Los Angeles River Series #18 (2019)

View in Store

The Cesar Chavez Bridge connects Boyle Heights, a largely Hispanic borough to the east of the Los Angeles River, to the city’s western population centers including downtown and the nearby Metro transit center.  Immediately west of the Metro center is a picturesque if not somewhat touristic pedestrian area called Alvera Street. This is one of the original settlements in the city and the location of one of Los Angeles’ original homes “Alvila Adobe” built in 1818.  A number of historical buildings and shops continue to be run by decedents of the original vendors. Signs of the Mexican American and Spanish heritage of California are everywhere, from the city’s namesake river to the Cesar Chavez Bridge named after the famed civil rights and union-organizing activist.

Completed in 1926 and renamed the Cesar Chavez Bridge in 1995, the bridge is located along the original “Camino Real”, the 600-mile route that connected twenty-one historic missions founded by Father Junipero Serra as financed by the Spanish monarchy. The Spanish Revival style of architecture including the arches and the four ornate porticos marking its entrance, honor Father Junipero Serra and the Spanish explorers and settlers that colonized California and built the historic missions (though built largely by exploiting the labor of the native people of California, the Tongva).

Los Angeles River Painting 18, The Morning Shift, tells this California story. A solitary Mexican-American immigrant walks across the Cesar Chavez Bridge in the early sunrise light to catch a bus to her morning shift. She walks slowly but with confidence. Sunlight shines on her face. In her path stands the ornate Spanish Revival portico, its golden-lit spiral columns, articulated cornice and embellished capitals, all symbols of wealth and power. Behind the portico lay the dry banks of the Los Angeles River and a menacing sky. California has long been a state of contrasts: wealth, poverty, hope, and with housing unaffordability and income inequality among the highest in the nation it remains so today. 

If you are interested in this painting, you can view more details in the Store. If you would like to learn more about the City of Los Angeles' River Project, explore the links below.

More on the Los Angeles Revitalization Project

City of Los Angeles River Revitalization Project