MAYA ANGELOU MURAL FESTIVAL

MAYA ANGELOU MURAL FESTIVAL

May 13 - May 18, 2019

GRAND RECEPTION

May 18, 2019 | 4pm - 9pm

Dr. Maya Angelou Community High School

300 E. 53rd St., Los Angeles, CA 90011

Branded Arts is excited to announce the Maya Angelou Mural Festival, the next installment of its LAUSD mural festival series. Over two-dozen local and international artists have been commissioned to paint a series of murals throughout South LA’s Dr. Maya Angelou Community High School, from May 13 - 18, 2019. Throughout the week the school will also host an academic symposium, featuring programming by NASA, LACMA, Artsy, Self Help Graphics, Eddie Huang, Run-DMC, and many more. The Grand Reception will be held Saturday, May 18th from 4pm - 9pm, featuring a conversation and performance with Grammy award-winning singer / songwriter MIGUEL, and a preliminary talk from Torri Shack of Tangible Movement. Dr. Maya Angelou Community High School is located at 300 E. 53rd St., Los Angeles, CA 90011.

This project was born out of a collaboration with LAUSD Local District Central staff under the guidance of Superintendent Roberto Antonio Martinez. It is the second in a series of mural festivals designed to transform school campuses into artistic canvases—a project that began in 2016 with a mural festival at Robert F. Kennedy Community School in Koreatown.

In a desire to promote arts in school, these projects also aim to send an inspirational and positive message to kids ranging from 9th to 12th grade. Not only will murals be painted throughout the week, but the school gymnasium will be transformed into a gallery exhibition space featuring work from over 50 artists, as well as artwork from the students. “Art was the most important subject I was ever exposed to as a student,” says Branded Arts founder Warren Brand. “A field-trip to LACMA when I was in school honestly changed the course of my entire life. These festivals are about sharing my love of art with the next generation, and giving kids the opportunity to be impacted like I was.”  

For the Maya Angelou Mural Festival, Branded Arts has made an unparalleled effort to draw talent from both the local art community, as well as the pool of international superstars. LA-based stars like the all-female art collective Ni Santas, Raul Gonzalez, Victoria Cassinova, Enk One, Rob Hill, Brushwork, and more will be creating murals alongside legends like Shepard Fairey, Faith 47, Hugeart, and Rabi of Cyrcle, to name a few. Participating artists in the festival have been challenged to create murals that fit within the cultural landscape of the community and the ideals of Dr. Maya Angelou. “Our goal is for these murals to become permanent gifts to the community,” says Brand. “All artists will be required to submit concept designs for approval from the school’s administrators and LAUSD. Prior to offering artists locations on campus, we will be spending considerable time working to suggest the best locations to integrate their artistic voices with that of the community. We want to provide artists with context to create projects that will truly enrich the school for many years to come.”

Confirmed Muralists

1010, Add Fuel, Daniel Arsham, Axel Void, Bliss One, Brushwork, Victoria Cassinova, The Clover Signs, Enk One,  Josh Everhorn, Shepard Fairey, Faith XVLII, Rob Hill, Huge, JR's Inside Out Project, L.E.O., Jona Meelan, Mictlan Murals, Mr B Baby, Ni Santas, Nunca, Perez Bros, Petal 1, Rabi of Cyrcle, Raquel Rojas, Tochtlita, Valfre, Shawn Michael Warren, Andi Xoch, Joan Zeta, ZUCO

Sponsors and Partners

LACMA, BEHR Paint, Ironlak, NASA JPL, Mosaic Art Foundation, Creative Constellations, KITH, Thinkspace Gallery, Newmark Knight Frank, Officecreated.com, The Mayfair Hotel, Hyper X