JR
Migrants, Mayra, Picnic across the border, Tecate

In September 2017, French artist JR installed a monumental photograph of the eyes of Mayra, a "Dreamer" - a young undocumented immigrant covered by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program - facing the border fence between Mexico and the United States. One eye was on a table in Tecate, on the Mexican side of the border, while the other eye was on a tarp in Tecate, California.

On the last day of this installation, October 8, JR launched an international picnic where hundreds of people shared a meal across the fence. At first, JR thought nobody would show up to his picnic. He wasn’t able to publicize it online, since an advance announcement would have likely resulted in a shutdown by the U.S. Border Patrol, so he had to rely on word of mouth. At 12:30 p.m., nobody was there. "I thought, Oh, maybe it’s just going to be a few of us" he says. By 1 p.m. there were dozens, and by 2 p.m. hundreds of people had shown up to share the meal.

"The table goes through the wall, and the people eat the same food and drink the same water and listen to the same music." JR says. "For a minute we were forgetting about it, passing salt and water and drinks as if there were no wall."

The skateboard deck measures approximately 80 x 20 cm. Made of 7-ply Canadian grade A maple wood. Top print includes a printed artist studio stamp. 2 Easyfix wall mounts included