by Tracey Paleo, Gia On The Move

Once again, while walking up La Brea towards Hollywood Blvd., there it was, unexpected and glorious.

“What does it mean?” I thought.

I know what it means to me, but what about the artist.  Why does this image continue to have such powerful impact? Why in this place? This grungy, ugly, barren, stripped, cemented, place…the side of a barrier across from a public parking lot, almost hidden. Does this corner need inspiration? A reminder? Someone watching over it? And why did I choose to notice it now?  Has it been there all along? And the texture of it…it’s so impressive…so thought out…so alive.  He’s almost breathing. This piece has a sense of the artist painstakingly molding the materials, scratching, and painting carefully, meticulously.  This is no accident. No mere unsophisticated rendition.  It really is a work of art that but for the subject matter, could have been pulled right out of the Renaissance.  Modern day Michelangelo.

It’s the kind of curiosity that will bring me back again and again to look at this spontaneous street art wall relief of John F. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States of America. For now, a photograph will have to suffice…

And by the way…it’s gone now.