22-23 Sept 07, Los Angeles (USA)

Los Angeles is the largest city in the state of California by population and the second most populous city in the US with a population of 3,849,378 in 2006, spanning 1,214.9 squarekilometers.

The metropolitan area is the home to nearly 13 million people. The Greater Los Angeles Area, encompassing five counties, has an estimated population of over 17.7 million people.The Los Angeles coastal area was first settled by the Tongva and Chumash Native American tribes thousands of years ago. The city was founded in 1781 as El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles de Porciúncula (The Village of Our Lady, the Queen of the Angels of Porciuncula)

and became a part of Mexico in 1821 following independence from Spain and then a part of the United States in 1848 at the conclusion of the Mexican-American War.

LOS ANGELES, CA – Crewest Gallery, Friends of the Los Angeles River (FoLAR) and Man One Design teamed up with the International Meeting of Styles to launch the Meeting of Styles LA event on the weekend of September 22 – 23, 2007.

“The L.A. River holds a special place for graffiti artists in L.A. Many artists who have grown up painting its walls have utilized its grand scale to make their mark, consequently shaping the identity of this city,” Man One explains.

Over one hundred artists from LA were scheduled to meet artists from San Diego, Bay area, Mexico and far away as Europe to spraypaint a 10,000 square foot section of the concrete waterway at the Arroyo Seco Confluence in Highland Park.
	But then, after rain friday night, the flood came and the walls, located in side-arms of the river, were not accessable. The river itself, is almost dry during summer time, but when it rains, it collects the water of a huge area in a strong tide.
Too bad for out-of-towners, as the event had to be postponed. The event kicked-off the River City Visionz, a collaborative mural production and festival directed by Man One Design, Friends of the Los Angeles River (FoLAR), and Hadley Media involving hundreds of local and international artists scheduled to be held in a Downtown section of the L.A. River in the fall of 2008.
	After the water came down during the week, the river-painting-event happened a week later – paralell to the mexican MOS. As you can see, the vibe must have been pretty smooth. These street art visionaries transformed the L.A. River’s stark facade into a unique and vibrant collaborative mural.

“The opportunity to produce a sanctioned graffiti mural event in the river will be anincredible statement about the evolution of the art form and the role that the river can play in a newly revitalized downtown. It is an honor to bring international recognition to L.A. by producing thisevent for the Meeting of Styles, who bring with them a global network of graffiti art aficionados.”

At the original date, you could meet and greet some of the participating local and visiting artists at the official Meeting of Styles L.A. Blackbook session at Crewest. Artists participating in the MOS-LA project were present to sign sketchbooks and support the c exhibit “River City Visionz.” Visitors enjoyed a live painting performance by keynote artists and live music by Myk Mansun (Majestik Headquarters/Los Angeles), DMNOLOGY (Knomadz/Chicago).

Spectators can best view the mural painting from Avenue 19 Bridge, just south of Figueroa Avenue. 451 N San Fernando Rd., Los Angeles, CA 90031 CLICK HERE FOR A MAP It’s in the LA River, so there is no real address. The Avenue 19 bridge goes over the river part that will be painted. www.MOS-LA.com

The MOS-LA team would like to thank all the hundreds of artists, families, and friends who attended and participated in this historic event. It truly was a great community event full of great art and a great vibes!

List of crew and artist participants … MAN ONE, VYAL, SACRED, WERC, CROL, SHERM, ASYLM, SWANK, PANIC, EYEONE, MODEM, PRECISE, ACME, MANDOE, NEO, PROSE, WRAM, ASTEK, EKURA, BASH, BISER, DEEN, KEY, KEEPS, ZUCO, METHOD, DSRUP, NOEK, CACHE, COKA, PRANKS, FASHION, PIN, CRAE, ANE, DECODE, LENK, REXOR,VERT-ONE, DOME 87, PHIB, PRYER, THANKS, RVEE, RUEBS, ROTEN, UKAI, SPIRO/STIGMA, FIE, MEGS, KALM, ALOY, DES, ZERK, WORSE, LOYER…

