“For some reason, taking it out to the streets is how I roll,” admits Wanda Raimundi-Ortiz.
As the creative mind behind public-facing performance art pieces like Pieta, a 2017 live reinterpretation of Michelangelo’s iconic masterpiece in response to acts of violence against children of color, the Bronx-born interdisciplinary artist has spent two years finding inspiration here in Philadelphia.
“In 2022, I decided I no longer wanted to create tragedy porn,” she says. “I’m going to work in joy—radical empathy and radical joy—simply because we deserve it. Full stop. Why do we have to justify our joy with our pain?”
This emphasis on empathy and joy brought Raimundi-Ortiz back to Puerto Rico, the island her parents departed in the 1950s during the Second Great Migration, in search of opportunity in the United States.
Her family’s story, alongside thousands of similar stories of sacrifice, longing, adaptation, and survival, form the emotional foundation of Raimundi-Ortiz’s upcoming public performance on Saturday, October 17: Vámonos Pa’l Monte, or “Let’s go to the mountain,” a four-mile processional through the streets of Philadelphia that pays living tribute to Puerto Rican culture, resilience, and the diaspora at large.
Working with Mural Arts Philadelphia and costume designer Kristina Tollefson, Raimundi-Ortiz has spent two years engaging with residents, artists, and culture workers in Norris Square, a neighborhood long at the heart of Philadelphia’s Puerto Rican population. The culminating processional is shaped by numerous workshops, local histories, community knowledge, and shared storytelling and co-creation, conducted with partner organizations Norris Square Neighborhood Project and Taller Puertorriqueño.
Vámonos Pa’l Monte’s title is inspired by the classic salsa track of the same name, by legendary composer and pianist Eddie Palmieri: an anthem and a love letter to life in the hills of Puerto Rico, and an invitation to join the journey. And so, to get started, Raimundi-Ortiz heeded Palmieri’s call to action.
"It was in the trees, the leaves, and the mountains of Puerto Rico in which I found meaning to this project,” says Raimundi-Ortiz. “Fully knowing about the landscape was the driving force, so I could share that knowledge with my son. I began building a body of drawings with a deliberate sequence of titles, each alluding to my growing connection with Puerto Rico: Quiero Ir Pa’l Monte (“I want to go to the mountains”); Llevame Pa’l Monte (“Take me to the mountains”); Vámonos Pa’l Monte (“Let’s go to the mountains”).”
Soon enough, the artist could see parallels between her own search for sanctuary and belonging—her journey to el monte—and the many ways that generations of Puerto Ricans in Norris Square have created their own remembrances and tributes.
“Going to the mountain or the idea of the mountain, has always felt like a form of sanctuary for me—a sanctuary I don’t think I’ve ever had. And so to come to [Norris Square] and to see Doña Iris’ gardens…she’s been building the monte, managing the monte. There is a place.”
Bringing attention to Puerto Rican communities during the country’s Semiquincentennial celebrations, in the city where American democracy was born, is also intentional. Raimundi-Ortiz hopes to create space for dialogue around a simple but powerful question—Whose independence are we celebrating?—and to center the experiences of Puerto Ricans living in America, as well as their contributions to the nation’s social, cultural, and economic fabric.
The public is invited to walk with Raimundi-Ortiz from Center City to Norris Square on Saturday, October 17 (rain date: Sunday, October 18) and to join the processional performance at one of three meeting times and locations: Market Street between 5th and 6th, at 10 am; Cruz Playground at 5th and Master Streets, at 12:30 pm; and Norris Square Park at 2 pm. Directly following the processional, neighbors, friends, and processional participants are invited to a celebratory bombazo in Norris Square Park, featuring local folkloric musicians, dancing, and commemorative photos that capture the rich Puerto Rican community of Norris Square and a shared moment in history.
Visit muralarts.org/vamonos to learn more about the project and the October 17 event.
Major support for Vámonos Pa’l Monte has been provided by The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, with additional support from the William Penn Foundation and Pennsylvania Creative Industries, powered by the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency funded by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the National Endowment for the Arts. Project partners include Taller Puertorriqueño and Norris Square Neighborhood Project.
