SPARC ART

Untitled, CityWide Mural Program . This #FromtheArchive selection is an example of the reality that comes with inheriting pivotal images from many moons ago; often, we are left with questions about who created these works, where they were located, and so forth. Although we have limited recollections on who Thee Classic Dolls are, it’s important for us to share these breathtaking images of the all women crew and their mural. In the first image, they are pictured atop a scaffol...d and one of them is holding up the mural drawing. In the following image, the completed mural features a large scale figure at the center that is reminiscent of a woman in traditional dress as well as coatlicue. To either of her sides, there are homegirls joyfully gathering in one another's company. Behind them appears to be their Los Angeles neighborhood, packed full of homes and plants out front. Their mural is emblematic of a Chicana/o art theme: ancestral connection, in this case merging Aztec imagery with contemporary Chicana women. The mural is signed with their signature Thee Classic Dolls and a betty boop logo. If you can share stories about Thee Classic Dolls, drop a line in the comments! . You can see more rare images #FromtheArchive in our virtual exhibition Signs from the Heart: California Chicano Murals on our website. . #theeclassicdolls #murals #chicanamurals #muralistas #publicart #streetart #artinLA #latinxartsall See more

SPARC is hiring! We are seeking an experienced Digital Artist to who is highly skilled in photoshop for digital composition and digital painting to join our Digital/Mural Lab team. This is a unique opportunity to work under the Artistic Director in the creation of digital mural commissions and public artworks. To learn more about this position and to apply, follow the link below: https://www.indeed.com//digitalmural-lab-digital-artist-8c . #publicart #murals #artinLA #latinxartsall #digitalartist #digitalart

Tune into @montereyart on Saturday, January 9th for a virtual symposium on activism in Chicanx and Latinx art, featuring incredible panelists like Amalia Mesa-Bains, Armando Durón, and SPARC Co-Founder/Artistic Director Judy Baca! Check out the full schedule and register to attend by visiting montereyart.org/event/symposium today! @dr_amalia_says @duronveritas @judithbaca7542

Michael Schnorr and Susan Yamagata, Death of a Farmworker, 1979 . Chicano Park was born out of resistance from the Barrio Logan community when the city of San Diego began to build a California Highway Patrol station instead of the community park that was promised. Utilizing the unique infrastructure of highway overpasses, artists and community members transformed this site into what we know today as Chicano Park. Made up of over 80 murals, the park continues to be a National ...historic treasure documenting critical Chicana/o experiences through these larger than life murals. Death of a Farmworker (1979) by Michael Schnorr and Susan Yamagata is a series of scenes detailing labor struggles and shedding light on the realities of farm workers. At the bottom of their mural, we can see the crates and food are shackled to the workers in the field. Above them, there is a scene painted of farmworkers on strike that have been attacked. This is a nod to the death of Rufino Contreras, one of the lives lost when company foremen of the Imperial Lettuce Valley opened fire in retaliation. The top of the mural features the words of Emiliano Zapata, a reminder that the land belongs to those who are in relationship with it, such as the farmworkers. . This image is #FromtheArchive at SPARC. . #MichaelSchnorr #SusanYamagata #publicart #murals #streetart #artinLA #latinxartsall See more

2020 will be remembered as a year of resilience. Our global community is facing unprecedented social and health crises yet we are witnessing the connections between families, friends, neighbors, and strangers begin to strengthen. We were able to continue our work in public art, gallery programs, and K-12 education because of your generous support. Thank you for being a part of the SPARC community and opening your hearts and homes to our creative projects and programs in 2020. We look forward to your ongoing support in 2021. See highlights from 2020 and what's coming in 2021 here: https://mailchi.mp/sparcinla/end-of-year-2020

