Bryan Ida

About The Artwork

Justine, 2019, Ink on panel

In the 1930’s, Justine’s great grandmother moved her family to the Watts neighborhood in South Los Angeles amid a backdrop of intense racial discrimination. I drew this portrait using the words of the housing covenants and deed restrictions that kept minorities from owning a home in areas of Los Angeles from the 1800s to 1948, when they were struck down in court. I use these words to form the image so that the words may be transformed from a document of hatred and fear into a new visual language of beauty and strength.

Ash, 2019, Ink on panel

Ash rediscovered her sexuality while in college and finally made the choice to come out with the support of her sister. Since then she has become a speaker, activist and advocate of the LGBTQ+ community. The text used is Executive Order 10450 from 1953 that used broad language to ban homosexuals from working in the federal government, notably the armed services. The Executive Order was part of a larger movement that included mass firings in the 1950’s and was referred to as the “Lavender Scare” which was discrimination based on sexual orientation.