On Tuesday, some 26 students from Secondary 1 to 5 in Cité-des-Jeunes' Arts Plastiques-Études program unveiled the Racines mural in front of the Théâtre Paul-Émile-Meloche. The aim of the mural is to promote the French language through culture. 

As part of the activities offered by the MU organization, students in teacher Nancy Lépine's art class had the chance to take part in a French-language slam-writing workshop with poet Nella Tetam.

Present at the unveiling, the author recited slams composed by the students, excerpts of which were transcribed onto the mural.

This creation then gave way to a storm of ideas on the theme of French-language culture, so that artist Bryan Beyung could create the model for the mural.

From this ideation emerged the etymological links between culture and nature, which is why the artist chose to draw a parallel by tracing the Latin origins of the term cultura, defined as both the action of cultivating the land and that of cultivating the soul. The Greek philosopher Cicero was the first in history to apply this word to human beings. Later, the term was even used to refer to the practice of an art.

In the entrance to the Paul-Émile-Meloche theater, Bryan Beyung also used an antique theater mask, elements of nature extracted from collages made by the project's students and a photo of Félix Leclerc's guitar, courtesy of the Musée régional de Vaudreuil-Soulanges.In addition, a quotation from Félix Leclerc's Calepin du flâneur enters into dialogue with a slam by one of the students on the theme of the forest.

Tree roots, a water lily and a portrait of Félix Leclerc are depicted on the mural in orange, green and blue.

"We hope our mural will raise awareness among students at our school and all visitors from outside. That they see our language and its culture inspires us to create, to express ourselves and contributes to our identity. This work is a testament to our pride and our commitment to preserving it," says Noémie Roy, Secondary 1 artist.

In fact, the soundtrack to the piece was an exclusively French-language playlist created by the students. "We realize that a significant proportion of the school's students come from immigrant backgrounds, whether first or second generation. We realize that in the corridors, students speak a lot of English. Projects like this not only showcase our language, but also make young people aware of its importance.Understanding French helps them in other subjects.It can just be good for them," says teacher Nancy Lépine.