Guatemalan

weaving that has ancient Mayan roots.

IDay : I is for India! India is the

worlds largest, oldest, continuous

civilization. Not to mention my

dream destination. India has a diverse

culture with a population of . billion

people. This letter is inspired by Indian

stamps, textiles, and architecture.


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a.o.c. a.o.c.

Pohnpei

floral pattern

tropical influence

natural

PDay : P is for Pohnpei!

“Upon” (pohn) a stone altar

(pei)” is an island apart of

Micronesia that is located in the middle

of the Pacific a boats ride away from

Australia. Pohnpei is one of the rainiest

places in the world with inches of

rain a year and this P is inspired by the

abundance of plant life on the island.


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a.o.c. a.o.c.

Spain

SDay : S is for Spain! Spain

brought God’s gift of paella

to man. There are million

people that live in this beautiful country

that sits on the Atlantic Ocean between

France and Portugal. The capital of

Spain is Madrid and soccer is the

most popular sport, shout out to Spain.

flat patternwork

bold palette

oceanic


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BB

a.o.c. a.o.c.

a r m e n i a

b u r m a

c u b a

d e n a m a r k

e g y p t

fi j i

g u a t e m a l a

h o

n d u r a s

i n d i a

j a p a n

k e n y a

l i t

h u a n i a

m e x i c o

n e w z

e a l a n d

o m a n

p o h n p e i

q a t a r

r o m a n i a

s p a i n

t h a i l a n d

u r u g u a y

v i e t n a m

w a l e s

x i ’ a n

y e m e n

z i m b a b w e “Alphabet of Cultures” is on display from

April 15th through May 13th, atthe H & R Block Artspace at the KansasCity Art Institute located at East rdStreet, Kansas City, Missouri, .

Alphabet of Cultures


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M e e

t C a r v e r .

H e g o e s

t o t h e

K C K C o m m u n

i t y

C o

l l e g e w

h e r e

h e

’ s t a k i n g

E . S . L .

n i g h t c

l a s s e s .

C a r v e r

t a l k e

d t o m e a

b o u

t g r o w

i n g u p

i n B u r m a ,

h u n

t i n g

f o r m o n

k e y a n

d p y

t h o n

i n t h e

j u n g

l e ,

j o i n i n g a n u n

d e r g r o u n

d K

a r i n a r m y a

t t h e a g e o

f 1 7

, a n

d b e c o m

i n g a r e

f u g e e .

A f t e r

U N

a p p r o v a

l , C a r v e r

a n

d h i s f a m

i l y m o v e

d t o t h e

U n

i t e

d S t a t e s

t e n y e a r s a g o .

T o d a y ,

C a r v e r

l i v e s

i n K C K w o r k

i n g a s a m e

d i c

a l i n t e r p r e

t e r .

Burma

How many languages do you know? How did you learn

the languages you know? I know Karin, Burmese, and a

little English. My parents are Karin. But we stayed in Burma.

Burma is a country where the majority is Burmese. Only Bur-

mese language is allowed to be studied in school. So when

I was in Burma I spoke in Burmese, I wrote in Burmese,

I sang in Burmese. I went underground and joined the Kar-

in army in Burma and I stayed with the Karin people. And

I very rarely see the Burmese people. I speak only Karin.

Did you live in Burma the majority of your life? I stayed eigh-

teen years in Burma. When I was eighteen I went underground.

Then the Burmese attacked our land and we became refugees in

Thailand for many years. In the year 2000 our family sneaked

from the camp and went to Bangkok and we applied for a refugee

status. That is in the year 2000. In 2004 we came to America.

How many family members do you have in the U.S. now?

