About Robin
Robin Dunitz is the photographer of this collection of more than 2,000 digitized 35mm slides of murals in Los Angeles. As a long-time resident of Los Angeles and an independent researcher on the city’s murals, Robin has photographed and written extensively about murals, advocating for their preservation and emphasizing their importance in communities of color and beyond.
Historically, “murals had been sponsored by institutions and located indoors, limiting their visibility.”¹ However, this changed when the “social movements for peace, justice, and equality of the 1960s and early 1970s brought millions into the streets and inspired many young African-American artists”² to place murals “where people live.”³ By creating outdoor mural projects, not only were communities of color able to learn about historical figures and events that had been excluded from the public school curriculum but Black artists were also given the opportunities and exposure to create murals in their communities, “as museums and galleries demonstrated little interest in showing their work.”⁴ Aware of this, Robin’s body of written work–– which consists of interviews with Black artists, articles, and books–– emphasizes how art can be used to remind marginalized communities that their stories matter and deserve to be celebrated and understood.
Notes
Dunitz, Robin J. “The Albina Mural Project.” Oregon Historical Quarterly 111, no. 4 (2010), 488-489.
Dunitz, “The Albina Mural Project”, 488.
Dunitz, Robin J. “The African-American Murals of Los Angeles: Putting Art Where People Live.” American Visions 9, no. 6 (1994): 14–.
Dunitz, “The Albina Mural Project”, 489.