Already one of the largest murals in the world, “The Great Wall of Los Angeles,” is to be extended. As new portions of the mural are currently being created at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the extension effort moves to bring the entire project to a full mile in length.
Chicana artist and activist, Judith Baca, began working on The Great Wall in the mid-1970s when she was commissioned to help decorate a flood control channel in the Tujunga neighborhood of L.A. Inspired by the culture of Los Angeles, the social struggles of people of color, and her matriarchal upbringing, Baca knew from the start that she wanted to use this opportunity to raise awareness about aspects of local history and culture that were not widely understood or acknowledged at the time.
“I could not go to the library in 1976 and pull down a book on Black History or Chicano History. I could not pull down a book on women’s history,” Baca said.
Baca believed that allowing such knowledge to be widely available to the public would require a different medium altogether.
In collaboration with over 400 local artists and community members, Baca was able to create a mural “that would work across race and class,” representing “Black history, Chicano history, Asian history, women’s history, … all of our history.”
Though the artist had painted murals in many different neighborhoods of L.A. which were able to represent specific ethnic communities, the imagery of the Great Wall offered a unique opportunity to “see ourselves connected.”
The mural is an all-encompassing portrayal of local history, with segments depicting a range of periods from pre-historic California and Chumash villages to the Zoot Suit Riots of the 1940s and the impact of the Beat Generation.
Baca explains that creating a public work is distinguishable from an easel painting in that “you’re making something … connected to the architecture in which it’s placed, connected to the people for whom it’s painted and connected to who you paint with.”
Considering the accessibility of public art, Baca and other contributing artists believe that the mural has and will continue to allow many people to learn from its important message. (Photo courtesy Annika Petras)
Co-founding the Social and Public Art Resource Center (SPARC) in 1976 to organize the creation of The Great Wall and many other artworks, Baca has not failed in defining her artwork as created by the community, about the community, and for the community. SPARC has since collaborated with many minority-owned businesses and local organizations to facilitate the painting of murals in many neighborhoods of L.A, which are in turn painted by up-and-coming muralists in the area as well as youth apprentices. Recently, SPARC has partnered with UCLA to create what is the leading research facility on the development of digitally-generated murals.
The expansion of the mural will continue representing, and expand upon, Baca’s initial vision. Ricardo Mendoza, an artist contributing to this newest installment of the mural, explained that it will “[deal] with alternative histories and people, people of color, women, minorities, and just going back in time with all these really important issues.” A “classroom” for all generations to “wrap their souls and minds around content that will inform and heal,” Mendoza suggests that extension of the mural will help people to more profoundly understand the aspects of local history that have been previously left ignored and unacknowledged.
The expansion of the mural will involve the addition of a solar-lit bridge partially created from debris found in the Los Angeles River as well as a skylight which will illuminate the mural during the day.
Until July 21, 2024, Baca and fellow artists will be working at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). Together, they have continued to paint on a canvas that will be applied to the wall along the Tujunga Wash to join the original contribution — marking a significant addition to this visual documentation of our collective history.