I have nine siblings total but my brother already died. My fam-

ily who died his family is in United States in

brother’s daughter and her family is in New Y

ily who all together are five members. Me, m

and my girls nineteen and seventeen. My d

ing in North Carolina. She’s studying…scie

ing biology, medicine, English, and I don’t

many subjects. She tries a lot, she wants to

What would you say is your comfort food

really like to eat. We come from Asia and w

eat our food in our country. And when we co

want to eat our food. Not because we don’t lik

American food is tasty and very delicious bu

We have five members in our family. Three

two are me and my wife. But our children are

ican food. Because when we came here they

Do you eat special holiday foods? We

Monga in Burmese land. And also noodle

ways eat it, we eat it sometimes. Our main

sauce, pepper powder, salt, and also like se

What family traditions do you have durin

Yes sometimes we have a family reunion

eat whatever we like. I remember when I

my mother was a very good cook. I was say

food the same. We have to eat many kind o

country we like a kind of monkey that is very

people like it. The best every, most of the Ka

you shoot the monkey, it falls from the tree,

and the blood drains. And that blood is v

ergy and people mix it with alcohol and p

tle by little every day. And it’s very good.

Q & A


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And the hair, they only take out the hair. And then when it

is a little less, they burn it a little, burn out the hair. And then

they eat the whole monkey. Is it a big monkey? No its not

big, not big like baboon. They eat everything. Only the poop

is very hard to eat. That part they don’t eat. And very de-

licious. And we also eat many kind of snake. Nearly every

kind of snake we eat. What’s your favorite snake? Python

is good. It tastes like chicken. But cobra tastes better. But this

part (pointing to neck) you don’t eat. Because it has – what do

you call it – the venom you don’t eat. How do you cook it?

We cook it when snake is big. We take out the bone inside.

When snake is small we chop and grind it with the bone in it.

Do you have a favorite childhood memory or memory of

being home? We remember our church in our country. Our

church and especially at Christmas time. The whole church

we have a gathering. And especially on the first of Januaryevery year. Our whole church and every people and every

family came to the church. And before Christmas and New

Years Eve we cook a lot of food for the whole

next day we bring food to the church and w

and whatever you can bring. And we have

that time our church cook a big pot of curry.

curry for the whole church. Korean soup

Do you miss that sense of community fro

there is something that comes from Christian

ebrate Christmas and New Year we have

Every night we have church worship. Everyat Christmas time our church has a whole C

What does the word culture mean to you

is something that we receive from our own an

believe something that we do every day o

me, we receive our American culture. We

every, hear too, in Kansas City we celebrat

Year. And every Sunday when we go to our

in Karin dress. They call it Hosanna Karin B

my church is not here it’s in North Carolina.

children are in North Carolina. Only one of

here. I live with my son and his family. Whe

ing here to the United States. I got a good jo

lina. What job do you think? House cleaning

job in North Carolina. Especially at the Un

Carolina. The easiest job. Here I work for C

Burma Burma

P y t h on

y

Recipe (a Burmese Tale)

Once you’ve caught your Python

After it snuck into your bed

Take a machete and cut off its

Nose so that it cannot smell you

Or use it’s teeth to snap

Then lock the python in your room

Preferably with your third wife

And now the recipe begins

Preheat your oven to 375

Prepare a seasoning of curry and lime

Check the room to see whom is dead

If the snake is still breathing

Find your oldest child Th Oo

Who is likely hiding in the woods

Wrangle the Python

Into the preheated oven

And cook for five minutes

Culture is something that wereceive from our own ancestors.

– Carver Hla


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M e e

t V i c t o r .

H e g o e s

t o t h e

K C K

C o m m u n

i t y

C o

l l e g e w

h e r e

h e

’ s t a k i n g

E . S . L .

n i g h t c

l a s s e s .

V i c t o r

t a l k e

d t o m e a

b o

u t g r o w

i n g u p

i n M e x

i c o ,

e a

t i n g

h i s m o

t h e r ’ s

d i f f e r e n

t s o u p s , a n

d v

i s i t

-

i n g

t h e

U n

i t e

d S t a t e s a s a c

h i l d .

T o d a y ,

V i c t o r

l i v e s

i n K C K w o r k s

d o

i n g m a

i n t n e n c e w o r k

f o r a n a p a r t m e n

t c o m p

l e x

.

Mexico

Where are you from? I’m from Ciudad Juarez Chihuahua.

