Nicole McCauley

My Family Migration
ARE 6933
Finding a Focus
As I began investigating my family heritage, I was immediately flooded with countless
images, stories, and connections to my roots, and I began asking questions about how to express
my migration to where I am now. Although I could spend my entire life documenting the events
and experiences that have brought me here, I wanted my investigation to have a specific focus. I
found myself wondering why I dont know more about my grandparents lives and my parents
childhoods. Perhaps, I didnt inquire enough, or perhaps the opportunities for reliving old
experiences didnt come up often enough. I had never pictured them as children, as teenagers, as
young adults, and I had never imagined my parents as children growing up and learning about
the world.
Therefore, my artwork is primarily centered on my grandparents lives and my parents
childhoods. I suppose I wish I knew more about their firsthand experiences, without the barriers
of heavy accents, age, differing interests, and fading memories, so Ive begun to piece them
together through images and personal memory. I still dont know nearly enough, but consider
this to be a great starting point. The images Ive included show my grandparents as young adults
and my parents as children and are situated within a large footprint to symbolize my familys
mark on the world. My mother and her mother were born in Argentina, my mothers father was
born in Italy, and my father was born in the United States with roots in Germany and Norway. I
created another heritage artwork in 2008, entitled My Cultural Patchwork, to express my
understanding of my roots, which included a very short childrens story that I feel is also relevant
for this new work.

The Story of Nicolita

Chapter 1
There once was a girl named Nicolita. She had family from all
around the world. People would often ask her where her family
was from, but she never knew what to say. After all, Nicolita had

family from Italy, Argentina, Norway, and the United States. She
couldn't choose just one because she loved all of her family just the
same.
Chapter 2
Nicolita loved her different family very much and special traditions
were developed for each of them. She would hear quite a few
languages when everyone got together for the holidays. Her nona
would tell her "te amo". Her nono would tell her "ti amo". Her
grandma would tell her "Jeg elsker du". And her mom and dad
would tell her "I love you".
Chapter 3
One day, Nicolita realized that her different family wasn't different
at all. Instead, they were unique, colorful, and beautiful, and
shared the same love for family. Now when people ask Nicolita
where her family is from, she says with a smile, "Italy, Argentina,
Norway, and the United States".
The story represents my natural transition into globalization as a young girl, something I
wasnt aware I was experiencing at the time, but cherish more than ever now. I suppose I didnt
realize how lucky I was to grow up in a diverse family with natural inclinations of acceptance
and understanding. Being raised in a multicultural family steered me towards seeing people for
who they really are, good or bad, and did not leave room for separating people into categories
based on the color of their skin or personal beliefs. For this, I am truly grateful, and I feel it has
prepared me for the interconnected future of humanity.
Meet the Zungris
Gitano Zungri was born in Briatico, Italy February 27th, 1922 and currently lives in Santa
Barbara, California. His family had gypsy roots and led a life of constant travel, which stuck
with him throughout his life, taking him all over the world. He learned how to fix cars at an
early age, which served him well during World War 2, especially when he was captured by the
Germans and was held as a prisoner of war. He worked in the motor pool, survived on potato
skins, rolled cigarettes for the German soldiers, and escaped.twice.
Aida Mingorance was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina on December 25, 1930 and
currently lives in Santa Barbara, California with her husband, Gitano. My Nona (grandma) has

extremely artistic roots, with many members of her family being writers, artists, dancers, and
musicians. She is the reason that I know how to cook (because she taught my mother) and one
reason why I have a magical touch with plants. In 1956, she married Gitano Zungri and gave
birth to my mother, Silvia Zungri, the same year in Buenos Aires on October 15th. My mother
lived in Buenos Aires until she was thirteen and then came to the United States with her family
a different story altogether.
Meet the Robbins
Wilfred Theodore Robbins (Bill) was born on April 18th, 1912 in Fort Collins, Colorado,
and had strong roots in both Germany and England. He was raised in Colorado, became a doctor
in the army and served in World War 2, receiving honors and medals for his service. He
relocated to Santa Barbara, California where he tended an amazing garden and began a family.
Most of what I know about Grandpa Bill comes from my fathers stories and one in particular
stands out in my mind: when my father was a young child, he witnessed his dad drop a glass 5
gallon jug on his bare foot, to which he calmly replied, Oh that smarts.
Eunice Louise Green was born on December 26th, 1918 in Portland, Oregon, and had
strong roots in both Norway and Scotland. She was raised in Portland, Oregon, participated in
army recruiting services, was drop-dead gorgeous, and had an early affliction for taking selfies in
photo booths! She relocated to Santa Barbara, California where she met and married Wilfred
Robbins in 1954. Eunice and Bill were active in the community, played tennis, went to country
clubs and dances, and gave birth to my father, Wilfred Theodore Robbins Jr. (Ted) on October
24th, 1958.
Unanswered Questions
While working on this project, I began to wonder about the effects of technology on our
memories. For instance, I am able to watch videos of myself from when I was a child, memories
Im not sure I would recall if it werent for the help of digital technology and preservation
techniques. How will technology and the internet, assuming it is around for generations, change
the way children view their parents and grandparents? Will future generations continue to know
more about themselves and those before them because of our ability to import, label, and
categorize our memories?