The History and Conservation of Murals in Los Angeles

Long known as a mural capital, Los Angeles has well over 1,000 murals painted on walls across the city. Public and private, commissioned and unsanctioned, these murals are integral to the multi-cultural character of Los Angeles. The City has, however, had a complex and conflicted history with murals since some of the earliest commissions, most notably three murals by David Alfaro Siqueiros painted during a brief stay in the 1930s, of which two of the three murals were whitewashed shortly after their completion. From Siqueiros and Jose Clemente Orozco in the 1930s to the Chicano mural movement of the 1960s, continuing with neighborhood beautification programs from the 1970s-1990s, and the prevalent street art of the 21st century, murals have ignited controversy, raised social awareness, and brought a creativity to the city for all to enjoy or critique. At different times, Los Angeles has embraced its mural culture and then, for a decade it banned all public murals in an attempt to control the art form. At the same time, vibrant informal street art has sprung up around the city spontaneously. This layering of history, creativity, regulation, multi-cultural identification and pure color, makes for a rich and complex discourse. Competing art forms, including signage and street art have caused the City to consider how public art is commissioned and selected, who will care for any given mural and for how long, and how the City works with artists, owners, and conservators, from the planning stages to their long-term care. With the sheer number of murals on public and private property, which age and are damaged over time, maintenance and conservation become critical to their preservation. The decisions around preservation and maintenance are challenging and require prioritization. In this presentation I will discuss the history of murals in Los Angeles and some of the issues facing them in terms of their preservation.

Leslie Rainer is a wall paintings conservator and senior project specialist at the Getty Conservation Institute, carrying out a variety of projects addressing decorated architectural surfaces. She has worked on projects in Africa, Europe, China, Central and South America and Los Angeles, where she has worked with GCI, the City, and other conservators on a number of public murals. Leslie received a Master’s Degree in the Conservation of Decorated Architectural Surfaces from Antioch University, a certificate in mural paintings conservation from ICCROM, and the Rome Prize in Historic Preservation and Conservation from the American Academy in Rome. She is a member of AIC, IIC, ICOM-CC, and WAAC. She has organized symposia with the GCI, and acted as volume editor for their proceedings.