When did you come to the United States? The first time I

came here was in 1997 for vacation. I can say that in 1995

I moved here. Yes I have a lot of family here. Mostly from my

father’s side. Do you have any children? Yes I have three.

My daughter Daniela she’s the oldest she’s eighteen, then Louis

he’s sixteen, and then Eric he’s the youngest one he’s eleven.

Do you have family traditions that you do during the

holidays? Well it’s kinda the same. Christmas and New

Years. But we celebrate Dia de los Muertos and a differ-

ent Independence Day. Do you have a favorite child-

hood memory? Yes in Mexico, we can do a lot of things

that the kids here don’t do. We can play with a lot of things.

Those are great memories. Of all the things I did in Mexico.

What’s your comfort food or something that reminds you

of home? I like mole and soups. Beef soup, chicken soup. Yes,

my mom used to make soup all the time. She

Chicken soup she called caldo de pollo. And fi

caldo de pescado. You can put any fish you

on how much money you want to sp end. Do y

a religion and if yes why? I belong to Catho

not a real real Catholic because I don’t go e

my parents teach me when I’m little. And also

vate Catholic schools. My daughter and one

school and the little one goes to Resurrection

What does culture mean to you? Culture

type of living of each country. What’s you

City? I work maintanence for an apartment


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Mexico Mexico

y

Victor stared at the crunchy ceiling

as he listened to his sisters’ breaths

move rhythmically

in a symphony of snores and exhalation.

An overgrown plant stretched

toward the window and acted as

a percussive bravado to their slumber.

Illuminated by the moon,

Victor recounted who was sleeping where tonight:

Anna Delia and Gloria beside him,

Seraphin and Elisa above him in the hamaca,

and Carmen and the rest at his feet.

Quickly and methodically, he made his way,

pausing only to see if he disturbed the rhythm.

“Usted es un cheetah,” Seraphin teased

when Victor would appear in the fields.

“Que es esto un cheetah,” he would reply.

Culture means to me the typeof living of each country.

– Victor Tapia

a Ghost in Chihuahua

Smiling to himself, he ran into the forest,

found his old red bicycle beside a mango tree,

and sped down the mountain.

The world came to him in a

blur of every shade of green.

“Sale loco de contento con

Au cargamento para la ciudad

Ay, para la ciudad, lleva en su pensamiento

Todo un mundo lleno de felicidad, ay, de felicidad.”

He sets off happily with

his cargo to the city

to the city, carries in his thoughts

a whole world filled with happiness.

Victor reached an intersection in the road

as he sang his tune of Barceloneta.

“Just at the chorus,” he liked to say,

“mis ojos were as big as a jack fruit.”

The trees and the birds grew silent

as an amorphous figure appeared from the dirt.

She asked for help with her Buick as it appears

to be smashed but can likely be repaired.

“I don’t see a car!” Victor yelled as he

threw his bike and sprinted past the grinning figure.

“I’ve never ran so fast in all my life,” he recalled.

He also made a point of questioning his logic.

A worker found Victor a few hours later

shaking underneath a truck.

“Boy what’s wrong with you?”


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M e e

t V i c t o r .

H e g o e s

t o t h e

K C K

C o m m u n

i t y

C o

l l e g e w

h e r e

h e

’ s t a k i n g

E . S . L .

n i g h t c

l a s s e s .

V i c t o r

t a l k e

d t o m e a

b o

u t g r o w

i n g u p

i n M e x

i c o ,

e a

t i n g

h i s m o

t h e r ’ s

d i f f e r e n

t s o u p s , a n

d v

i s i t

-

i n g

t h e

U n

i t e

d S t a t e s a s a c

h i l d .

T o d a y ,

V i c t o r

l i v e s

i n K C K w o r k s

d o

i n g m a

i n t n e n c e w o r k

f o r a n a p a r t m e n

t c o m p

l e x

.

Guatemala

Where are you from? I’m from Ciudad Juarez Chihuahua.

