A new mural entitled, “You are Beautiful” was just completed in Westchester and is meant to celebrate and commemorate the people of the area.
The non-profit Do Art Foundation coordinated the project, adding to its fast-growing repertoire of murals throughout Los Angeles county. The Do Art Foundation is an arts organization focused on the promotion and creation of work visible in the public landscape. Recognizing the need for artistic productions to create important humanitarian cultural conversations, the Do Art Foundation facilitates projects that inspire creative expression within communities.
Artist Aly Timbuctustate spent more than a week painting the southern-facing wall in the Westchester Village, which houses the CVS and Ralph’s Market and is located between South Sepulveda Blvd. and Sepulveda Westway.
The artwork expands along the 100-foot wall bordering the parking lot facing inwards to the plaza.
Born in Guinea, raised in Senegal West Africa and currently a Los Angeles resident, Timbuctustate is both an artist and a fashion designer whose work focuses on the “dialogue between the esthetic of the so-called primitive world and its modern urban counterpart and the possible emergence of a more universal truth.”
The wall is owned by Drollinger Properties, which has a long and storied history in the community. Ella Drollinger built Westchester’s first commercial building in 1947, and her son, Howard, carried on the family’s tradition, earning the moniker “Mr. Westchester,” as he and his wife, Jewel, revitalized and redeveloped Westchester’s Central Business District. According to Drollinger Properties, the mural was created to thank and honor the Westchester community.
The main concept for the installation of the artwork is to inspire each passerby by imparting the positive sentiment, “You Are Beautiful,” which is displayed on the mural. The mural also pays respect to some of the people who have helped make Westchester what it is today, as well as the artist’s rendering and reflection of some of the community’s current residents.
“I was drawn to this project because of the property owner Karen Dial’s desire to pay tribute to her family and the people that founded this neighborhood by using the medium of public art,” said Timbuctustate. “Karen and Drollinger Properties realize the power of art as a tool to bring the different components of a community together. I think that is truly beautiful and it makes me excited about the project. I’m glad to be able to create something that will celebrate the cultural and ethnic diversity of the neighborhood, while also honoring the history of this growing area.”
Dial said the mural is a perfect representation of the community in which she grew up.
“We are part of the enormous city of Los Angeles, but Westchester is like a little village, an oasis in the sea of L.A.,” she said. “People know their neighbors. They come together to make our community better and they work hard to help each other. This mural is a great way to remind everyone that they are beautiful– inside and out.”