Paul Botello, Citizens of the World, 1994-1995 . This holiday season has encouraged us to discover new ways of connecting with family and friends while keeping each other safe, and it has been challenging for many. Just remember that we are all part of a global community, and while our holidays may be spent apart, none of us are alone in this. Our #FromtheArchive selection this week is a snapshot of East Los Angeles born and raised muralist Paul Botello and his young collabor...ators pictured in front of the Citizens of the World(1994-1995) mural in progress. In the image, Botello is sharing the mural drawing as the youth look on attentively. The juxtaposition of the youth with the young people featured in the mural makes them feel larger than life and creates a vibrant unifying image. This work was created at Esperanza School as a part of the SPARC Neighborhood Pride Mural Program, which sponsored over 100 murals across Los Angeles during its fourteen-year run, transforming the city one wall at a time. . You can see more rare images #FromtheArchive in our virtual exhibition Signs from the Heart: California Chicano Murals *Link in Bio* . #PaulBotello #SignsfromtheHeart #publicart #murals #streetart #artinLA #latinxartsall See more

Beauty of Our People, designed by John Valadez, CityWide Mural Program (1978) A beloved Los Angeles artwork #FromtheArchive at SPARC, Beauty of Our People utilizes social realism to depict the everyday realities of Chicano peoples. Valadez's 1978 design is exemplary of the sentiment painted across the top of the main panel, The Beauty of our People is in our Culture, The Strength of our Culture lies within our Struggle. This detail image from SPARC’s archive captures a u...nique moment where the mural appears to come alive as a community member walks by, becoming part of the piece for a brief moment in time. This critical piece of the Chicano Mural Movement was painted over in 1983 with another mural, El Corrido de Boyle Heights by the East Los Streetscapers. You can see more rare images from SPARC’s extensive archive in our virtual exhibition Signs from the Heart: California Chicano Murals https://sparcinla.org/signsfromtheheartve/ . Mural painted by: Irma Ayala, Glenna B. Carlos Callejo, Barbara Carrasco, Daniel Cruz, Susan Fierro, Frank Gonzalez, Leo Limon, Frank Marin, Jose Marin, Manuel Martinez, Irma Medina, Jose Medina, Jose Rodriguez, and Rodney Sakai. . #FromtheArchive #SignsfromtheHeart #CityWideMuralProgram #publicart #murals #streetart #artinLA #latinxartsall #chicanoart #chicanomurals

We're live! Tune in for The Art of Transforming Loss, a talk with artists Judy Baca and Amalia Mesa-Bains. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TeH4sDPnhyg

Maestras Judy Baca and Amalia Mesa-Bains will speak about the process of transforming loss through artistic practices that are grounded in earlier cultural traditions this Thursday, November 5th at 6:00 PM PST! In connection with the practice of building altars during Día de Los Muertos, this talk considers the powerful relationship between artmaking, healing, and memory. Learn more and register online today: https://sparcinla.org/art-transforming-loss/ . #art #healing #memory #altars #murals #transformingloss

Today is the last day to RISE UP and VOTE in the 2020 election. We’ve come together on the streets to speak out against injustice. Now, let’s come together at the polls to vote for change locally and nationally. . Visit sparc.la/vote to download posters and follow our nationwide Voter Turnout campaign. *Link in Bio* . #vote #vote2020 #voteart #yourvoteyourvoice #latinxartsall #SPARCtheVote

Our virtual Día de Los Muertos celebration and ritual is happening now!! Tune in at 6:00pm TONIGHT to our livestream on Youtube to see the virtual community altar and to honor the memories of loved ones https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjUyPUor2lE

Our virtual Día de Los Muertos celebration and ritual is tonight, November 2nd, at 6:00 PM PST! Here's a flashback to previous altars at SPARC created by artists, community members, and UCLA undergraduate students in Instructor Martha Ramirez-Oropeza's Day of the Dead Ritual course. Join us tonight to see the virtual community altar and to honor the memories of loved ones as we take part in a traditional invocation ritual in Nahuatl and Spanish led by Ramirez-Oropeza, inviting the spirits to the celebration. Register online! *Link in Bio* . #diadelosmuertos #dayofthedead #latinxartsall

