REPOST: Hollydale's Newest Mural Celebrates South Gate History

This is a repost from when the mural in Hollydale came to town. Patch couldn't transfer over to my newest active account so I thought I'd share it again to have it archived with my other writings. Hope you enjoy a trip down the recent past! :)

ORIGINAL LINK: https://patch.com/california/southgate-lynwood/hollydales-newest-mural-celebrates-south-gate-history

The city of South Gate, unbeknownst to many in the community, is rich in it's culture, history, and future. The Facebook group, Hollydale: A South Gate Community got a chance to sit down with artist Don Lamkin, inside Las Enchiladas in Hollydale We discussed art, the history of South Gate, and plans that are coming soon to the community.

Welcome to the Hollydale area Mr. Lamkin. You are a long time Downey resident but I understand that you are no stranger to Hollydale or the South Gate area. Could you tell us about your memories in and around the areas of South Gate?
Well I was born at St. Francis in Lynwood and at that time, my parents had moved moved to Hollydale from North Hollywood. My dad was the executive director of the South Gate - Rio Vista YMCA at that time. They moved to Downey when I was just a couple of months old but my father continued working in South Gate. After the YMCA, he worked as the South Gate Chamber of Commerce Manager in the 80's. Some of my siblings went to school in the area and I also went to preschool on the west side of town at some little church on Firestone Blvd. My dad would drop me off for pre-school and he would go to work at the YMCA. My dad also ran firework stands at Big Buns [on Century and Gardendale], Sav-On Drugs on Tweedy Blvd, and Two Guys Dept. store on Firestone. Every firework season I would work those stands. Needless to say, I have spent plenty of time in the city of South Gate.

Hollydale's newest business, PWS The Laundry Company, has commissioned you to create and implement a mural as part of the city's Art in Public Places program on their newly purchased building. Could you tell us the details about your newest canvas? How long will it take you to complete the project? When will you start?
The process of creating my murals entail many steps. First, PWS sought me out and said they were familiar with my other work and wanted to discuss doing a mural on the property. They were interested in my work and wanted me to submit a proposal of my work being featured on the south wall of their property. After our phone conversations, we met at the site of my mural in Downey and they thought it was "stunning" in person. They had only seen photos of it prior to this point. They were interested in the same concept with South Gate/Hollydale content for their project. We agreed on project details and a contract was drawn up.
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At this point I began my research on community icons both past and present. Besides drawing on my own knowledge and experience in the community, I met with city officials, staff, council members, and community stake holders to discuss their feeling as to what they think is important to the community. One friend of mine in particular, who grew up in Hollydale, suggested ABC Hardware [formerly ACE Hardware], D's Char-burgers, and Hollydale School as well as a few other icons. Once I felt I had enough inventory, I started researching information on these icons such as years in existence, establishment dates, and images.

At this point, composition is key in creating a balance in the piece between image size, color, and structure. An original acrylic on canvas is created. In a sense, create a scaled down model of the larger mural. It has to be visually pleasing and a balance of structure and color. In this case, the canvas is 53"x10" which is a ratio of one inch to one foot for the mural. I rough sketch everything onto this canvas until O feel the balance and composition works. The color and detail is all done with acrylic paints and brushes. I'll be done sometime in June with the original image on canvas.

In this case, the canvas is 53"x10" which is a ratio of one inch to one foot for the mural.

The property owner will be in the process of refurbishing the entire property which will include site preparation and lighting for the mural.

This work could easily take a couple of months before the wall is ready for me to go to work. Once I start the mural process on the wall, my plan is to have it completed in 6-8 weeks. The detail work is immense in these projects and it takes a lot of time to get it right! Once everything is completed, I will apply several coats of ultra violet and graffiti protection clear to ensure as long a life as possible.

It is important to note that funding for this project comes private money. Financially speaking, PWS The Laundry Company is going to more expense and effort than they were obligated to, to bring this art to the community. I really think the community will appreciate the efforts of this business to renovate this building, which has been blighted and vacant for many years.

"Financially speaking, PWS The Laundry Company is going to more expense and effort than they were obligated to, to bring this art to the community."

To some you are known as a Firefighter, for others as a motorcycle racer, but to us locally, you are an artist who has become the face of a local arts movement that shows communities that public art is important. Why do you think public art is important for the development of a community?

Well I think art and culture starts a mindset of pride in one's community which breeds an atmosphere of improvement. Some art pieces develop into a destination spot for tourists, improve the aesthetics of the area, and brings in a culture of quality business development. It also creates an atmosphere that allows for people to want to be out and about and enjoy the community and it's businesses. You could use examples such as Downey, Long Beach, or Culver City, where the art and culture scene has helped the entire city as a whole. PWS The Laundry Company and myself hope to achieve the same results in the South Gate and the Hollydale area.

The City of South Gate, to some resident's surprise, is rich in history. From Amelia Earheart learning to fly around what is now the Tweedy Mile to Harvey Samuel Firestone dominating the West Coast market by opening up his tire production plant on what is now Firestone Blvd. How much more history were you able to find that might find it's way into the mural?

When I began this project, I realized one thing and that is that the residents are going to be amazed as to the amount of interesting history the city has. I'm hoping that many of the residents of South Gate are going to learn a few things about where they live.
I can tell you that a few of the local icons that will go into the mural will be the Allen Theatre, Greenspans, and the South Gate Veteran's Memorial Fountain. The rest can remain a surprise for now! Stay tuned and I look forward to meeting many of you guys out there on the wall while I work!

I can tell you that a few of the local icons that will go into the mural will be the Allen Theatre, Greenspans, and the South Gate Veteran's Memorial Fountain.