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Artists Transform Alley in Downtown Phoenix Into a Giant Canvas

By Lynn Trimble

Monday, January 16, 2017 at 10:50 a.m.

Lynn Trimble Artists Roman P. Reyes, Elizabeth Toledo, Carlos Rivas, and José Andrés Carón. 1/34

Lynn Trimble Mural located in an alley behind the Arizona Latino Arts and Cultural Center. 2/34

Lynn Trimble Detail of new mural behind Arizona Latino Arts and Cultural Center. 3/34

Lynn Trimble Artist Elizabeth Toledo with a portion of the mural she painted. 4/34

Lynn Trimble Entrance to the Arizona Latino Arts and Cultural Center. 5/34

Lynn Trimble The new ALAC mural includes images of artists, musicians, and activists. 6/34

Lynn Trimble Artist Roman P. Reyes stands in front of one of the mural sections he painted. 7/34

Lynn Trimble Mural art for Monarch Theatre shares the same downtown Phoenix alley. 8/34

Lynn Trimble One of many people who stopped by Saturday night to check out the mural. 9/34

Lynn Trimble Pausing to take a photo with work by Carlos Rivas (a.k.a. Servous Nystem) in the ALAC alleyway. 10/34

Lynn Trimble More time for photos behind the mural behind Arizona Latino Arts and Cultural Center. 11/34

Lynn Trimble The mural includes more than one car image. 12/34

Lynn Trimble Saturday's mural event included live music. 13/34

Lynn Trimble Part of the Arizona Latino Arts and Cultural Center alleyway mural. 14/34

Lynn Trimble Another musician helps celebrate another mural in downtown Phoenix. 15/34

Lynn Trimble Detail for a section of mural that's focused on nature. 16/34

Lynn Trimble For some, walking the dog turned into an art adventure. 17/34

Lynn Trimble The eastern part of the mural includes plants, animals, and birds. 18/34

Lynn Trimble Edgar Fernandez created several images for this recently completed mural in Roosevelt Row. 19/34

Lynn Trimble Several people wanted to pose with Carlos Rivas' work. 20/34

Lynn Trimble A steady stream of visitors showed up to see the mural. 21/34

Lynn Trimble A central part of the mural focuses on creative individuals. 22/34

Lynn Trimble The mural alleyway also has several containers painted by street artists. 23/34

Lynn Trimble Sometimes the mural incorporates local landscapes. 24/34

Lynn Trimble Another section of the mural that makes a great background for photographs of friends and family. 25/34

Lynn Trimble One mural section includes this homage to Carlos Santana. 26/34

Lynn Trimble The mural also honors Latinos who have served in the military. 27/34

Lynn Trimble Checking out some drawings of mural design elements. 28/34

Lynn Trimble Some of the mural detail painted by Edgar Fernandez. 29/34

Lynn Trimble The mural incorporates several distinct styles. 30/34

Lynn Trimble Artist José Andrés Girón stands with one of many mural scenes he painted. 31/34

Lynn Trimble Part of the mural that Edgar Fernandez painted. 32/34

Lynn Trimble Edgar Fernandez was one of several artists to attend the mural reveal event. 33/34

Lynn Trimble Here's a glimpse at the names of people who made the mural possible. 34/34

Artists Transform Alley in Downtown Phoenix Into a Giant Canvas

The faces of Frida Kahlo and Carlos Santana now grace an alleyway in downtown Phoenix, thanks to a mural created through a partnership between Arizona Latino Arts and Cultural Center and Downtown Phoenix, Inc. They're part of a mural that's been more than a year in the making — which features work by several local artists, including José Andrés Girón, Roman P. Reyes, Carlos Rivas, and Elizabeth Toledo, to name a few. On Saturday, January 14, artists and community members gathered to celebrate the mural's completion with music, art, food, and drink. Here's a look at the mural and Saturday's festivities. All photos by Lynn Trimble.

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