Hacienda Heights Public Art-Adrian Siu

Hacienda Heights Public Art- Adrian Siu

March 28, 2026

Hacienda Heights Public Art - Adrian Siu

I chose to focus on Hacienda Heights artwork because that is the artwork of the place closest to me. I was raised in Hacienda Heights and thus have a close bond with it, but despite that, Hacienda Heights doesn't really have much public artwork. The community itself is a very quiet and uneventful place, most passing by on the 60 freeway without noticing it. Hacienda Heights itself is about 10 miles from El Monte, which is in turn, about 30 miles from CSULA. Most public art dates to before the 21st century, though much is from the post-20th century. The community itself is relatively quiet, with little crime or homelessness compared to the outer regions, but also not much going on.

List of Sites:

1. Circles of a Ripple 

Location: Hacienda Heights Community Center, Hacienda Heights, California
Artist: James Dinh, Fabricator for the panels: Winsor Fireform
Created: built in 2014 as per the LA County Arts
Theme:  Community, connection, and harmony
Representation: The three trees at the center are California 
Materials:  Stone, marble. The trees at the center are actual California trees
Sponsors: N/A
Community Reaction: The community loves it

2. Los Robles Park Wall Triangles artwork


Location: Los Robles Park, Hacienda Heights, California
Artist: Unknown. There are multiple unnamed artists.
Creation date: Unknown
Theme: Color and Moving Forward. Everyone is special in their own way.
Representation: A wall of triangles that all look to be moving right, with their main corners at a 90-degree angle from right to left.
Materials: Paint and tiling.
Sponsors: Unknown, likely Parks and Recreation.
Community Reaction: It is well appreciated, though most barely notice it.

3. Hsi Lai Temple. Arhat Garden


Location: Arhat Garden, Hsi Lai Temple, Hacienda Heights, California
Artist: unknown, but Venerable Master Hsing Yun was involved in planning
Creation date: unknown; likely 1988.
Theme: This artwork represents Buddhist practices, wisdom, and discipline.
Representation: The garden represents 18 arhats, meaning enlightened disciples of the Buddha.
Materials: Unknown, but likely stone, wood, bronze, and some hints of gold are claimed.
Sponsor: Unknown, likely acquired by Venerable Hsing Yun, or by benefactor/devotee donations
Community Reaction: Positive, though during the original planning in the 80s, including environmental concerns, traffic congestion, and noise, among others.

 Critical Analysis

    I chose to do Hacienda Heights' public artwork because it is where I live. There are lots of parts of the community that have artwork on the side of walls, streets, crosswalks, sidewalks, and even on buildings. The Circles of a Ripple at the Hacienda Heights Community Center represents the connection of the area with its history, and that is what Hacienda Heights operates on.

    The ones that are being represented in the public realm are mostly those involved in religious work, hence the high share of heavy religious public art. The centered histories are mostly about California local history or the history of those who live in a certain area. Most art is either funded by devotees/benefactors or by ordinary people, or, in both cases, by organizations.

    In my community, I like the way artwork isn't forced together, but that each artwork piece is a distance from the next. But what I dislike is that most artwork seems to be all by higher-ups or outside groups being the ones to decide what artwork can be there, rather than those in the community deciding what artwork they prefer. Despite this, the artwork that is present in Hacienda Heights is calm and breathtaking and is one that anyone who comes should be able to view.


Proposal

I propose that Hacienda Heights can be open to allow the community to have a chance to approve the public artworks themselves. For the most part, sometimes, there are acts of graffiti that get taken down, despite it being a community act and that most people support it, the highways under spots are very much boring. At least allow for community meetings so that everyone can vote and at least be notified about artwork being removed or plowed over. Also, maybe at least once so often, allow for a way to enlist local artists to design public artwork around Hacienda Heights, rather than bringing in outside artists who don't know. Community artwork will be better if it is designed by the people who actually live in the community itself.






Citations

Circles of a Ripple:
https://www.studiofolia.com/circles-of-a-ripple.html

Hsi Lai Temple(Website may need translation if you don't know Chinese)

Location: 1944 Turnbull Canyon Rd, Hacienda Heights, CA 91745, USA

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