Neighborhoods: Unified through Muralism
Murals contribute to the sense of racial pride, identity, and unity in neighborhoods, especially in those containing a history of a cultural and racial shift in metropolitan areas. Inspired by Mexican muralism of the interwar period, African American murals evolved from only being available in private settings to wide visibility in public settings during the Harlem Renaissance in the 1920s, where the ideals of the New Negro movement inspired African Americans to express their identity through visual representation that combatted negative Black stereotypes.[1] As the presence of African American art continued to spread across the country, the Second Great Migration in the 1940s spread Black art even further—and faster—as the once White neighborhoods in the North and other metropolitan areas in the West became occupied by Black migrants in order to escape from harsh oppression and racial terror in the South.[2]
During the 1960s, as the Civil Rights Movement became a national effort, Black murals were becoming representative of the community from which they originated and opened new opportunities for neighborhood engagement. In 1967, a group of Black artists collaborated to form the Organization for Black American Culture (OBAC), which later transitioned into the beginning of the more radical Black Arts/Power Movement. In these latter movements, more African Americans became invested in politics along with the rise of Black pride and identity in Black neighborhoods.[3] OBAC created the Wall of Respect (fig. 1) in 1967, a mural that was proudly presented on the side of the building that was originally located at 43rd Street and Langley Avenue in Chicago’s South Side. The mural featured Black historical icons and social activists, including Malcom X, Nat Turner, and Muhammad Ali.[4] The neighborhood surrounded by the Wall of Respect aimed to protect the building the mural was painted on from demolition (although the building was ultimately demolished), and the mural’s surrounding area became a place to celebrate Black identity and to unify the community.[5]
While the Wall of Respect no longer exists, the mural provided a foundation for neighborhoods to unify and encourage racial pride through muralism. In Los Angeles, hundreds of murals exist in predominantly Black neighborhoods. Many of these murals in the 1980s and 1990s were commissioned by the Social and Public Resource Center (SPARC) through their Neighborhood Pride Program to encourage community efforts and to provide a sense of Black pride.[6] Examples of LA murals commissioned by SPARC include both Vision and Motion and All That They Can Be by Elliot Pinkney, Endangered Species by Emily Winters, and Love is for Everyone by Mary-Linn Hughes, Renigald Larue Zachary, and Tammy Moritz. The Great Wall of Los Angeles (fig. 2) was SPARC’s first mural project and was created by more than 400 members from the diverse surrounding community in North Hollywood.[7] The project, led by Judith Baca, was inspired by Wall of Respect for dividing historical events and icons into sections and visualizing community pride.
Today, more neighborhood mural projects that recognize Black culture are present throughout Black neighborhoods and Los Angeles. Destination Crenshaw—an organization that celebrates Black culture and excellence—is currently promoting a Mini Mural project inviting Black artists to submit their work to be added onto a large mural installation that will be placed at a construction site in Crenshaw that will contain, in their own words, “images that uplift and inspire the Crenshaw community.”[8] Readers can see and learn more about their featured artists and artworks on their Instagram page @destinationcrenshaw.
As current murals are kept, added, and restored, the location of the murals in their respective neighborhoods not only showcase their past, but also tell the story about a neighborhood’s present and unifies the present community that resides there. The Heart of Hyde Park (fig. 3), which sits at the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and Slauson Avenue in South Los Angeles, is a tribute to educators, social activists, artists and business owners from the neighborhood of Hyde Park.[9] Moses Ball, the muralist behind The Heart of Hyde Park, explains why murals are important for communities. According to Ball, murals are a “real vision for what the community is” and making murals are seen as a “political voice” in the community.[10] As of today, Ball is creating murals around South Los Angeles to fight against gentrification, a growing problem in Los Angeles. Murals are a contributing factor of visualizing the identity and pride that a neighborhood holds, and highlights events, people, issues, and many more topics from that community that are rarely covered in the media.
During the 1960s, as the Civil Rights Movement became a national effort, Black murals were becoming representative of the community from which they originated and opened new opportunities for neighborhood engagement. In 1967, a group of Black artists collaborated to form the Organization for Black American Culture (OBAC), which later transitioned into the beginning of the more radical Black Arts/Power Movement. In these latter movements, more African Americans became invested in politics along with the rise of Black pride and identity in Black neighborhoods.[3] OBAC created the Wall of Respect (fig. 1) in 1967, a mural that was proudly presented on the side of the building that was originally located at 43rd Street and Langley Avenue in Chicago’s South Side. The mural featured Black historical icons and social activists, including Malcom X, Nat Turner, and Muhammad Ali.[4] The neighborhood surrounded by the Wall of Respect aimed to protect the building the mural was painted on from demolition (although the building was ultimately demolished), and the mural’s surrounding area became a place to celebrate Black identity and to unify the community.[5]
While the Wall of Respect no longer exists, the mural provided a foundation for neighborhoods to unify and encourage racial pride through muralism. In Los Angeles, hundreds of murals exist in predominantly Black neighborhoods. Many of these murals in the 1980s and 1990s were commissioned by the Social and Public Resource Center (SPARC) through their Neighborhood Pride Program to encourage community efforts and to provide a sense of Black pride.[6] Examples of LA murals commissioned by SPARC include both Vision and Motion and All That They Can Be by Elliot Pinkney, Endangered Species by Emily Winters, and Love is for Everyone by Mary-Linn Hughes, Renigald Larue Zachary, and Tammy Moritz. The Great Wall of Los Angeles (fig. 2) was SPARC’s first mural project and was created by more than 400 members from the diverse surrounding community in North Hollywood.[7] The project, led by Judith Baca, was inspired by Wall of Respect for dividing historical events and icons into sections and visualizing community pride.
