Author Archives: Doña Junta

About Doña Junta

I am a street artist, soldadera and old soul. a swapmeet cult following that lives in all our hearts. I capture the grit and grime of the city and share it with the world.

South Central Art Walk

Posted on by
4

Around January this year I started a monthly South Central walk. We  walked different main streets each month until about summer time. It was basically just me and whoever wanted to join.  There is so much to see and learn in such a controversial part of the city. Great photo shots, art, street food, mom and pop restaurants, old houses, industrial and more. My friends who love the grimy aesthetics of SC enjoyed the walks. I will call this post the first SC art walk…more to come, and if you are interested in ever walking along hit me up!

Beautiful use of colors

Continue reading →

Art Exhibition Tonight: ROCKIN Saturday, August 27, 2011

Posted on by
Reply

 

Rockin 2011 curated by Lovegalo:

Come check out this amazing graffiti art exhibition with a historical twist. Featuring LA’s earliest graffiti writers still rocking their shit. It takes a look into the early graffiti by some of these guys at the famous Belmont Tunnel. The show will also feature great art and photography by various talented artist’s.

Tonight: Saturday, August, 27th 2011 @ 7 p.m. 
Location: KGB studio’s 1640 N. Spring Street, Los Angeles, Ca 90012

 

 

 

My Cruise Down Whittier Boulevard

Posted on by
10

Whittier Boulevard in Los Angeles is a street with deep rooted history. In a way it has become the pinnacle of East Los Angeles. Even though I did not grow up in the area, I always heard of Whittier Boulevard. It has often known as the hub for Mexican-Americans on the Eastside. Old Chicano films and music often brought this to light.  You can  still take a drive down Whittier today and feel some of the history seeping from the buildings. I wish I could have seen it during its prime time. However, I can only imagine and listen to stories of the past.

Fellow blogger Al Desmadre is a great Eastside source when it comes to forgotten history of Whittier Boulevard he has written excellent  posts reliving the era.

What caught my curiosity of this street? Well I had been driving down it almost every Sunday meeting friends near Montebello. On the way back instead of taking the freeway I went down Whittier Boulevard. Since the street is pretty popular I never thought about blogging about it before, but hey everybody has their own perspective on a place. I decided to do a short but sweet photo session on the beauty I see on Whittier Boulevard.

Continue reading →

El Sereno Sample Sale: Sat, May 7 and Sun, May 8, 2011

Posted on by
2

Sample Sale Saturday, May 07 and Sunday May 08,2011

Photo via Flickr

El Primo will be having a large clothing/sample sale this weekend in El Sereno. There will be new name brand clothing for men and women at low discount prices! Some brands include: American Apparel, LRG, One World, Alternative, Curl, RSQ, Parris Skinny jeans, Cache Jeans and more. All sizes available!

Location: 4441 Alpha Street
Time: 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
Los Angeles, Ca 90032
Cross-Streets, Huntington Dr and Maycrest
Support a swapmeetero out!

Eastside Food: Mariscos El Rey del Mar

Posted on by
6

On Saturday my two friends and I decided to go hunt for some new mariscos spots. For the longest our friend Don Bon was telling us about this truck near the old Lincoln Heights jail called, “milagros” he said that the shrimp cocteles were the best. Well that milagro never occurred because the truck was never found, and I had asked around a few times.  However, last weekend he suggested another truck which is called Mariscos El Rey del Mar. The funny thing is that it took us about 40 minutes to find it(we did not know the name at first). He said if we exit the freeway we would get off on 4th and it would be on State Street near a park. We did all that but we went to the wrong truck! we ended up by Hollenback park where there was another marisco truck. I was kind of suspicious about it because it was real lonely with no customers. I talked to the older lady serving the food and she said she was the only marisco truck nearby. My friend ordered the ceveche but I had to taste it before I ordered. First taste and I was not feeling it at all.  I knew after that we must of found the wrong truck! I still felt obligated to order so I got a taco de papa for a buck. After feeling defeated we called Don Bon again we all  felt like  we were definitely bugging him, but  he laughed and told us once again how to find the correct truck. Long story short we finally found it!

