Paintings and Stories by J. Michael Walker ♦ February 29 — September 7
"Walker sees angels everywhere, the divine in the ordinary, saints in survivors. And that, in our era of fear and rage, is miracle enough for me."
—Sandra Cisneros, author of The House on Mango Street and Caramelo
"Art and history coming together at the streetscape level; inventive, erudite, thoughtful."
—William Deverell, professor of history at the University of Southern California and director of the Huntington–USC Institute on California and the West
All the Saints of the City of the Angels: Seeking the Soul of L.A. on Its Streets
J. Michael Walker
Paperback with flaps, ISBN: 978-1-59714-075-1, $35.00
230 pages (9 x 12)
About the Book
Proud, defiant, thoughtful, and at times melancholy, the “saints” in this beautifully designed people’s history of L.A. reveal their own unique versions of transcendence and, in doing so, challenge traditional notions of what it means to be blessed. Playfully borrowing from various artistic genres—from illuminated manuscripts to comic strips—and encased in a sumptuous gold cover, All the Saints of the City of the Angels combines meticulous research with creative inspiration to depict in paint and ink Angelenos both historical and contemporary.
Since 2000, J. Michael Walker has been researching every Los Angeles street named for a saint. Delving into city records, hagiographies, old photographs, maps, advertisements, and history books, Walker has emerged with what he calls a “loopy valentine to the City of the Angels.” On San Julian Street, in the heart of Skid Row, San Julian’s legend as the patron saint of wanderers comes to life as he talks to the homeless in the shelters. A hidden path off San Sebastian Drive leads Walker to contemplate the similarity between San Sebastian—who, after being pierced with arrows, was nursed back to health by an elderly woman—and the Tongva Indians—who, once declared “extinct” by the government, are now experiencing a cultural renaissance thanks to the efforts of generations of elders.
Populated by the portraits of both the famous and the forgotten, and filled with stories and secrets from every age, this beautifully offbeat volume peels back layers of western history to reveal the humanity underneath.
About the Artist / Author
Arkansas-born, J. Michael Walker came to Los Angeles by way of Mexico—a critical stopover that "explained" L.A. to him: its historical, thriving roots churning beneath the asphalt.
Years of creating thoughtful narrative artworks grounded in the culture of rural Mexico—centered mainly on her patron saint, the Virgin of Guadalupe, and other saints—prepared J. Michael for an examination of the "patron saints" of the streets of Los Angeles.
Availing himself of local archives; amassing a library of rare nineteenth- and early twentieth-century books, photographs, and ephemera about Southern California and the hagiography of saints; and walking each of the 103 saint-streets in the city of Los Angeles and “seeking the spirit of the saint” on its namesake street, J. Michael dedicated seven years to what he calls his "loopy valentine to the City of the Angels."
An exhibiting artist since 1984, J. Michael Walker has participated in more than 100 exhibitions and has received a dozen grants, fellowships, and residencies. He has also enjoyed solo shows at the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, Harvard; el Museo Nacional de Culturas Populares, Mexico City; the National Museum of Catholic Art and History, East Harlem, New York City; and the Arkansas Arts Center; among others.
J. Michael, his saintly wife Mimí, and their amazing son Jacobo reside in a small but rambling house near Downtown Los Angeles, surrounded by fruit trees, gigantic koi, the occasional coyote and raccoon, and a never-ending chorus of Southern California songbirds.