Project Description
Kulture Keepers is a paper-based animation and love letter to Los Angeles. The artwork emphasizes the diverse cultural contributions of Los Angeles communities and their manual labor. Through the use of labor-intensive traditional techniques, the artwork pays homage to the working hand and historical traditions of craft. Highlighting the diverse neighborhoods of Los Angeles, Kulture Keepers features cultural landmarks and organizations that preserve and promote tradition and culture, while also celebrating local pride including lowriders, music, dance, and mask parades.
About the Artist
STEPHANIE MERCADO (Los Angeles, California) Stephanie Mercado is an interdisciplinary artist, arts administrator and teaching artist from the Boyle Heights neighborhood of Los Angeles. Focused on the workforce, manual labor, and empowerment, her work pays homage to the dignity and contributions of others. Mercado uses traditional printmaking techniques to highlight the intimate link between laborers and their craft, emphasizing the transformative power of work. Mercado received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from California State University Long Beach. She has exhibited internationally, including exhibitions in Norway and Cuba. Her work is included in the permanent collections of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Tamarind Institute of Lithography, New Mexico, and the Mexic-Arte Museum in Austin, Texas.
About Love, Leimert
Love, Leimert is a digital media love letter to Leimert Park, now presenting at the K Line Leimert Park Station. Connecting Metro riders to the past and present, Love, Leimert, honors the people who call Leimert Park home and those dedicated to preserving its legacy.