Murals and Street Art

An essay on the murals at the Sunset Boulevard retaining walls in Los Angeles, California is presented. It offers a history of the radical wall art started by los muralistas of the Chicano civil rights movements since the 1970s up to the series of "graffiti-murals" by Cache and Eye One, "Los Angeles: Untitled" and examines the depiction of Zapatista characters stopping industrial production. The author relates the changing perceptions of people in accepting the murals as alternative aesthetics.

The article presents an exploration of graffiti, contrasting its manifestations in New York City in the 1980s with its 2011 use in several developing countries. Introductory details are given describing how graffiti emerged in New York City as a form of political and social protest, but was then subsumed into mainstream artistic culture. Accounts are then provided showing how countries like Guatemala, Libya and Palestine are using graffiti in the same political way as in the 1980s. Several specific instances of political communication and anti-government demonstrations seen in graffiti are cited and analyzed.

This cross-sectional study examines spatial and thematic patterns of murals in East Los Angeles, a barrio that has long been one of the traditional focal points for the Mexican-American community in Los Angeles, to determine how exterior wall murals mark the cultural landscape. To do this, approximately two-hundred-fifty murals were field surveyed, mapped, and photographed, with the results being subjected to content analysis. Data from secondary sources, including the neighborhood’s history and demographics, were used to contextualize the results.

this article, Welch shares specific examples of mural making that has: (1) united diverse communities in shared "ownership" of space; (2) illuminated the tenuous nature of the precariat (those individuals, families, and communities that face prolonged economic uncertainty); and (3) amplified the community's voices.

The article presents a lesson plan for high school education which teaches students concepts about historical thinking and literacy skills using graffiti.

Megan Ralstin. Art Law Journal.

Karen Gardiner. National Geographic. April 11, 2017.