“One Love,” A drawing of rapper Nipsey Hussle and singer Selena Quintanilla Perez in a happy embrace hangs on the wall of the art gallery, inspired by reflecting on the past and present of its artist, LBCC student, Jeremiah Henderson.
Henderson is the only student to have his art showcased during the “Cuidate Mucho” art gallery, and his story is one of art through adversity.
“Growing up I discovered my love for art and coming from a low-income household, my grandma couldn’t afford the best art supplies, so I made the most out of the spare pencil and paper around the house,” Henderson said.
At first, the big picture was always involving his art being displayed in museums, but over time he found himself unsure of where his dreams were going.
“I thought it was impossible for someone with my background to become what I wanted,” Henderson said, “I started settling with the idea of being a tattoo artist so at least my work can be seen.”
The tattoo artist’s direction stayed that way for a while, until the untimely death of a close friend, sending Henderson into a depressed state. He found himself sketching and drawing constantly, using the art as a distraction to get the sudden tragedy out of his head.
Shortly after, he moved to L.A. from his hometown and experienced culture shock from all the negativity displayed.
“I noticed immediately the hostility and differences between Hispanic and minority communities, where love was absent even if they were neighbors,” he said.
This was when Henderson knew he wanted to create an art piece that showed two can come together no matter their backgrounds, with less hate and more love.
He chose Nipsey Hussle due to him being a personal inspiration and an icon for minorities, same with Selena, as she is an inspiration for many Hispanic households and communities.
“The both of them, being so loved and sadly dying in violent ways, made the communities and neighborhoods set aside all differences and come together, to celebrate the love they had for these artists. That’s really what got my art going and what I wanted to represent for others to see, how it is possible for everyone to love one another,” Henderson said.
The “One Love” art piece took Henderson about two months to come up with.
“Originally I only had Nipsey Hussle sketched as he has always been a main inspiration for me, but due to my work, I was constantly exposed to environments that were heavily Hispanic populated and I loved everything about it, so I decided to incorporate Selena in it as well,” he said.
Henderson is the only student at LBCC to be featured in the art gallery, his piece was hand chosen by the new art director Karla Aguiniga.
“They were setting up shop and I saw Jeremiah’s drawing, it was so beautiful and the meaning along with the title I knew it would fit perfectly for the show,” Aguiniga said.
“At first I had no idea what the theme for the art exhibition was going to be, I brought the piece along with others to an art market in hopes to sell it as a print, Aguiniga saw it and immediately let me know that it would be amazing for it to be featured in the gallery, a week later I saw my name in the flyers around campus and was a little shocked,” Henderson said.
The gallery experience was like no other for Henderson.
“It is unreal because this time last year I was sleeping in my car, having no family, no support, nothing. If I were seen on the side of the road, I would assume no one would take a second glance at me and would just think I’m a bum, no one knew my intentions were good, and that all I really wanted to do was be an artist,” he said, thankful for the support he has now.
Phil and Katherine Burno, West L.A. natives, are among those who helped Henderson shift his life for the better, providing a support system he’d been sorely lacking in Los Angeles. The couple met Jeremiah through the West L.A. Living Word Christian Center, where Phil Burno works as a pastor.
The church is located in a strip mall close to Henderson’s first tattoo shop apprenticeship, as well near to where he would often spend nights in his car. The longer he attended church services, the better the Burnos got to know him. Then, in November of 2021, Katherine first proposed inviting Jeremiah to stay in their home.
“When we brought him home, it was a situation where he had to get accustomed to the idea of being in a place where he’s safe, and he doesn’t have to worry about being taken out because of him failing to accomplish something…we were committed to helping him, and taking care of him,” Phil Burno said, recalling what it was like having Henderson stay with them those first few weeks.
Katherine Burno also shared her emotions pertaining to Henderson’s art and journey.
“He is part of our family…his art obviously is so much a part of who he is but the story of him being homeless and in his car, that’s a minor part compared to how much God has grown him and given him opportunities to do better in the things that he wants to do in his art and how much he’s grown. It’s been amazing to watch all of that,” she said.
Henderson’s academic journey was also greatly assisted by Katherine, as she encouraged him to consider attending school for his art, scheduling tours for several art schools, as well as helping him get enrolled at LBCC.
“His eyes were open to so much more in the art world and we started talking about it, and helped him get enrolled [at LBCC] and he has just grown so much in his art since he started his work in Long Beach and just being able to have a place of security, where he doesn’t have to scramble to make ends meet,” Katherine said.
The main theme Henderson wants to impart when looking at his art is that your upbringing doesn’t have to define you for the rest of your life.
“Your background doesn’t have to hold you back because in the drawing it shows Hussle, and he was a gangbanger before people knew his name and Selena was a small town singer in a struggling household. No matter the face or upbringing they both made people happy, and people came together not focusing on what they looked like or came from, but sharing love with the music they gave to the world,” Henderson said.
His art display drew a crowd at the opening of the art gallery reception. He was greeted by students and other local artists congratulating him.
The love he received from campus is returned, as he noted his time here has helped him grow as an artist, “I can honestly say I have been creating my best work here while being enrolled at this school and look forward to the rest of my time here.”