Today, more neighborhood mural projects that recognize Black culture are present throughout Black neighborhoods and Los Angeles. Destination Crenshaw—an organization that celebrates Black culture and excellence—is currently promoting a Mini Mural project inviting Black artists to submit their work to be added onto a large mural installation that will be placed at a construction site in Crenshaw that will contain, in their own words, “images that uplift and inspire the Crenshaw community.”[8] Readers can see and learn more about their featured artists and artworks on their Instagram page @destinationcrenshaw.
As current murals are kept, added, and restored, the location of the murals in their respective neighborhoods not only showcase their past, but also tell the story about a neighborhood’s present and unifies the present community that resides there. The Heart of Hyde Park (fig. 3), which sits at the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and Slauson Avenue in South Los Angeles, is a tribute to educators, social activists, artists and business owners from the neighborhood of Hyde Park.[9] Moses Ball, the muralist behind The Heart of Hyde Park, explains why murals are important for communities. According to Ball, murals are a “real vision for what the community is” and making murals are seen as a “political voice” in the community.[10] As of today, Ball is creating murals around South Los Angeles to fight against gentrification, a growing problem in Los Angeles. Murals are a contributing factor of visualizing the identity and pride that a neighborhood holds, and highlights events, people, issues, and many more topics from that community that are rarely covered in the media.
Notes
1. María de Miguel Molina, et al., “Visiting African American Murals: a Content Analysis of Los Angeles, California.” Journal of tourism and cultural change 18, no. 2 (2020): 205.2. Ibid., 205.
3. “Wall of Respect: Art & Design in Chicago.” WTTW, last modified October 12, 2018, https://interactive.wttw.com/art-design-chicago/wall-respect.
4. Ibid.
5. “14 Black Muralists in LA You Need to Know.” SPARC ART, last modified July 25, 2020, https://sparcinla.org/14-black-muralists/#.
6. Ibid.
7. “The Great Wall—History and Description.” SPARC ART, accessed April, 18, 2021, https://sparcinla.org/the-great-wall-part-2/.
8. “Mini Mural Contest.” Destination Crenshaw, last modified February 26, 2021, https://destinationcrenshaw.la/mini-mural-contest/.
9. Jason Lewis, “Muralist Moses Ball’s work is on display in South Los Angeles to help combat gentrification.” Los Angeles Standard Newspaper, March 29 2021, https://lastandardnewspaper.com/index.php/art/962-muralist-moses-ball-s-work-is-on-display-in-south-los-angeles.html.
10. Ibid.
Bibliography
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Central Ave Collective. “A Brief History of Central Avenue.” Historic Central Avenue Los Angeles. Accessed April 19, 2021. https://scalar.usc.edu/works/historic-central-avenue-los-angeles/a-brief-history-of-central-avenue.
de Miguel Molina, María, Blanca de Miguel Molina, and Virginia Santamarina Campos. “Visiting African American Murals: a Content Analysis of Los Angeles, California.” Journal of tourism and cultural change 18, no. 2 (2020): 201–217.
Destination Crenshaw. “Mini Mural Contest.” Last modified February 26, 2021, https://destinationcrenshaw.la/mini-mural-contest/.
Kalish, Lil. “This Village Of Black Artists Has Been A Semi-Secret Creative Haven For 50 Years.” LAist, July 10, 2019. https://laist.com/2019/07/10/st_elmo_village_celebrates_50_years_black_art_collective.php.
Kun, Josh, and Laura Pulido. Black and Brown in Los Angeles: Beyond Conflict and Coalition. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2014.
LA Metro. “Artist: Richard Wyatt.” LA Metro Home. Accessed April 19, 2021. https://www.metro.net/about/art/artists/wyatt/.
Lewis, Jason. “Muralist Moses Ball’s work is on display in South Los Angeles to help combat gentrification.” Los Angeles Standard Newspaper, March 29, 2021. https://lastandardnewspaper.com/index.php/art/962-muralist-moses-ball-s-work-is-on-display-in-south-los-angeles.html.
Reckard, E. Scott. “L.A.'s Broadway Federal Seeks New Capital, Plans to Close 2 Branches.” Los Angeles Times, September 13, 2011. https://latimesblogs.latimes.com/money_co/2011/09/las-broadway-federal-seeks-new-capital-will-close-2-branches.html.
SPARC ART. “14 Black Muralists in LA You Need to Know.” Last modified July 25, 2020. https://sparcinla.org/14-black-muralists/. ——. “Neighborhood Pride.” Accessed March, 6, 2021. https://sparcinla.org/programs/neighborhood-pride-mural/.
——. “The Great Wall—History and Description.” Accessed April 18, 2021, https://sparcinla.org/the-great-wall-part-2/.
——. “Today, we pay tribute to artist Elliott Pinkney.” Facebook, December 23, 2019. https://www.facebook.com/SPARC.ART/posts/today-we-pay-tribute-to-artist-and-muralist-elliott-pinkney-1934-2019-pinkney-mo/2709539309068888/.
——. “The Great Wall—History and Description.” Accessed April 18, 2021, https://sparcinla.org/the-great-wall-part-2/.
——. “Today, we pay tribute to artist Elliott Pinkney.” Facebook, December 23, 2019. https://www.facebook.com/SPARC.ART/posts/today-we-pay-tribute-to-artist-and-muralist-elliott-pinkney-1934-2019-pinkney-mo/2709539309068888/.
WTTW. “Wall of Respect: Art & Design in Chicago.” WTTW Chicago, October 12, 2018. https://interactive.wttw.com/art-design-chicago/wall-respect.