School mural and fundraiser celebrates AAPI heritage in NYC

MANHATTAN, N.Y. (PIX11) – Students at the High School of Art and Design in Manhattan came together on Thursday to celebrate AAPI Heritage Month with a mural and fundraiser to assist struggling Asian communities in New York City.

Prosenjit Sen, a senior and member of the AAPI club, led the art project. He grew up in a Hindu-Bangladeshi home, and his love for art was influenced by the deities and events of Hindu mythology. 

“All I looked at was all those paintings and those prints and desired to recreate them,” he said, adding that the appreciation for his heritage plays a big role in conceptualizing the mural, which is focused on representing the melting pot of Asian cultures in New York City.

The AAPI club was established in 2021, and all 10 students were involved in the mural painting. Each component reflects a different part of Asian culture.

“This painting kind of depicts a scene where the Hindu goddess Durga represents war, courage, and valor. She’s upon this landscape upon a tiger, the wave adds a little bit of dynamic to the piece and the lotus represents longevity in the Chinese culture,” Sen said.

Students see the mural as an opportunity to immortalize their Asian cultures in a single unified piece while paying it forward to struggling communities.

Principal Maximillian Re-Sugiura was a big supporter of the idea from the start. 

“I realized we had an opportunity to not only make something beautiful but to also raise funds to support folks who might be food or who are housing insecure,” Re-Sugiura said.

The school partnered with the Chinese-American Planning Council - Flushing chapter.

 “An often-unknown fact is that the Asian American/Pacific Islander communities in New York City have the highest level of food insecurity of any disenfranchised minority group,” Re-Sugiura said.

Donations are through the school’s PTA and can be made online at artanddesignhs.org through the end of May.