It’s not often that a major city gives a spotlight to a graffiti / Street Artist and issues a formal proclamation about it, but that is exactly what happened Saturday in Los Angeles. AskewOne, a native of one of LA’s sister cities, Auckland, New Zealand , was honored by the City as his new mural “Under the Influence” was unveiled as part of the LA Freewalls Project.
“It’s much more likely in this city that a graffiti artist will be arrested than be recognized for positive contributions to the community”, as LA Taco reports, but really when you consider the major inroads that the LA Freewalls Project has made into the dialogue around the value of Street Art in LA’s local politics, it can’t be entirely surprising. It probably helps that the image itself incorporates the American flag into the composition– sort of disarms that whole negative rant that some politicos use when lumping Street Artists together with other social scourges like drug addiction, domestic terrorism, and the Ice Capades, doesn’t it?
Askew One for LA Freewalls Project (photo © Todd Mazer)
“AskewOne is one of the world’s preeminent public artists, and one of the most accomplished contemporary graffiti writers,” says Daniel LaHoda, who spearheads LA Freewalls and who also hosted the inauguration of the new LALA gallery Saturday night with many of today’s best known Street Artist’s work on the walls. According to an official press release, the now famous LA mural moratorium will soon be lifted and “Kamilla Blanche, Senior Deputy for Arts and Culture, and the Director for Sister Cities, is excited about the possibilities to expand Los Angeles’ place as the national epicenter of public art.”
BSA is very pleased to be able to share with you these images of the new piece as shot by photographer Todd Mazer.
Askew One for LA Freewalls Project (photo © Todd Mazer)
Askew One for LA Freewalls Project (photo © Todd Mazer)
Askew One for LA Freewalls Project (photo © Todd Mazer)
Askew One for LA Freewalls Project (photo © Todd Mazer)
Askew One for LA Freewalls Project (photo © Todd Mazer)
To learn more about Los Angeles Sister Cities Program click here.
Other Articles You May Like from BSA:
Welcome to Sunday! This week we have a special edition of BSA Images of the Week; Dedicated to Nuart 2017. Each year Nuart challenges itself as much as it challenges you, unwilling to fall int...
Happy Sunday ya'll! April is the cruelest month, true. Magnolias today, snowstorm tomorrow. Great to see the Spanish Pejac here in New York after years of writing about his work elsewhere. It...
In advance of Moniker in Brooklyn this May, we are interviewing some of the artists who are influenced both by street practice and fine art as the contemporary urban art category continues to ...
A beacon of color, seventy two colors to be exact, is now standing along the Spanish coast, thanks to Cantabria native Okuda San Miguel. The candy wrapped pole is circled by the street artist as he c...
From graffiti writing on the street to art products to massive sculptures in public spaces, the career evolution of Brooklyn’s KAWS embodies graffiti-street-art-urban-art's commercial moves into the ...