New Roots is a collaborative mentorship program, inspired by my identity as a person with roots in multiple cultures. It’s designed to supports the existing gaps for first and second generation immigrant high-school students in the U.S using multiple platforms; Wayfinding AR posters, a website, a digital magazine, a journal, social media and more. This project is dedicated to all the individuals who struggle to define and accept their cultural identity within their existing surroundings.
Artist/Thesis Statement
Five years ago, my parents made the decision to immigrate to the U.S. It happened right when I finished my military service in Israel, where my parents immigrated to from Russia when I was 2 years old. Growing up, I slowly learned to accept the cultural differences between my domestic and formal educational environments, with the support of a close-knit community consisting of members with backgrounds similar to mine.
When I arrived to the U.S. the experience was completely different. As of today, the programs implemented in the American education system to support first and second generation immigrant students, are lacking at their core. New Roots was inspired by my personal cultural identity, and allowed me to cultivate a collaborative mentorship program, to support the existing gaps for first and second generation immigrant high-school students in the U.S.
New Roots serves as a place that has the capacity to ameliorate the loneliness and isolation feelings common in the immigrant experience. It’s a place to embrace and celebrate those differences while bringing people together. The use of unconventional branding elements for the program is designed to generate a fun and welcoming environment where relationships can grow, develop and evolve organically without the pressure of formality. Building upon personal experience and months of research, New Roots is dedicated to all the individuals who struggle to define and accept their cultural identity within their existing surroundings.
