'98 Fellow Linda Tomiye Jofuku's project, "Making Tiles-Making Connections," is a collaboration between the students, parents, and faculty of Alvarado Elementary School in the Castro district of San Francisco and well-known artist Ruth Asawa and her son, Paul Lanier, school artist-in-residence. They are creating a large tile mural depicting a garden with a variety of plants, insects, and flowers reflecting the diversity of the student body and our planet. In the process of creating the wall, students may visit Ruth Asawa's home, see her amazing art collection and work with her on design. Linda has found funding for the project, as well as in-kind services and materials. The Building Trades Council has offered to donate materials and labor. Wendy Nelder, Director of the Mayor's Neighborhood Beautification Fund, facilitated contribution of seed money to start the project.

"It's a way for the students to come together in a collaborative process, to develop their sense of design and beauty, and to get to know a great artist like Ruth Asawa," Linda says. "She's an amazing person. She was interned during World War II and denied her teaching degree because of race, but she hasn't got a trace of bitterness. Her work is in museums, homes, and public places all over the nation. It's really a privilege to know her."

"It's a way for the students to come together in a collaborative process...and to get to know a great artist like Ruth Asawa."
-Linda Tomiye Jofuku