The “Border Crossing” statue, which was created by artist Luis Jimenez, has been outside LeBaron Hall since last Monday as a symbol of family, immigration and the Hispanic culture.

Carol Meeks, dean of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences, said the statue depicts a Hispanic man crossing the boundary between Mexico and America while carrying his wife and child.

Although the man in the piece is wearing jeans and a T-shirt, “Border Crossing” is “more cultural than a timepiece,” she said.

“It’s the idea that if you look at the clothing on [the man], it’s obviously not a wealthy person,” Meeks said. “It’s representing the idea that everybody in their life has to cross something and go on to someplace else.”

John Cunnally, associate professor of art history, said the statue is positioned so it is facing LeBaron Hall.

“The idea is that the immigrants are, in a sense, headed to the College of Family and Consumer Sciences for guidance or in hopes to improve their daily and family life,” he said.

The artwork is made of spray-painted fiberglass, which is an unusual medium, he said. The material often is used in cars, aircraft and canoes.

“Most artists don’t want to use it because it’s too popular and too vulgar,” Cunnally said. “But Jimenez is in many ways a pop artist.”

He said the artwork is spray-painted bright colors to represent “the colorful and energetic image of the Chicanos.”

The statue is part of the “Celebration of Resiliency” program, which acknowledges the endurance of families, said Lynette Pohlman, director of University Museums and co-curator of the program.

Jimenez also came to speak at the statue’s dedication Wednesday, where he explained how the statue portrayed his grandfather’s immigration, Pohlman said.

“While it is a self-portrait of his own family situation, it’s also a universal symbol of how people have moved and migrated,” she said.

Pohlman said ISU currently is attempting to raise money to make the statue a permanent part of the campus.