During the process of an interview, I was asked to create collateral for the play “Twilight Los Angeles:1992.” It’s an award-winning show based on interviews from the LA Riots, so I really dug in and did my research while creating my concepts.
I felt previous the artwork for this play limited itself with Los Angeles-based imagery like palm trees and didn’t tell the story of the human element.
The difference between creating this art now versus then comes down to movements like Black Lives Matter or Stop Asian Hate. We are well aware of police brutality and daily injustices suffered by minorities. We know these things are happening. The outrage isn’t new, and it isn’t limited to LA. This story has become more relatable than ever.
Stylistically, I wanted to channel a recognized art of protest (graffiti) and focus on the central figures/victims of the timeline discussed by the subjects of Smith’s interviews. Strategically, the portraits don’t need to be recognized by the viewer, because they still show the diversity of the voices in the play, but for those who do recognize them, there is distinct significance.
