Neighborhood Pride
The World is Yours (2000) by Leslie Nemour
| Location | Kittridge Elementary School, 13619 Kittridge St, Van Nuys, CA 91401 |
| Artist | Leslie Nemour |
| Subject | “The World is Yours” was designed with the input of community residents and the school principle, whose concerns focused on the future of their children and the role of education in their lives. This mural centers on children as a systemic connection to the world through the avenue of education and the unity of family and community. The mural is invigorated by the life long process of learning and celebrates the rich potential of each child. Images which celebrate the wonders of learning include books falling from the sky being observed by two children through telescopes, grape leaves and vines which connect everything to the environment, and integrated patterns from a diversity of represented cultures. At the center, two hands cradle the image of a child taking an imaginary trip around the world while reading a book. |
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Becoming the Circle (2000) by Francisco Leterlier
| Location | Pioneer French Baking Company, 512 Rose Ave, Venice, CA 90291 |
| Artist | Francisco Leterlier |
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| Status | This mural was destroyed when the site was renovated |
Corrido de Richie Valens (2000) by Frank Romero
| Location | Ritchie Valens Recreation Center, 10736 Laurel Canyon Blvd, Pacoima, CA 91331 |
| Artist | Throughout his forty year career as an artist, Romero has been a dedicated member of the Los Angeles art community. As a member of the 1970s Chicano art collective Los Four, Romero and fellow artists Carlos Almaraz, Beto de la Rocha and Gilbert Lujan helped to define and promote the new awareness of La Raza through murals, publications and exhibitions. Las Four’s historic 1974 exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art was the country’s first show of Chicano Art at a major art venue. |
| Subject | This painting is visual corrido, or ballad, of the story of Richie Valens. Visual symbols include hit records, life in the valley, the tragedy surrounding his life and a central portrait of the young entertainer. The entire mural is painted in hues of to create a peaceful atmosphere where people can sit and contemplate within a busy park.-Frank Romero |
| Status | This mural has suffered delamination damage and the lower half of the blue background has been painted over. |
The Last Stand (2000) by Carla Carr
| Location | Museum in Black, 4331 Degnan Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90008 |
| Artist | Carla Carr |
| Subject | The Last Stand by Carla Carr, in Leimert Park, at the Museum in Black reads from left to right beginning with the jacaba figure, which is known as a storyteller in African folklore. This figure has one foot int he present, one foot in past and is walking in the direction of the mural into the future. The basic design is set inside of small vignettes, composed of vines, like the ones used in portraiture of the twenties and thirties. The frist vignette depicts and image African masks with a scene of African landscape in the hollow of the eyes. The bottom half has dense foliage like the grasslands of Africa and the picket signs which indicates the communities struggle and success in coming together to make their voices heard. The second vignette shows a woman who is harvesting sugarcane, which is hard labor and presents to the world something, very sweet from her toils. The next images is of Patrice Lumumba, an African political activist who was imprisoned and killed fighting against injustice in the Congo. The top of the last section of the mural has parchment paper with quotes and sayings from community members as they define what the Leimert Park is to each of them. The bottom section of the mural depicts abstract African masks and village life. The community decided that the essence of an African aesthetic waas important to capture the vitality of the neighborhood and a sense of cultural identity.”-Carla Carr |
| Status | This mural is in very good condition–it is well known and protected by the community. |
Education in Our Interest (2001) by Charles Freeman
| Location | LA Academy Middle School, 644 56th St, Los Angeles, CA 90011 |
| Artist | Charles Freeman |
| Subject | This Mural reflects the greatness of past civilizations from ancestors of both black and brown communities. Due to the interaction of both cultures (African and Aztec/Mexican) certain similarities emerged in customs and traditions. It is a work that should inspire pride and hope in the future positive potential for greatness fromt two distinct people that in reality have merged to become one. In no other place, that I know of, can you experience evidence of this mixture in the uniqueness that Los Angeles has to offer.-Charles Freeman |
| Status | This mural has suffered extensive tagging across its midsection. |
Migration of the Golden People (2001) by UCLA@SPARC Cesar E. Chavez Digital/Mural Lab
| Location | Central American Resource Center, 2845 W. 7th St. Los Angeles, CA |
| Artist | UCLA@SPARC Cesar E. Chavez Digital/Mural Lab |
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Palm (2001) by Byron Peck
| Location | 11811 W Pico Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90064 |
| Artist | Byron Peck |
| Subject | This mural integrates the surrounding area of Pico Boulevard with the site, Poseidon School. The central images is an educator, and represents the teaching and learning that happens at Poseidon School. Surrounding the educator are historic landscapes of the Pico Boulevard area, including Japanese gardens and the California coast. There are also symbols and images that recognize the indigenous people of this area.-Byron Peck |
| Status | This mural has slightly faded and suffered delamination damage along the perimeter. |
California’s Hidden Past (2001) by MICTLAN Mural Company
| Location | 21328 Hart St, Canoga Park, CA 91303 |
| Artist | MICTLAN Mural Company |
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Espiritu del Rio (1998) by Joshua Saranitis
| Location | 2420 Ripple Street, Los Angeles |
| Artist | Joshua Sarantitis is a nationally recognized public artist with murals in cities including: San Francisco, Chicago, Cleveland and Philadelphia. |
| Subject | The mural depicts Dolores Del Rio’s hands. One holds an eye of light (the sun). The other is intertwined with a ribbon of water underneath a bridge. |
| Status | This mural has been completely whitewashed. |
Cultural Identity Indicating Time in Perpetual Movement (2001) by Eloy Torres
| Location | Ramona Gardens Gym, 2380 Lancaster Avenue, Los Angeles. |
| Artist | Eloy Torres |
| Subject | “The mural resulted from a series of community meetings. At those meetings many of the residents expressed the lack of a role models in the community. As a result I have designed a mural that responds those concerns. The mural is a series of portraits tied together by a ribbon. The three main figures (Cesar Chavez, Emiliano Zapata and Sor Juana Inez de la Cruz) along with the portraits of Moctezuma, Benito Jaurez, Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, Dolores Huerta, Joey Oliva Sal Castro, and Rigoberta Menchu symbolize a continuum in Chicano History encompasses local heres, artists, political activists, revolutionaries and former leaders of México.-Eloy Torrez |
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The Resurrection of Watts (2001) by Ras Ammar Nsoroma
| Location | Watts Labor Community Action Committee, 10950 S Central Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90059 |
| Artist | Ras Ammar Nsoroma |
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