Public Art In South Los Angeles

The Site:

South Los Angeles 

South Los Angeles has a special place in my heart because I was born and raised there. It is definitely not the prettiest part of the grand Los Angeles city layout, but it still holds significance to a large community, including myself. One of the main reasons I chose this artwork is that I recently moved to a new neighborhood in South Los Angeles. As I was walking the streets of this new neighborhood, I came across this interesting artwork along with a message from the city. This artwork addresses one of the biggest issues this part of the city faces: the amount of trash illegally dumped onto the streets. I think the artwork I chose reflects the community's response to that problem. 

Field Work

Part One:


Part two: 
This mural is painted on the side wall of an alleyway.
Location: Naomi Ave & 40th Pl. // Artist: @RoyalRootsArte (03/2023)
Theme: To me, the central theme of this artwork is community resilience. South Central is home to a large population of Latino and African Americans, and there is a visible struggle in the community, but also a lot of love and support for each other. 
Who is represented: In part one of the mural, there are references to Tongva people, Chicana women, and local historical structures in the neighborhood that have shaped South Central into what it is today. In part two, "We are multidimensional" is written across the top of the mural. There are also depictions of peace and nature appreciation. 
Oral interview: I visited this artwork with my 5-year-old nephew, who is a resident of this neighborhood. He stated, "I like the rainbow all over the painting... the leaf growing out of the heart. There are so many flowers and colorful butterflies."  


Part of a project by the city of Los Angeles called "Green Alleys"
This is not necessarily artwork, but it ties together with the message from the mural.
Location: Naomi Ave & 40th Pl
Artist: Trust for Public Land (TPL) 
(People/groups who may be behind the project: TPL, Equipo Verde (Green Team), City of Los Angeles Bureaus, USC Center for Sustainable Cities, and non-profits or community groups)

Critical Analysis
I followed the page @RoyalRootsArte on Instagram and found that the mural was created in February 2023 and was funded by the same project, "Green Alleys". I don't know when the "Green Alleys" project rebuilt the alleyway. The mural includes visual elements like drawing depictions of local structures, a Chicana and African American woman sitting next to each other, a father and son on a swing set, seeds connected to people, people connected to nature, and more. These depictions and the message by the project "Green Alleys" create a cohesive message that, although there may be inequalities within this community, resilience will shine, and community members should appreciate their neighborhood by supporting clean streets. The purpose of the project, along with the mural, is to serve its community members. It addresses the main issue of unsafe alleyways that others may have been utilizing for illegal dump sites and creates a safe space for community members to stroll through.

Proposal
As I mentioned earlier, I am fairly new to this neighborhood, and I enjoyed walking around looking for artwork to record. I was not able to include a picture in this blog post, but there is a poem at the opposite end of the alleyway I saw a few days after I took the pictures of the mural; The poem was called "Love Poem To Los Angeles," written on the concrete floor of the alleyway. I really appreciated this art placement and its location, it is well taken care of and has not been vandalized. I do think the art piece itself is kind of hidden. I would appreciate seeing signs that point to the artwork to grab passersby's attention.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Leimert Park Neighborhood in Los Angeles

Image
  Leimert Park Neighborhood in Los Angeles  PHASE 1: Site Selection I chose Leimert Park because it's in my neighborhood and features a variety of artworks. I would always pass through there, although I never really took time to see the artworks they had.  Phase 2: Field Work  Title of the Artwork: “Kulture Keepers”  Location: Leimert Park Station on the K Line Artist: Stephanie Mercado Date: 2024 Medium: paper-based animation Title of artwork:  “Anthology of Leimert” Location: Leimert Park Station on the K Line Artist: Momodu Mansaray Date: Unknown  Medium: Digital media  Title of the Artwork: “Puffing with Patties to Leimert Park” Location: “Leimert Park Station on the K Line” Artist: Isaiah Ferguson Date: 2024 Medium: animation Title of the Artwork: “Untitled” Location: Leimert Park Station on the K Line Artist: Mickalene Thomas Date: 2022 Medium: large-scale hand-cut glass mosaic mural PHASE 3:   Mickalene's "Untitled" artwork is a ...
Read more

Arts District Public Art Erica C

Image
Outline 11/12 ( formulating final thoughts) Art in my neighborhood  I live on 629 Traction Ave. I would consider my neighborhood 50% Arts District and 50% Little Tokyo. That’s really interesting to me because part of the everyday architecture that I see is heavily influenced by Japanese architecture, however the other half is this industrial, gentrified, grungy architecture that reflects the early history of the Arts District. Although these spaces are so close in proximity and can sometimes cross barriers, they have completely independent histories. Little Tokyo has been home to a large Japanese community since the 1800’s. The Japanese population has faced heavy subjugation and racism and they remained strong. There is a resilience to this town. In my opinion an important artwork that reflects the hopeful and happy integration of the Japanese- American community is titled “LA Rising”. Across the street from me is Angel City Brewery. It is considered a staple 3rd space for the arts...
Read more

Silver Lake Public Art- Shay Harding

Image
Public Art in Silver Lake I chose the neighborhood of Silver Lake, Los Angeles , as the site for my civic engagement project. Silver Lake is known for its  trendy and creative "hipster" culture  — a place where fashion-conscious individuals, artists, and innovators live side by side. As a visitor that works in this neighborhood, I have always been drawn to the way the neighborhood uses murals, graffiti, and street art to express identity, history, and social commentary. I photographed several works of public art in Silver Lake, including murals and street pieces located along Sunset Boulevard and nearby intersections. Location: Utility box on  Hyperion Ave & Monon St Artist: Unknown Theme: Reconnecting with the inner child, The work can be read as a commentary on innocence, identity, and the presence of youth in an urban environment, "LA Kids" Representation: The figure is stylized and abstract, i t is not linked to any specific race or age. This allows for...
Read more