Continue reading →

Eastside Artist Sand Oner: Bow Ties Friday, April 29, 2011

Posted on by
Reply

Our favorite eastside artist Sand Oner will be exhibiting this Friday, April 29, 2011.  This will be her first Solo exhibition, and what better way to represent her roots than to have the exhibition at Casa De Cultura Galleria” Mariachi Plaza in  Boyle Heights.

Press release

Sand One presents: “Bow Ties” Sand Chikz A week-long art exhibit showcasing the new works on mixed media surfaces by LA’s youngest female street artist: Sand One. Los Angeles— From corn carts and taco stands in Los Angeles to the Art Basel walls in Miami, this pint-sized artist continues to leave a larger than life mark in every town she visits. In only two years Sand’s signature mob of buxom female cartoon characters, known as “Sand Chikz,” have taken the art community by storm.  Sand’s first solo exhibition in Los Angeles, “Bow Ties”, will feature her signature ultra-feminine and hood “Sand Chikz” in a different light. Each Sand Chik will be dressed in a tuxedo, symbolizing class, authority and power; three characteristics people often associate with masculinity and wealth. In “Bow Ties” Sand One’s underlying theme seeks to liberate gender-biased characteristics often imposed on women while also questioning the relationship between street art, fine art and the arts institution.

Opening Reception:
Friday, April 29, 2011
6 p.m. -11 p.m.
Closing Reception
Saturday, May 7, 2011
6 p.m. -11 p.m.
1711 Mariachi Plaza De Los Angeles 90033
Corner of Boyle and 1st

The Hood Taught Me A New Word

Posted on by
9

“Bookers Liquor Store” Figueroa and 59th

When I took this picture I seriously did not know what the word “Sundries” was I decided to look it up but never did. Today when my professor was discussing a topic on “Social Stratification and Inequality” the word  “Sundries” came up when he was giving us an example. I immediately thought of this liquor store in South Central where I first was curious about the word. I kind of figured out what it was when the teacher used the word in an example but after looking it up, I get it!

Do most people even know this word?? I am joking most probably do however, I did not and now I do. Here is the definition.

sundries
noun miscellaneous objects too numerous or too small to be specified.

sundry( plural noun)  things or items, esp. small, miscellaneous items of little value

Thank you for reading my rants!

DJ

San Pedro Community Garden

Posted on by
5

I thought I would share this post I wrote on the Slanguage website over here on LA east side because I felt that this community garden was pretty special.

Slanguage got a great opportunity to go visit and explore the San Pedro community garden. This 3 ½ acre land is owned by the city of Los Angeles and has been around over 40 years. For a yearly fee anybody can start a garden. The garden is fitted with hoses for easy access to water, mulch is also available.  However, not just anybody can maintain their roots here; some gardeners have managed to sustain their plots for up to thirty years.

More after the jump

Are The Paisa Bars Disappearing?

Posted on by
17

My compa Don Ignacio SMC, inspired me to write this post because he had some videos on his Facebook page with old Rancheras/Corridos/Nortenas. While browsing through  the videos and listening to others on YouTube I noticed a common theme of old paisa bars, they seemed always pop up in the older videos. Artists such as Vicente Fernandez and Los Tigeres del Norte and countless others always had scenes in old paisa bars. Most of these are classic movie clips they starred in from back in the 1970s and 1980s.

No tengas miedo metete…..

Continue reading →

Harbor Area Music & Art Gathering Sunday, September 26, 2010

Posted on by
Reply

The  Harbor Area and the cool breeze of the Pacific Ocean are calling you this Sunday!

Support my comadre Doña Licha for the: ” Harbor Area Music and Art Gathering” in good old Wilmington. She will be displaying  some of her art along with 20+ artists.

For $3 bucks enjoy art, music and good times!

When: Sunday, September 25, 2010

Time: 12:00 p.m. till 6:00 p.m.

Where: Smoking Coffin

1606 n. Wilmington Blvd

Wilmington, Ca 90744