Chapter 1: Melrose
Made my way up La Cienega, with the intention to get to the cross on the mountain by the Ford’s Theater. No particular route in mind, I’d been up Highland ave. recently, and figured I’d go up La Cienega to maximize how much I see once I started heading east.
Turned on Melrose. Why not? It’s been a minute since I’ve been down Melrose, and I know they’ve got great graffiti art.
I was surprised to see how empty it was.
My first find of the day.
Not clearly visible from the photo, the signature of the artist eponymously named, Alec.
I was intrigued by the sign on the building next door. Was it as grassroots as it seemed or was it a design choice? This was * off * Melrose btw.
Looking back at the virtually empty street to check the intervals between groups of passing cars. How bizarre.
On the next block up, I discovered this mural. On the wall behind me was a peaceful yarn bomb installation. I had to circle around the block to get a better vantage point of it all. So I turned into the lot behind the “old”? Fred Segal store. I thought I went to a closing sale their with friends of a former moment?
As I wrapped back around towards that intriguing building, I saw these murals. Looked legit. Just hoping its not performative.
Circling back around, I was able to find a parking spot to get the picture of the mural across the street and the yarn bombing to my right.
Catty-corner to the yarn art, was a lot of graffiti, plaster, and stencil work over what had clearly been an commercial mural. So I loaded back up, went back through the alley once more and then back in front of Marilyn and onto Melrose so I could safely turn left over the deserted Melrose Ave., and onto the street to better examine the stencil work.
I drove a block past and double backed, approaching melrose with the street art on the corner up on my left. As I pulled up, on the right side of the street, is an AT&T building. I saw the familiar work of a street artist I’d encountered in a past walk when I lived in Pico Robertson. By the post office on Pico.
I documented this one for the collection, turned around and crossed the street to investigate the graffiti that had allured me in the first place, before heading on with my journey.
To be continued…