Best Street Artists in Los Angeles
Occupying the places we live, work, and play, resuscitating life into an otherwise monotonous urban canvas, street artists are the free thinkers, innovators, and risk takers of our time. With so much creative energy collectively contributing to the LA scene, it would be impossible to list them all, but we've managed to profile a few of our favorites. Can't get enough? Check out our top list of places to find street art in LA.
RETNA
www.digitalretna.com
RETNA is an artist whose unmistaken work is identified by an original script he created, inspired by his fascination with ancient and cultural typography. Each piece contains verbal significance that can be deciphered only by those rare few that have developed an intimate understanding of his work. With beginnings as a graffiti artist in the mid-90's, RETNA carries irrefutable street credibility and a remarkable career with paint spatters that have bled over to the contemporary art scene.
This native Angeleno is a luminary that has turned the perception of street art on its head, crossing boundaries with an inimitable style with mass appeal for a wide variety of audiences. As a result, the places you can find RETNA's art is kaleidoscopic; he has exhibited at galleries and institutions throughout Los Angeles, London, New York, Miami, and internationally, along with countless murals in public spaces worldwide.
He's been profiled in an array of publications that include Architectural Digest, The Economist, and a guest art installation can even be found in a newly released multilingual children's book, "Am I Half Giraffe." British artist Damien Hirst, R&B artist Usher, and former MOCA director Jeffrey Deitch are just a few RETNA collectors. His local collaborations are varied as well, such as that with luxury brand Marc Phillip Rugs and Petty Cash, a taqueria by LA Chef Walter Manzke and restaurateur Bill Chait. Fashion house Louis Vuitton is also a client. Much of RETNA's work remains deeply entrenched in LA, paying homage to graffiti artists before him that paved the path of opportunity he has actualized today.
PUSH
www.instagram.com/knowudont
The understated demeanor combined with the overwhelming talent that courses through PUSH's veins are a reflection of the contrasting balance that comes through in his work. His style is like geometric, graphic, and incandescent candy for the eyes, incorporating thoughtful palette choices that range from harmonious colorways, to monochromatic, to black and white. His work is simultaneously sharp, linear, rough, and precise.
PUSH credits early inspirations to the LA graffiti scene and skateboarding, when he made a name for himself through years of participation in global murals, graffiti writing, group, and solo exhibits. The only competition he seeks is the kind he has with himself. In 2013, he pulled many an all-nighter to produce a three-dimensional installation piece for his third solo exhibition entitled "Adaptation" at Known Gallery. It was the first time he attempted something of this kind, resulting in sharp black three-dimensional lines back dropped by bright geometric patchwork. Those lucky to make it during the short three-day window it was on display got to step into PUSH, literally. In May of this year, he collaborated with skate lifestyle brand Element to create a collection of boards and apparel. His most recent local mural can be found in Little Tokyo on 2nd Street in Downtown LA.
El Mac
www.elmac.net
LA born Mac is world renowned for his unique rendering style using ripple like contour lines that come together to become life-like human faces. Inspiration came to him at a young age, drawing influence from classic European painters and Art Nouveau symbolists fused with contemporary graffiti, photorealism, and the Chicano/Mexican culture he grew up around. Mac honed in on his craft with large scale public artworks in Los Angeles in the mid-90's; it was only a matter of time before this led to commissions internationally and across the US. He's held solo exhibitions in contemporary art hubs that include San Francisco and New York. Several of his local murals are city landmarks, most notably those in which he collaborated with RETNA, which combine Mac's meticulous figures with RETNA's typography and design.
Mac's latest work was completed in August in Toronto titled "To the Future"; it was the first large mural project outside of the US that he's worked on since recovering from health issues the previous year. Eventscape commissioned the work, located on the roof of the business owners building. It was the artist's first mural in the city, staking his claim proud with hauntingly striking imagery. It pays tribute to the late Canadian artist Alex Colville's iconic painting entitled "To Prince Edward Island." Canadian graffiti artists KWEST and STARE painted the background.
ZES is a Los Angeles graffiti artist turned gallery artist that maintains his standing as one of the top prodigal taggers in the city. Years worth of tags all over the city's most inaccessible surfaces grace the ZES moniker, a reminder of a past time with energy he has since redirected to the contemporary art scene. He is now working with tools that are new to his repertoire, yet his freestyle sensibility and sense of urgency is still very much a part of his madness method. His latest work can be found in black and white photography in the pages of his limited edition book, Obscure. It's full of striking imagery that offer the viewer an exploration of the architecture, skylines, and stomping grounds of Los Angeles that, until recently, could only be captured through the often-inaccessible perspective of ZES.
DEFER
www.defer1.com
Growing up in East LA, DEFER became part of the early graffiti art movement in the city in the mid 80's. His handstyle is fluid and graceful in some instances, while hard and aggressive in others. The artist's early influences are a combination of New York graffiti and his neighborhood's placaso style, still evident in paintings that fuse his signature typography with Japanese imagery. His work has been exhibited in various museums and galleries including "Street Cred" at the PMCA (Pasadena Museum of California Art) and the "Liber Amicorum" project that is archived in the Getty Research Institutes special collections. He also participated in Pow!Wow! Hawaii, collaborating on some pretty magnificent pieces with POW! WOW! Hawaii Co-Lead Director, Kamea Hadar. "Bridging Homeboy Industries," is his latest exhibition with two other East LA artists that will be on display through January 31st at RAFFMA (Cal State San Bernadino).
Dabs Myla
www.dabsmyla.com
Melbourne natives turned LA transplants Dabs and Myla are a couple that met and fell in love while attending art school. Dabs started doing graffiti in 1995 and taught Myla the ins and outs of writing a decade later. Drawing inspiration from cartoons, travel, food, cartoons, graffiti, and their life as a couple, they're the perfect example of how mates can complement each other, drawing on their personal strengths while embracing their individual styles all at once. Dabs colorful characters play nicely with Myla's patterns, cityscapes, and fonts. They have been collaborating on pieces together in the city since 2009, merged as the duo known as Dabs Myla. Their most recent exhibition, "Touchy Subjects" with Jersey Joe Rime and Persue took place at The Seventh Letter Flagship Store and Gallery.
Shepard Fairey
www.obeygiant.com
In the world of street art, Shepard Fairey is a man who needs no introduction. In fact, he made his foray onto the scene in 1989 with his infamous Andre the Giant stickers that later evolved into OBEY in the 90's. His work conveys elements of pop, propaganda, and Marxism that provoke both thought and question. He came up in the skate and punk rock scenes, which served as an incubator for what would ultimately develop into the burgeoning clothing line enterprise OBEY represents today. He has done it all, from exhibiting in countless shows, collaborations, corporate commissions, and murals that can be seen in public spaces worldwide. His work can also be found in contemporary art institutions like LACMA, MOMA, and The Smithsonian. One of OBEY's most recent local murals can be seen on the side of ultra hip The Line Hotel in Koreatown.
Joy Bitonio has the phrase "Joie de Vivre" tattooed on her shoulder, a reminder to enjoy life every single day. She has a voracious appetite for fun, adventure, food, good cocktails and works out like a madwoman to keep it all together. Check out what else she recommends around Los Angeles in the links below.
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