MCLA PRESENTS TAIJI TERASAKI’S RECIPES TO NOURISH COMMUNITIES

Terasaki Invites Community to Join in Mission of Art Activism and Social Impact With Mural Opening Reception Highlighting Local LA Organizations

FEBRUARY 25, 2023

Opening Reception

2pm-4pm PST

MURAL CONSERVANCY OF LOS ANGELES (MCLA)

260 S. Main Street

Los Angeles, CA, 90012

Los Angeles, CA (February 14, 2023) - Ever using his artistic platform to discuss topics surrounding the longevity of the planet and quality of life for its inhabitants, multimedia artist Taiji Terasaki unveils his latest project, a thoughtful and deeply important mural, “Recipes to Nourish Communities.” Terasaki highlights the importance of nourishing the local Los Angeles community. The mural, executed on aluminum panels and mounted to the exterior of the Mural Conservancy of Los Angeles’ (MCLA) space at 260 S. Main St., is a large collage of images that elevate the profile of four organizations/artists committed to providing access to fresh and nutritious ingredients in their corners of LA.

Welcoming the community to celebrate and engage in discourse surrounding food systems and the environment, Terasaki and MCLA are hosting an unveiling and opening reception. On February 25th from 2pm to 4pm they bring fans and viewers together to celebrate the piece. With food insecurity facing so many both in the greater LA area and at large, Terasaki takes this opportunity to debut an ongoing and rotating mural project spanning 2 years at the MCLA location, relaunching its program after their recent hiatus, and rallying like-minded viewers around the importance of sustenance.

Featuring local activists and artists Alma Backyard Farms, Ron Finley, Fallen Fruit, and the LA Mission the mural explores different modalities of providing nourishing help. From Fallen Fruit’s planting of fruit trees for anyone to enjoy, to Ron Finley’s gardening commitment and march in DC for National Food Day, each organization promotes food equity and security, their mission amplified through Terasaki’s public work.

The mural is designed to invite neighborhood residents and Downtown Los Angeles visitors to download recipes and view interviews via augmented reality. With the introduction of AR and technology within the piece, made possible by Future Arts, he brings this groundbreaking metal mural to new audiences. Situated at ground-level, the mural will be a focal point for the neighborhood.

With the mural and its AR component, this 2023 debut ignites an important conversation complete with actionable ways to contribute to a more sustainable and sustenance-filled Los Angeles.

About Taiji Terasaki

Taiji Terasaki is a multimedia artist based in Honolulu, Hawai’i. Growing up in a family of scientists and creatives, with a formal arts education, he has spent years exploring avant-garde innovations in his craft, working in photography, sculpture, immersive and large-scale installations, and pioneering mediums like mist projections on canvas.

Terasaki made his public debut in 2017 with REBIRTH at Honolulu’s Ward Center, and Edible Landscapes for the Trillenium in conjunction with Contact 3017: Hawai‘i in 1,000 Years at the Honolulu Museum of Art. Since then, Terasaki has been shown internationally in several group shows, most notably at the Curitiba Biennial in Brazil and Westwood Gallery in New York. His solo shows include Feeding the Immortals at the Ravizza Brownfield Gallery, Honolulu, Transcendients: Immigrant Stories of Place at Thomas Square, Honolulu (2019); Transcendients: Heroes at Borders, Transcendients: 100 Days of Covid-19, and Transcendients: Memorial to Healthcare Workers at the Japanese American National Museum, Los Angeles; and RESET/RESHAPE at the Schaefer International Gallery, Maui.

Terasaki holds a BFA from University of California, Irvine and studied in the MFA programs at Hunter College, NY and California State University, Long Beach.

Stay connected with the work of Taiji Teraskai by following the studio online at @taijiterasaki or by signing up for the studio's newsletter at www.taijiterasaki.com

About MCLA, the Mural Conservancy of Los Angeles

To mark the hosting of the Summer Olympic Games in 1984, the city of Los Angeles decided to create ten painted murals along the two main freeways leading up to the Olympic stadium. Over the years, many of these and murals fell into minor to significant disrepair. Rogue taggers began to vandalize public murals with graffiti on top of the existing artwork. Some murals were completely covered or destroyed as a result, resulting in a significant cultural loss for the city. When Kent Twitchell's "Freeway Lady" was painted over without notice in 1986, he and Bill Lasarow decided on the need for what became the Mural Conservancy of Los Angeles (MCLA). Thus founded in 1987, MCLA is a non-profit organization whose mission is to selectively restore, preserve and document the public murals that are located at various points around the City.

MCLA has cooperated with local and state agencies in selecting and conducting restorations, and also legislatively. In 2013 a multi-year effort culminated in passage of Los Angeles’ Mural Ordinance, designed to recognize and protect public murals as artistic assets distinct from forms of commercial signage such as billboards. The success of MCLA has led to the extensions of its work in the City. For example, MCLA collaborated with the organizers of the 2015 Special Olympic Games held in Los Angeles, with three new murals commissioned to celebrate those Games while simultaneously commemorating the 1984 Olympics.

Following a period of hiatus throughout the Covid pandemic, the City of Los Angeles generously provided MCLA with its new space downtown at 260 S. Main in order to renew the commitment to the preservation of key public murals.