George Lucas's new LA museum couldn't let this 'monumental' San Fernando Valley mural pass it by
'Star Wars' creator George Lucas' upcoming museum, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, has acquired Judy Baca's mural "The History of California." The mural tracks California's history from prehistoric times through the 1960's.
"The nascent Lucas Museum of Narrative Art has its eyes on a San Fernando Valley — and L.A. — classic.
Artist Judy Baca at The Great Wall of Los Angeles, the longest mural in the world, during its restoration in Valley Glen, Monday, September 12, 2011. (Photo by Michael Owen Baker) The museum, under construction in Exposition Park, has acquired the archive of artist Judith F. Baca’s half-mile-long mural “The History of California.”
That archive has scores of documents, from sketches to blueprints, that trace the history of the mural’s creation, which took Baca from 1976 to 1984 to complete. The mural –created in the Tujunga Wash and stretching 1,050 feet along Coldwater Canyon Avenue, from Oxnard Street to Burbank Boulevard — is popularly known as The Great Wall of Los Angeles.
The museum, which announced the acquisition on Wednesday, March 31, will host a free virtual public program on April 14. Baca, 74, will participate.“We are thrilled to house The History of California Archive,” Sandra Jackson-Dumont, the museum’s director and CEO, said in a written statement. “This monumental work by an iconic artist contributes to shaping a more inclusive view of life in the United States and California.”
The mural tracks the history of California via stunning segments, from the prehistoric age through much of the 20th century’s first half. It memorializes various scars of American and California history: the displacement of indigenous people, the economic tumult of the Great Depression, the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II and the expulsion of Mexican Americans from Chavez Ravine to make way for Dodger Stadium.
But it also celebrates the Civil Rights Movement, the development of California culture, the rise of Hollywood and early rock ‘n’ roll."— Ryan Carter, Mar. 31, 2021
This post is an excerpt. Read the full article on the Los Angeles Daily News website.
Read more about Judy Baca.
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