Archinect - News

Manhattan Beach "Pink Emoji House" showcases tension between home owner's rights and the regulating influence of local government

2019-08-09T16:00:00-04:00

The group of neighbors has explored the ways it could fight to get the paint job removed, including how it could be seen as graffiti under city code, how it could violate signage laws and how it fails to fit in with the character of the neighborhood. Doll also argues that it is a public safety issue and an obvious public nuisance because of the waves of news vans and curious onlookers who have visited the narrow road to catch a glimpse of the house.

This week, media headlines were littered with coverage of the trending "Pink Emoji House" in Manhattan Beach, California, an eye-catching home painted with a pair of hilarious emoji characters. The murals may appear like any other "Instagramable" site, except this specific "beautification project" is actually the product of a neighborhood feud.

The Los Angeles Times reports, "the paint job appeared shortly after Kathryn Kidd was found in violation of the city's rental laws and was fined $4,000. Kidd told Easy Reader News that the emojis were not intended to mock Wieland (neighbor) and that although people were entitled to their opinions, she was not in violation of any laws."

Kidd told The Los Angeles Times, “I’m trying not to offend anybody,” adding, “I did it for the purpose of being happy, being positive, and I think it’s cute and quirky and kind of funny, and certainly was a time for the emoji.” Her neighbors aren't buying it, though, and are instead turning to the local city c...

How can paint dematerialize architecture?

2019-07-12T14:03:00-04:00

While technological sleights of hand grow more and more sophisticated, it is important to remember that sometimes paint, pencil, and sunlight are all that is needed to create transformative works of art.

A good example of the latter approach comes from Italian artist Peeta, a Venice-based muralist who transforms buildings through the application of surrealistic, larger-than-life murals.

Image courtesy of Peeta.

On his website, Peeta states that his approach is geared toward using art to nudge viewers out of their everyday mindset, while still maintaining certain ties to the physical realities of the built environment. He says, "when painting on walls, my aim is always to create a dialogue with the structural and cultural parameters of the surrounding context, either architectural or not."

Image courtesy of Peeta.

Peeta's work is best suited for corners, where the artist is able to render flat planes and deep visual fields of shape and color that trick your eye into forgetting that t...

72U’s Dear Neighbor campaign promotes permanent supportive housing to portray a different narrative to homelessness in LA

2019-05-30T10:41:00-04:00

The housing crisis in large cities, especially in Los Angeles, has been an ongoing issue. Currently, Los Angeles County is home to the second largest population of settled homelessness in the U.S. Local government and organizations aim to create solutions in order to combat the issue with a little over 53,000 people who are homeless and in need of housing. In order to address the homeless housing crisis, the Los Angeles based creative residency 72U promotes the importance of Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) through a different kind of narrative. Through art, design, and empathy, the project initiative Dear Neighbor aims to use murals, written letters, recorded interviews, and eye-catching infographics to bridge communities together through awareness.

Image courtesy of Dear Neighbor LA

According to the Dear Neighbor team, the project is based on "the belief that housing is a human right. We understand that despite their numbers, our homeless neighbo...

"Bleeding Rainbow" artist sues Detroit building owner to protect her landmark mural under copyright law

2016-01-05T13:17:00-05:00

For Katherine Craig, the mural is more than a marker of North End’s rising status. The so-called “bleeding rainbow” mural is a cornerstone of her career. And now, since the building’s owner aims to sell or redevelop the property, the artist is taking legal action to protect her work. [...] The federal suit seeks an injunction that would bar the developer from destroying or otherwise altering The Illuminated Mural [...].

Muralists and the fragile relationship with the buildings they paint on

2015-07-07T14:50:00-04:00

What rights does a muralist have to the wall she painted on? That's a question that echoes throughout the country right now, as muralists try to lay claim to their artwork under the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990. [...] California muralist Kent Twitchell was in a hotel room in Sausalito, Calif., when he got the call — his six-story mural of Ed Ruscha in Los Angeles had been painted over.

Murals — and the accompanying questions of ownership, copyright, vandalism — are an ongoing sujet in the Archinect news:

Muralist Kent Twitchell on LA's new mural-friendly ordinance

2013-09-13T13:23:00-04:00

The Los Angeles City Council voted [...] to tentatively rescind a decade long ban on murals. [...] One of the biggest of supporters of the ordinance was muralist Kent Twitchell, he painted the Freeway lady along the 101, the LA Marathon Mural, and giant Los Angeles Conservancy portraits next to the 110 freeway in Downtown LA. Twitchell also co founded the Mural Conservancy of Los Angeles.

'Magú' Luján 1940-2011

2011-07-26T12:58:38-04:00

A pioneer of the Chicano art movement that took root in the social and cultural upheavals of the 1960s and '70s, Magú, as he was universally known, was among the first U.S. artists of Mexican descent to establish an international career.