When did you come to the United States? The first time I

came here was in 1997 for vacation. I can say that in 1995

I moved here. Yes I have a lot of family here. Mostly from my

father’s side. Do you have any children? Yes I have three.

My daughter Daniela she’s the oldest she’s eighteen, then Louis

he’s sixteen, and then Eric he’s the youngest one he’s eleven.

Do you have family traditions that you do during the

holidays? Well it’s kinda the same. Christmas and New

Years. But we celebrate Dia de los Muertos and a differ-

ent Independence Day. Do you have a favorite child-

hood memory? Yes in Mexico, we can do a lot of things

that the kids here don’t do. We can play with a lot of things.

Those are great memories. Of all the things I did in Mexico.

What’s your comfort food or something that reminds you

of home? Soups. Beef soup, chicken soup. Yes, my mom used

to make soup all the time. She made beef so

she called caldo de pollo. And fish soup she

pescado. You can put any fish you want de

much money you want to spend. Do you affi

gion and if yes why? I belong to Catholic c

a real real Catholic because I don’t go every

parents teach me when I’m little. And also m

vate Catholic schools. My daughter and one

school and the little one goes to Resurrection

What does culture mean to you? Culture

type of living of each country. What’s you

City? I work maintanence for an apartment


16/20

Guatemala Guatemala

y

I imagine the porcelain cows

moo-ing as she cooks enchiladas

for our reaching hands.

Hands seem to mostly be reaching

when the stomach quakes

like the oceanic volcano

so close to our home.

“Pero no estamos en Guatemala”

she would lament

as the pot rumbled

and our hands reached.

My culture describes me.Loving and joyful.

– Evelyn Orozco

Walking beyond the kitchen

a man sat in a yellow chair

in front of a static television

slowly moving a wire hanger.

Weetha grabs a roll of coins

from a drawer that appears

to only have rolls of coins.

Dinner is ready.

at my Weetha’s house

And the hair, they only take out the hair. And then when it

is a little less, they burn it a little, burn out the hair. And then

they eat the whole monkey. Is it a big monkey? No its not

big, not big like baboon. They eat everything. Only the poop

is very hard to eat. That part they don’t eat. And very de-

licious. And we also eat many kind of snake. Nearly every

kind of snake we eat. What’s your favorite snake? Python

is good. It tastes like chicken. But cobra tastes better. But this

part (pointing to neck) you don’t eat. Because it has – what do

you call it – the venom you don’t eat. How do you cook it?

We cook it when snake is big. We take out the bone inside.

When snake is small we chop and grind it with the bone in it.

Do you have a favorite childhood memory or memory of

being home? We remember our church in our country. Our

church and especially at Christmas time. The whole church

we have a gathering. And especially on the first of Januaryevery year. Our whole church and every people and every

family came to the church. And before Christmas and New

Years Eve we cook a lot of food for the whole

next day we bring food to the church and w

and whatever you can bring. And we have

that time our church cook a big pot of curry.

curry for the whole church. Korean soup

Do you miss that sense of community fro

there is something that comes from Christian

ebrate Christmas and New Year we have

Every night we have church worship. Everyat Christmas time our church has a whole C

What does the word culture mean to you

is something that we receive from our own an

believe something that we do every day o

me, we receive our American culture. We

every, hear too, in Kansas City we celebrat

Year. And every Sunday when we go to our

in Karin dress. They call it Hosanna Karin B

my church is not here it’s in North Carolina.

children are in North Carolina. Only one of

here. I live with my son and his family. Whe

ing here to the United States. I got a good jo

lina. What job do you think? House cleaning

job in North Carolina. Especially at the Un

Carolina. The easiest job. Here I work for C


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thank you

...to everyone involved in this project including students from

the Kansas City Kansas Community College, Joseph Tuzzolinofor filming interviews, professors in the Kansas City Art Institute’sdesign and creative writing departments, and Jessica Blanfordfrom KCK Community College. Special thanks to my parentsSusan Padro and Pedro Padro for always being supportive.

thank you


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A Monkey, A Python, And a Pot of Mole Pages