Ride on a Flushing Train, by Esteban Najarro (1924–2012)
To Use This Document
With Your Students
Date
1989
Description
An artful representation of what Najarro saw every day in his commute to New York aboard the Flushing 7 train in the 1980s. A Cuban immigrant who was trained at the prestigious Academia Nacional de Bellas Artes San Alejandro, outside of Havana, Esteban Najarro lived in Manhattan, Astoria, and Woodside, before moving to Syosset in 1991. As a regular commuter on the Flushing 7 train in the 1980s, he saw firsthand the growing immigrant population that has made the borough of Queens into one of the most diverse places in the world; according to 2022 statistics, 47.5% of all Queens residents are foreign born. In this vibrant painting, Najarro captures a joyful scene of Americans who have roots that stretch across the globe, but who have all made the journey—and sacrifices—to join our nation and our communities.
Type
Image
Region
Long Island
Era
Contemporary United States
Topic
Community, Immigration, Transportation
Repository
Identifier
2017.002
Source
Long Island Museum, Stony Brook, NY, Gift of Frank Karl Ortner, 2017
Rights
This image is provided for education and research purposes. Rights may be reserved. Responsibility for securing permissions to distribute, publish, reproduce or other use rests with the user. For additional information, see our Copyright and Use Statement.