The Full Dollar Collection of Contemporary Art is an initiative that aims to reconsider the tradition of public art through a collaboration between artists, sign painters, and business owners. Originated in Ecuador by artist and anthropologist X. Andrade, the project will examine how the fine art tradition intersects with the tradition of commercial hand-painted signs.
As Artist-in-Residence at Outpost for Contemporary Art in Highland Park, Los Angeles, Andrade will collaborate with Occidental College and KCET Departures in exploring the possibilities of using storefronts along York Boulevard as a canvas for engaging dialogue between artists, non-artists, and the community. Sign painters will appropriate works by fine artists, using their motifs to create works that not only will be pieces of public art, but also serve to advertise a business and become fixtures on the changing face of the community.
The Full Dollar site will feature content that will be updated several times a week. These include video interviews, guest blog posts, and a photo survey of hand painted signs across Highland Park.
AREA OF FOCUS
The Full Dollar Collection of Contemporary Art is developed through a partnership between:
While researching the history and culture of sign painting in Highland Park, we have explored and documented the facades of local businesses on York Blvd. Many illustrations associated with the signs we see feature an impressive amount of detail and care. From classic sign paintings reminiscent of ad culture from the 1960's to the modern graffiti style of print, we are starting to understand the different personalities of each restaurant, shop, or service we photograph.
X. Andrade (Otavalo, Ecuador, 1963) lives and works in Guayaquil and Quito, Ecuador. He is an urban anthropologist, Chairman-for-Life of Full Dollar Inc, a company that traffics in anthropology and contemporary art, and the Chair of the Visual Anthropology Program at the Latin American Graduate Faculty for Social Sciences (FLACSO- Ecuador). In both fields he is interested in casting an ethnographic look on the social life of objects, images and ideas in an urban context.
UPDATE: We have chosen the final participants in all categories. The sign up is now closed. Thank you for your interest in the project!
Follow our blog for the latest developments and to see the final collaboration between the sign painter, artist, and the business.
We are reaching out to you, the online community, for suggestions for sign painters, local artists and business owners to work with the Full Dollar Collection. Artists in the Northeast Los Angeles area will be considered. Highland Park-based business owners along York Boulevard between Avenue 49 and Avenue 53 are also eligible.
The Full Dollar Collection is a neighborhood-based collaboration headquartered out of the Outpost for Contemporary Art in Highland Park.
The Full Dollar Collection of Contemporary Art is developed through a partnership between:
flickr.com/kcetdepartures
departures@kcet.org
YouTube.com/Webstories
