One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
A shipping container transformed into art hits LA streets
Edgar Ramirez's "I Want To Be Free (That's The Truth)."
(
Courtesy Edgar Ramirez
)
Topline:
Keep an eye out as you move about Los Angeles this week, there’s a good chance you might catch a 40-foot, traveling work of art. Here’s where you might encounter it and what it means.
The piece: Using house paint and other materials, Wilmington-raised artist Edgar Ramirez has emblazoned a shipping container with the words “I want to be free” in hues of green and red.
The quote: Ramirez said the language of his piece, “I Want To Be Free (That’s The Truth),” is a response to a collective fear he senses in our region, whether it’s from ongoing ICE raids or economic hardship.
“It’s like this constant struggle of just trying to make it, you know? And there’s a lot of that throughout Los Angeles," Ramirez told LAist. "And I think it’s something that a lot of us feel together. But we don’t really talk about it as much as I think we should be."
Background: The piece was commissioned by the L.A. County Department of Arts and Culture.
Will you spot it? Ramirez is on the road now through Friday with his piece, making stops from Burbank all the way to Long Beach, with a public event at Plaza de la Raza on May 1 to coincide with May Day.
Sponsored message
Plan ahead: You can check out a map of Ramirez’s trek on his Instagram. The piece is slated to be at Plaza de la Raza in East L.A. from 10 a.m. to noon on May 1.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
