At 7th and S Streets, one block north of Southside Park, a colorful 40-by-10-foot centerpiece flanked by two 19-by-19-foot panels has materialized on the front of a concrete building. This latest montage was created by Sofia Lacin and Hennessy Christophel of LC Mural & Design.
The mural features representations of people living and working in the Capitol Park Neighborhood who are illustrated as paper-based sketches over a boldly-colored city grid. In executing the mural, the artists showcased the diversity and spirit of the Capitol Park Neighborhood, but allowed for there to be some ambiguity in identifying specific people. Passers-by will note the loosely-modeled Fremont Community Garden and State Capitol Building as reference points as well as bicyclists who are most likely competing in the AMGEN tour. California’s state flower, the golden poppy, is also highlighted in the mural.
Lacin, who was recently featured in Sacramento Magazine’s “People to Watch” article said, “We were able to take the building wall from simply filling space on the street to creating a place that offers personality – it’s like a new person came to town.”
Christophel, Lacin’s business partner, added, “Through the process of painting we got to know a lot of the people from the community as they came out to watch the mural taking shape. We believe in the transformative power of public art and hope that our piece will further develop the neighborhood’s identity.”
Lacin and Christophel current projects are located at the Happy Tails Pet Sanctuary off of Folsom Boulevard, an alley off of J and 16th Street, and at Face’s nightclub on 20th and K Streets. In addition to their murals, these two artists also do solo work. Lacin is an abstract painter (you can view her paintings at: www.sofialacin.com) and Christophel is an illustrator.
The Capitol Area Development Authority (CADA) who commissioned LC Mural & Design to create the mural has long championed the arts in downtown Sacramento through commissioning several murals, sponsoring Chalk it Up, and hosting competitions for art in public places among other contributions.
