An abandoned, heavily graffitied luxury property in Los Angeles has given rise to social media parodies and sparked discussion about the relative merits of artistic expression and vandalism. Currently referred to as LA’s graffiti tower, the complex is rapidly causing problems for the city.
The origins of ‘LA’s newest landmark’
Oceanwide Plaza was left by its original owners to rot in Los Angeles for years before it came to the notice of the world. According to Business Insider, the complex, which was to include a hotel and opulent residences, was estimated to take China Oceanwide Holdings, the Hong Kong real estate developer behind the project, about $1 billion to complete. But, the business had to halt the project in 2019 due to financial difficulties, leaving the incomplete towers unfinished until this point. The Los Angeles Lakers’ home court, the Crypto.com Arena, and the site of the 2024 Grammy Awards are both close to the structures.
The towers have drawn a big number of graffiti artists who are spray-painting large areas of the 53-story buildings and BASE jumpers who have recorded themselves parachute out of the complex since the business abandoned the project. When the Grammy Awards were staged across the street in January, the spray-painted tags went viral and attracted even more thrill-seekers and taggers. LA Mayor Karen Bass reportedly told a local TV station, “I guarantee you tragedy will take place there if that place is not boarded up quickly,” according to the Financial Times. “The owner should reimburse the city for every dime.”
The structure was “visible for miles in every direction,” according to The Hollywood Reporter, and the graffiti community in Los Angeles is “ecstatic” about what they’ve accomplished. According to Street Graff, the graffiti cameraman who captured the operation, “We went in as Knights of Night—all dark-black clothing, heavy backpacks full of spray cans.” Street Graff told Hollywood Reporter. As a “representation of our beautiful graff community,” the towers are presently standing.”LA’s newest landmark was born,” the source declared, regardless of how the locals felt about it. The impromptu artwork has drawn praise from some, but it has also drawn criticism for being “vandalism,” “crime run amok,” and “a massive eyesore.”
