Wall Crawl - La Cienega Boulevard

As of late my head has been on a swivel as we make our trips in and around Los Angeles. Since discovering some pretty great wall murals and street art over the last few months I can't help but be on the lookout for more. Each time we pass a colorful mural or wall art I jot down it's location.

Who knew there was so much FREE art all over the place?

While my mom was in town a couple of weeks ago I wanted to take her on a mini wall crawl, two locations to be exact. She has seen some of the places we've been to and she wanted to join. When I mentioned the adventure to Scott he politely replied, "I think I'll go ahead and sit this one out."

Our first stop...

Mural artist @itsaliving
Location: Chinese Laundry Headquarters, 3485 La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles

This mural is relatively new to the area. When I found it was up I knew I had to go see it. Once I realized it was on La Cienega Boulevard I knew exactly where I needed to take my mom next.

(Side note, if you're a Country music fan, the Kenny Chesney/Pink song - Setting the World on Fire - mentions La Cienega Boulevard, in case you were wondering how that's pronounced. ;) ) 

Clearly the most candid moment. I mean, who doesn't have a bouquet of balloons handy while casually frolicking past massive murals? Also. Growing up I truly dreamed of living in California. Never in a million years did I think I would actually call it home.

A post shared by Desirée (@desireemacke) on Feb 21, 2017 at 9:26am PST

If this next wall looks familiar it's because I brought the kids here a handful of months ago. 

Mural artist @marisabelbazan
Location: John and Pete's Fine Wine and Spirits, 612 N. La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles

My grandmother loved butterflies and thus my mom does as well. Thanks to both of them I have a deep fondness for the beautiful, flittery creatures. And, I was thrilled I could bring my mom to such a unique place to capture a few moments with the kiddos.

Between the Dreamin' mural and the butterflies mural my mom spotted another wall that we simply could not pass up.

Artist: unknown at this time
Location: Mikey's Car Wash, 431 N. La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles

How my mom spotted this is beyond me. This one is tucked away behind a car wash on a retaining wall or privacy wall. But, I'm glad she saw it!

Our last stop was totally impromptu, had nothing to do with any of the walls we had previously visited, nor did it fit our apparent color scheme of blues, pinks, and purples. But, when I saw the wall and it's location, I had to stop. I've seen this wall pop up several times in my social media feeds, and knowing we were RIGHT there... Naturally, we pulled over, camera in hand.

Mondrian Wall mural artist: unknown at this time
Location: Artist and Craftsman Supply Store, 1660 S. La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles

I really wanted a photo of my mom and me, but there wasn't a soul around to ask to take a picture. We turned to Marcus and asked if he'd like to try his hand with the camera. He didn't shy away on bit from the request. I gave him a few instructions, and after just three attempts he caught the photo above. Here's the first picture Marcus snapped. It was right after I asked him to make sure our feet were in the picture...

As he was taking the picture I said to my mom, "I'm pretty sure JUST our feet are in that." Sure enough. Just. Our. Feet. Kid you not, Marcus handed the camera over immediately and said, "Oops." My mom and I busted up. I have to give the little guy credit though, he followed my instructions.

Though we stopped at four locations I have to note that we passed several other murals along La Cienega. I knew we just wouldn't have time or patience for any more stops. We'll save those, and all of Melrose Avenue, for the next time my mom visits (I'm sure Scott will appreciate being released of wall crawl duties).