An example of muralist Eric Skotnes’ work in Denver, CO from 2018.
September, 2019 – Internationally renowned artist, Eric Skotnes, from the art collective INDECLINE will paint the first environmental mural of its kind: a large-scale, public art piece made from cooling surface paint to raise awareness about rising temperatures in cities. The project on a 27 x 72 foot brick wall on 1920s-era building in South Los Angeles will make a double visual impact — as an elegant eco-mural that enlivens the community and also as an infrared image documented by thermal camera. This mural aims to raise the visibility of eco-efforts through the popularity of street art. This project brings together the resources and expertise of an exciting group of collaborators: artists, urban planners, climate scholars, community activists, and entrepreneurs.
WHO: The public and media are invited to view the the first eco-friendly, and eco-saving, mural.
WHERE: Amped Kitchens, a community food production space. 661 E 62nd St, Los Angeles, CA 90003
WHEN: Wednesday, October 16, 2019, from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
The Initiative
Southern California cities often run 9°F hotter than the undeveloped regions that surround them as a result of the Urban Heat Island. Buildings, roads and parking lots trap heat during the day and hold onto it into the evening, making afternoons and nighttime temperatures unnaturally hot. This problem is compounded by the intensifying threat of climate change. For instance, research shows that by 2100, Los Angeles could experience 60-90 additional extreme heat days (>95°F).
Heat is the deadliest weather impact of climate change. Extreme heat leads to more deaths than all other weather-related hazards combined. But risk is uneven across the city. Heat-related illness and death are highest among lower-income communities and people of color.
Recognizing these challenges, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti pledged to reduce temperatures by 1.7 F by 2025 and 3 F by 2035 through design interventions. In addition to using solar reflective paint on roofs, Los Angeles is home to the first municipal cool paving program in neighborhoods throughout the city. By inviting an internationally renowned artist to use this paint in his design, the mural project seeks to up-level the impact of this cooling technology.
PROJECT PARTNERS
The event is co-produced by V. Kelly Turner and Lizy Dastin. Turner is an assistant professor of urban planning at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, and affiliate faculty of the Luskin Center for Innovation and the Institute on Environment and Sustainability. She specializes in urban design and the environment. Dastin is an art historian and adjunct professor of art history at Santa Monica College specializing in contemporary art and urban practice. A passionate advocate of street art, she provides artist project management, corporate tours and public speaking through Art and Seeking, and she co-hosts the podcast Art Attack.
Los Angeles based artist Eric Skotnes works on figurative paintings based on human interaction than blend graffit art with classical figurative painting. Skotnes blends a love of large scale gratti murals with illustration and fine art training from the Art Center College of Design. He has done paintings, graffiti, murals, and illustration commissioned by movie and television productions such as Brooklyn Nine Nine, The Good Place, Marvel’s Runaways and more. Skotnes is a member of project partner INDECLINE, an Activist Art Collective founded in 2001 that focuses on social, ecological and economic injustices carried out by American and International governments, corporations and law enforcement agencies.
Mott Smith and Brian Albert, co-owners of Amped Kitchens, donated a wall at their L.A. South location for the street art mural. Amped Kitchen breaks barriers for emerging food companies by offering permit-ready, private production spaces within a vibrant community of dynamic food makers. The Amped Kitchen model originated at the L.A. North location and continues to grow with a Chicago site opening in late 2019.
Hadar Rahav and Jonathan Rahav of Creative Paving Solutions donated Solar Reflective Coating for this art installation. Creative Paving Solutions provides design consultation and paving installation for residential, commercial, and municipal projects. Their team of certified installation professionals use Decocoat DP-200 IR Solar Reflective coating, which can reduce surface temperatures up to 30% and contribute to LEED® credits.
Primary funding has been provided by the Luskin Center for Innovation at UCLA, a policy-oriented research center united UCLA scholars with civic leaders to solve environmental challenges confronting our community, nation, and world. Additional funding has been provided by The Mural Conservancy of Los Angeles. Thermal imagery is provided by Ariane Middel, assistant professor of Arts Media and Engineering and director of the SHaDE Lab at Arizona State University.
