80-year-old Surrealist Mural Restored
David Alfaro Siqueiro's newly restored 1932 mural, "America Tropical" was revealed on the exterior wall of the El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument in downtown Los Angeles.
The mural depicts an executed Mayan peasant on a double cross. Once met with controversy, the mural is now cherished as a symbol of the Chicano movement and Siqueiro's fight against US imperialism.
"This mural is almost like our Sistine Chapel of Los Angeles. History over time literally painted it over and let it fade. So this has been a multi-year restoration so it's an intense and important part of our heritage," said councilman Eric Garcetti.
Before "America Tropical's" rediscovery in the 1960s the mural was practically forgotten until the whitewash peeled away and exposed parts of Siqueiro's buried, but still compelling work. Due to outdoor exposure, a plywood cover was placed on the mural in 1982 to protect the 18-by-80-foot mural from further damage.
The total restoration began in 1988 and cost 9.95 million to complete. The project was funded both by the City of Los Angeles and the Getty Conservation Institute.
Siquiero was exiled from Mexico in 1932 for participating in communist organizations in the early thirties. Siqueiro then moved to Los Angeles where he completed three murals,"America Tropical," "Street Meeting" and "Portrait of Present Day Mexico."
