The Secret Mermaid Statue

Roman Villarreal, a Latino Vietnam veteran born and raised on Chicago’s South Side, was one of many steel workers laid off between 1979 and 1986 due to overseas competition. With his newfound free time Villarreal began trying his hand at a lifelong passion- art. Specifically, he started teaching himself how to sculpt with the help of his wife, Maria. His work slowly refined and gained more traction in the arts community. While attending a show at Hyde Park, Villarreal met Mexican artist Jose Moreno, and the two immediately hit it off. They both expressed a desire to collaborate on a guerilla art piece. The two were later joined in conversation by fellow sculptural artists Fred Arroyo and Edfu Kingigna. Eventually, a plan hatched between the four. They were going to sculpt a mermaid into one of the limestone revetments which sat on the beach by Lake Michigan.

Since the subject was a simple mermaid, the artists figured that it couldn’t offend most people. Villarreal convinced his fifteen-year-old daughter to model for the sketches of the mermaid. In broad daylight, and wearing her street clothes, Melinda Villarreal posed atop the revetment while the artists sketched. They began sculpting later that afternoon. Ultimately, it took the artists working in shifts late at night, early in the morning, and frequently just in daylight, for nine days and nights in the summer of 1986. Somehow, no one asked to verify who the men were and what they were doing. A few unsuspecting and inquisitive police officers even dropped by as they continued their project. Each officer left them alone after commending the excellent job they were doing.

On the ninth day, all four of the artists simply left the stone sculpture on the Oakwood Beach without carving signatures, and without having garnered any attention. The Mermaid became a sort of local secret- known by the joggers, teens, and families who frequented the park. It wasn’t until 2000- 14 years after the sculpture’s creation- that its existence became known to city authorities.

The Mermaid was uncovered during a $325 million revetment restoration by the Army Corps of Engineers. That day, the story about the mysterious sculpture was published in the Chicago Sun-Times. After reading the story in the morning newspaper, Melinda Villarreal- who modeled as the mermaid in 1986- walked across the street from her work and into the Chicago Sun-Times with photographs and the real story of how the mermaid sculpture came to be.

Now aware of the artwork’s delightful origins, the community asked that the statue be shielded from the Corps of Engineers’ restoration project. In 2004, it was put in storage by the Park District. Three years later, a group of student community interns restored the sculpture with the aid of the original four artists and placed it in Bessemer Park, in Roman Villarreal’s home neighborhood. In 2010, it was relocated to its current spot in Oakland where it continues to charm park visitors with its beauty and compelling backstory. Roman Villarreal has since become a prominent teacher and mentor for young Latinix artists in the community. 

Chicago Park District. Mermaid, Chicago Park District. July 20th 2015. Accessed October 9th 2020. https://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com/parks-facilities/mermaid.

Dailing, Paul. #398: The Steelworker’s Mermaid, South Side Weekly. August 5th 2015. Accessed October 9th 2020. https://southsideweekly.com/398-the-steelworkers-mermaid/.

Evans, Maxwell. Roman Villarreal Has Dedicated His Life To Public Art. Now, He’s Looking To Bring More Work To His South Side Neighborhood, Block Club Chicago. July 16th 2020. Accessed October 9th 2020. https://blockclubchicago.org/2020/07/16/roman-villarreal-south-chicago-artist-youve-seen-his-work-around-the-city-now-this-artist-is-raising-funds-for-projects/.