…NEED, DERSE, VOX, BESK, CEZR, MAKE, DEF, RELIC, TELER, HEAVEN, CALE, CRETE 85, KEO, OWEN, SCUD, ANGER, AXIS, NATOE, POSH, AURA, SPLIT, ATLAS, ALTER, SINER, CRE8, MIDZT, DUCE, MOZZER, REVOK, SABER, TYKE, PUSH, EKLIPSE, RETNA, KRUSH, RISKY, OG ABEL, ZOUEH, FEARO, KOFIE, NUKE, CHEE, ITALO, RASO, THANKS, PLEK, SWAB, KAPOW, OMEGA, THUS, RVEE, PAKA, DASH2000, ESK31, OZIE, USE, SER, CAP, BEATL, BADCOKE, PLETIK, SPURN, ARCO, ESQUE, RUET, RELIC, SIZE, PALE, RELAX, CAB, UNIT, SKYPAGER, AERO, PERSUE, DEMON, ZORE, and others..

Man One – Artist and Crewest Gallery Director

Man One is a Los Angeles based Latino urban graffiti artist whose professional career has spanned over 13 years with community projects, exhibitions, videos, festivals and corporate commissions worldwide.

“Art keeps me alive and it helps me communicate globally about certain issues with massive amounts of people.

Graffiti art is a legitimate expression in color, style and purpose. I find inspiration often when I can help the youth of America find a purpose in lieu of their damaging environments,” says Man One. For more information on Man One and his art please visit his site by clicking the photo.

Friends of the Los Angeles River (FoLAR)

Friends of the Los Angeles River (FoLAR) is a 501© 3 non-profit organization founded in 1986 whose mission is to protect and restore the natural and historical heritage of the Los Angeles River and its riparian habitat through inclusive planning, education, and wise stewardship.

FoLAR envisions a greenway from the mountains to the sea through L.A. River revitalization projects and educational programs that will lead to proper management and urban restoration of desolate, industrial areas.

Seeking to reclaim natural resources, open space, and unite diverse communities, FoLAR sees the river’s potential as a source of recharged aquifers, habitat restoration, enlightened urban development, employment opportunity, and a site for artistic and cultural innovation and civic rebirth.Crewest

Crewest-Gallery

Is a gallery that supports some of the most talented underground artists from the West Coast and beyond. The gallery’s focus is on urban & graffiti art created through painting, sculpture, digital, and print medias.

All of the exhibits housed at Crewest deal with what is current, and significant within the realm of the urban art experience. Visit the gallery online! Crewest: 110 Winston St., Los Angeles, CA 90013, tel (213) 627-8272, fx (213) 559-0525

The LA Transportation Authority operate an extensive system of bus lines, subway, light rail lines. LA mass transit system does not have high ridership, 10.5% of commuters using public transit, compared with 53% and 30% in NYC and Chicago.
	LA has been experiencing significant decline in crime since the mid-1990s, hit a record low in 2006 with 29.737 acts of violence, of which 481 were homicides. Many movies and songs depict the notion that the city is home to a large number of gangsters and professional criminals.
Car chases happen more often than in most other major cities, with the city’s complex freeway system allowing for lengthier pursuits. Other automobile-oriented crimes include car-to-car shootings, drive-by shootings, freeway shootings, hit-and-run accidents, and carjackings.
	According to a May 2001 Drug Threat Assessment, Los Angeles County is home to 152,000 gang members organized into 1,350 gangs.Among the most infamous are the Crips, Bloods, 18th Street, Florencia 13, and MS-13. This has led to the city being referred to as the “Gang Capital of America.

The 1992 Los Angeles riots, also known as the Rodney King riots, were sparked on April 29, 1992 when a predominately white jury acquitted four police officers accused in the videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney King when he resisted arrest following a high-speed car chase.
	Thousands in the Los Angeles area joined in a race riot involving acts of law-breaking, including looting, assault, arson and murder, seeing in King an example of injustice against Blacks in the United States.

The situation was so grim that the California National Guard and the U.S. Marine Corps were called in.