Boyle Heights mural in jeopardy

A small woman selling sizzling gorditas passed Ernesto de la Loza as he dabbed Liquid Shield on the cracked wall where his mural “Resurrection of the Green Planet” stretched out like a jeweled bird. Even with the aroma of fresh food wafting by, his gaze never left the injured surface.

For a quarter of a century, De la Loza, 59, has created murals in Los Angeles — 40 in all. But this one, which adorns a convenience store on the corner of Cesar E. Chavez Avenue and Breed Street in Boyle Heights, is among only eight that still exist. The others were painted over or simply ravaged by neglect.

Now “Resurrection” faces a similar fate. In November, the owner of the building received a notice from the city informing him that he had 90 days to remove the graffiti defacing the 1991 mural or face a $450 fine.

Full restoration would cost between $40,000 and $50,000, a sum that neither De la Loza nor owner Raymond Ahn could afford.

Read the full story here.

--Alicia Lozano

Comments

[El Random Hero]

*Ahem... http://laeastside.com/2008/11/resurrection-of-the-resurrection-of-the-green-planet-mural/