Whooshing through Chapel Hill in a prismatic stream of vibrancy, flashing passerby with an unapologetic blur of whimsical design, the Orgullo Latino, or Latinx Pride bus, offers a tour de force, to say the least. A visual magnet that radiates fluidity with a mode of public transport as its canvas, the project represents the ultimate vessel of artist Georges Le Chevallier’s dreams for the Latino community.
“In the last few years a lot of immigrants have been stereotyped for the wrong reasons,” Le Chevallier said. “Most immigrants, including Latin Americans, they come here, and they’re hard workers, they’re honest—they just want to be part of the system. So hopefully I can remind people about the positive things that the Latino community does for Chapel Hill and North Carolina, and for the U.S., for that matter.”
Le Chevallier, whose work spans the private and the public—from adorning distinguished galleries worldwide to site-specific public art installations in countries across the globe including Hungary, Tanzania, Chile and France—proclaims that the Orgullo Latino will be his most memorable endeavor. While providing immense professional satisfaction, working on the project was also therapeutic for Le Chevallier as he grappled with the loss of both of his parents during the pandemic. In one part of the composition, plump magenta hearts with the words “I love you Mom and Dad” in both English and Spanish pay special tribute to the artist’s parents, consistent with the underlying theme of love and family that is reflected throughout the entire piece.
Le Chevallier’s vision for the project was inspired by a colorful custom hailing from the Southern Hemisphere, where raucously energetic buses, including the Chiva buses from Columbia and the Chicken buses found in many Central American countries, spark life into an otherwise mundane feature of city life. Le Chevallier imagined transporting this cultural zest to Chapel Hill and Carrboro, while sharing a beloved tradition of the Latino community. The result is a sumptuous overflow of colors, an onslaught of design that woos the senses from all angles.
To connect each diverse element of the collage, twisting black brush strokes punched with white polka dots—reminiscent of traditional film reels—sweep the eye along a roller coaster of fantastical surprises. Beginning with a deep blue violet drizzled with flowers, the centermost ribbon unfurls in dazzling excerpts along a heavily-saturated spectrum. After a luminous rush of azure sky, the viewer descends into a dynamic explosion of orange and carmine paint mingled with confetti stars and fireworks, before curving upwards into a tropical-yellow, cheetah print stretch. Disappearing over the roof of the bus, the mosaic continues unabated on the opposite side with a fuchsia discoid pattern. And the kaleidoscope of hues sketches in other motifs emblematic of Latin American culture. Patterned skulls representing Día de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, flood one of the upper boxes, while white and lime swirls like rose blooms add a floral touch to another portion of the artwork. The entire rear of the bus is splattered with paint, with rogue flames blazing across one of the lower boxes.
As a mobile work of art, the Orgullo Latino bus is particularly unique.
“People see the work and they take pictures and they send them to me on Instagram. I’ve done murals. I’ve done sculpture. But having artwork that kind of appears and disappears, people tell me about it kind of like a rumor…. I think that’s really awesome,” Le Chevallier said.
Born through a partnership between Chapel Hill Transit and Chapel Hill Community Arts and Culture, the Orgullo Latino represents the area’s growing Latino community. With miles of rolling farmland, the Triangle offers an abundance of agricultural jobs that attract thousands of Latinos. But as Le Chevallier cautioned, the Latino community cannot be assigned to a single category.
“We stereotype the Latino community as only agriculture and construction workers, which is the majority, but there are all types of Latinos. There are all different colors, all different careers—the Latino community is very complex.”
Le Chevallier continued, “Most Latinos work multiple jobs, and they risked their lives to come to the U.S. So, in a sense, they represent what America is about. They love the U.S. so much that they risk going through a desert, they risk getting arrested, they risk family separations because they believe in what the U.S. is, which is a country of immigrants.”
Le Chevallier’s deep appreciation for the importance of welcoming all nationalities stems from his multinational origins. With a Puerto Rican mother and a French father, Le Chevallier was born in Paris, raised in Puerto Rico, and has travelled extensively throughout Latin America. Beyond his geographic diversity, Le Chevallier also enjoys a large multicultural family.
“Growing up, I realized that there’s a lot of shades of gray in any population. So I think that is why I’m always so interested in inclusivity,” Le Chevallier said.
Consistent with his personal narrative and with careful attention to the role of public art in promoting a positive, upbeat message, Le Chevallier’s work emphasizes inclusivity, avoiding figurative painting in favor of more symbolic expression.
“I don’t want my work to tell stories—I want my work to bring people in for the emotional experience,” explained the artist. “When you see colors and patterns and things like that, you get to choose what the narrative is about.”
Citing the use of color as an example, Le Chevallier expanded, “You can be from another country, you can be a kid, you can be an old person, you can be a male, female, whatever, and you still have an emotional reaction to the color red.”
Aiming to illuminate the capacity for coexistence, Le Chevallier focuses on dissolving one of the most significant barriers to understanding: Language. His brushstrokes flutter effortlessly between Spanish and English, displaying words like “paz” beside “peace,” and “aqua” beside “water.” Le Chevallier expressed his hope that English speakers will realize they know more Spanish than they thought—a critical first step toward reaching acceptance.
Reflecting upon the contribution of the Orgullo Latino to the community, Le Chevallier said, “I want the Latino viewers to be proud. I want the Latino viewers to see this bus go around town and for them to feel that somebody is representing them. For the non-Latino people—with the colors and with the words in Spanish and English—I want them to feel connected to the Latino people.”
After a brief pause, Le Chevallier added, “maybe with this bus, they can realize that they have more in common than differences.”
Photo courtesy of Angelina Katsanis/@akatsmedia