Thanks for including SPARC’s Día de Los Muertos virtual event Hyperallergic! Join us for our virtual Día de Los Muertos ritual led by Martha Ramirez Oropeza tomorrow, November 2nd at 6:00 PM PST! Register online at www.sparcinla.org/ddlm20

Essential workers, essential voices! Essential workers are the backbone of our nation. Workers across the U.S. are seeing the challenges our nation faces up-close and personal. Your experience during COVID-19 matters, your voice matters, and your vote matters. . Visit sparc.la/vote to download posters, check out key voting dates in your state, and follow our nationwide Voter Turnout campaign. .... #essentialworkers #vote #vote2020 #voteart #yourvoteyourvoice #latinxartsall #SPARCtheVote See more

Time Out Los Angeles has an amazing list of Día de Los Muertos events in LA, and SPARC’s virtual event is one of them! Register online to receive Zoom access info for Día de Los Muertos 2020: buff.ly/3kGqPYj

Honor the memories of your loved ones during Día de los Muertos by placing an offering on our virtual community altar. Visit buff.ly/2HPdWN6 and follow the simple upload process to add a photograph for the altar. . And, be sure to register online for our virtual Día de Los Muertos celebration and invocation ritual on November 2nd at 6:00 PM PST, where the community altar will be unveiled: buff.ly/3kGqPYj . #diadelosmuertos #dayofthedead #latinxartsall

Join us for a conversation with renowned artists, Judith F. Baca and Amalia Mesa-Bains, as they discuss the experience of processing loss through artistic practices that are grounded in cultural traditions. In connection with the process of building altars during Día de los Muertos, this talk considers the important relationships between artmaking, healing, and memory. Register online to join this special virtual talk on November 5th at 6:00 PM PST via Zoom! *Link in Bio* . A...bout the Speakers: Artist and SPARC Co-Founder/Artistic Director, Judy Baca, creates public art that is shaped by an interactive relationship between history, people and place. Her work begins with an awareness that the land has memory. Artist and curator, Amalia Mesa-Bains, has expanded understandings of Latina/o artists’ references to spiritual practices and vernacular traditions through her altar installations, articles, and exhibitions. Register today and learn more! . @judithbaca7543 @dr_amalia_says #art #healing #memory #altars #murals #transformingloss See more

We have one more week to vote in one of the most critical presidential elections of our time. Join us in the commitment to make change at the polls and say WE WILL VOTE! Repost and let your friends and family know that you're making your voice heard this election, and they can too. . Visit sparc.la/vote to download posters, check out key voting dates in your state, and follow SPARC's nationwide Voter Turnout campaign. *Link in Bio* . #vote #vote2020 #election #voteart #latinxartsall

Your VOTE matters! Check out sparc.la/vote for resources, downloadable VOTE posters, and to see artworks from SPARC’s 2020 Voter Turnout campaign go up in cities across the USA. *Link in Bio* . Images: Designs by SPARC Artists . Locations in Order of Appearance: Beyond Baroque @bblitarts in Venice, CA; SPARC in Venice, CA; Museum of Latin American Art @molaaart in Long Beach, CA; and a throwback to a piece that was installed in Brooklyn, NY a few weeks ago.... . #Vote #Vote2020 #YourVoiceMatters #LatinxArtsAll See more

We are having our 18th annual Día de los Muertos celebration and ritual on Zoom this year on Monday, November 2nd at 6:00 PM PST. We are inviting the public to place an offering on our virtual community altar, which will be unveiled on November 2nd. Upload a photograph of a loved one whose memory you want to honor at https://sparcinla.org/ddlm2020/. Be sure to register online and join us on November 2nd to see the community altar, and to be part of our traditional invocation ritual where Martha Ramirez-Oropeza leads us as we call the spirits to join the celebration.