ELMAC

‘Monument of Love: Mother and Child’, 2024 . This is my largest mural in Los Angeles, painted with @keepdrafting + @aiseborn of the United to Inspire collective, commissioned by @DestinationCrenshaw . The three of us are fathers which has reinforced our appreciation for the importance of parenthood, and the deep bond between a mother and child. My own dearly missed mother was always a source of strength and protection for me, and she instilled in me a love of art and beauty, as well as a strong sense of the value of artistic creation—to see making art as potentially a form of celebration, prayer, and service. I can’t convey in words the gratitude and love I carry for my mother, and the respect I have for caring mothers everywhere, and so the best way I know to show that love is with my art. This was an epic opportunity to express these feelings + share this devotional image of love and beauty with others. This mural also drew inspiration from + pays respects to the great Charles White(1918-1979). Some of White’s depictions of mothers with children served as the basis for the composition of the mural, including his 1953 drawing titled ‘Mother and Child’. I’ve been inspired by White’s work + feel kinship with his artistic vision and philosophy: “I am concerned about my fellow man. I am concerned with the survival of man. I am concerned with the progress that man has made in relation to his fellow man, in relation to nature, in trying to find a more beautiful way of life....I am trying to fulfill my responsibility to myself and to express my gratitude for the privilege that I’ve had of living...” I envisioned this mural to be an expression of gratitude conveying strength, pride + resilience, and as a monument to mothers, caregivers, children, and above all to love 🌹 . . Many heartfelt thanks to everyone with Destination Crenshaw for making this possible.. Special thanks to @kimberz_ ❤️ @joysimmonsdivadoc @ronfinleyhq @mhdcd8 Thanks to @photahoe + the exceptional models for this mural, Shontel + Lliam! Thanks to the folks at the Good Shepherd Manor + everyone who supported + showed love 🌹 . . #monumentoflove #elmac #kofie #aise #charleswhite #destinationcrenshaw

Anthony Hopkins + Leonard in Montreal ❤️

Tantour — طَنْطُور The work of @mac_arte (USA) is rooted in large-scale mural painting and portraiture. His style is highly detailed and realistic, often focusing on human faces that feel both intimate and monumental at the same time. His work explores identity, dignity, migration, and cultural memory. His portraits tend to feel quiet but powerful, using soft shading and strong composition to elevate everyday people into iconic presence within public space. The tantour is an important piece of traditional Lebanese fashion, once worn as a clear statement of belonging, status, and identity. Rising elegantly above the head, it transformed ceremonial dress into a visible language of heritage and social presence. In Lebanese tradition, it was not only adornment but recognition, an emblem that placed the wearer within a cultural lineage, where fashion carried meaning, pride, and a sense of collective identity. Thank you 🙏🏽🤍.

How does a mural feel soft when it’s painted with spray paint? ⁠ ⁠ El Mac’s portraits are defined by a level of softness that feels almost airbrushed, yet they are built entirely with spray paint.⁠ ⁠ By using ice to subtly diffuse edges and control transitions, he slows down the behavior of the paint, allowing gradients to emerge with precision. The result is a surface that feels atmospheric rather than flat, where realism is constructed through restraint rather than detail. Credits: @nikakramer

Another brother-in-art taken too soon. Drew this memorial image of my crewmate Angel ‘MES’ Diaz, who left us one year ago. He was a loyal friend, a fighter with a heart of gold, and he was a talented artist filled with fire❤️‍🔥 Que en Paz Descanse Angel ‘MES’ Diaz 🔥 ❤️ 12 June 1979 - 30 April 2025 … ✞ ❤️‍🔥🆖🚂🌳💨 #AngelMESDiaz #AngelDiazArt #MESweed #NittyGrittycrew #NeverGone #NearGod #NuestraGente #NGcrew #UTIcrew #theSeventhLetter #UnderTheInfluence #ResistTheDevil #5317 #MESNG

Remembering one of my best friends, who left this world four years ago. Drew this memorial piece for him right after he passed but hadn’t shared it on here yet. He is greatly missed. Pablo ‘KAPER’ Luna 🔥 ❤️ 11.25.1969-4.19.2022 … /the-legacy-of-phoenix-graffiti-pioneer-pablo-luna ✞ ❤️‍🔥🆖🚂🌵 #PabloLuna #KAPER #NittyGrittycrew #NeverGone #NearGod #NuestraGente #NGcrew #UTIcrew #Boxstars #5317 #RebelsTilDeath #Ristraz #Kaperforever #KaperNG #KaperBoxstars #pushittotheside #leprechauno #salchivonpapi

Une nouvelle fresque en cours au @boulevardparis13 ! Pour la première fois à Paris, @mac_arte , figure pionnière du mouvement, signe une œuvre à la fois puissante et vibrante, venant enrichir notre musée à ciel ouvert. Venez découvrir cette fresque place Jeanne d’Arc, dans le 13ᵉ arrondissement ! En partenariat avec @mairie13paris , @rivp_ , @montanacans - A new mural is underway @boulevardparis13 ! For the first time in Paris, @mac_arte — a pioneering figure of the movement — is creating a powerful and vibrant mural, further enriching our open-air museum. Come discover this new mural at Place Jeanne d’Arc in the 13th arrondissement! In partnership with the 13th arrondissement City Hall, RIVP, and Montana Cans.

“Ex Astris, Ad Astra” (From the stars, to the stars), 2023 I painted this in October of 2023 in the small town of Salina, Kansas, on the back of the historic Stiefel theater. I incorporated some of the early 1930s art deco bas-relief designs from the front of the theater into the background surrounding (yet another!) portrait of my son. The week I painted this my mom would’ve turned 70—her first birthday since she’d passed, and I thought of her a lot as I painted. Whenever I make art I’m carrying forward a gift I got from her, a passion we both shared for art and beauty, and seeing enchantment in the world. A gift of really, actively looking at the world in way that that’s engaged, and can even become something spiritual. Spraying this wall with aerosol enamel until sunrise, alone in my lift basket, I felt both grief + gratitude, and was filled with hope that my son will also continue carrying this gift of sight, and that he’ll be able to see a beautiful, better world.. 🌹 . . Many thanks to all the folks @salinakanvasproject + Vortex who helped make this happen, Travis, Eric, Kyle, and the rest of the team. Thanks to @joeiurato for the inclusion.. Thanks to the legendary, one and only @marthacoopergram for her documentation + @tcksphoto as well, and thanks to everyone else who helped or showed love! . . “Clearly this music doesn’t sound too much like what’s going on today—war, riots, the stock market getting busted up. And the reason it doesn’t, I realized, is that I’m optimistic. I believe in hope and peace and love. It’s not that I’m blind to what’s going on, but I feel this music is a forward look into what could be a bright future. The philosophy represented in this number, and to a large extent in the album as a whole, is child-like. But not childish. By that I mean there are certain elements of childhood we lose and wish we could have back—purity, spontaneity. When they do return to us, we’re at our best. So what I’m telling the world is: ‘Speak like a child. Think and feel in terms of hope and the possibilities of making ourselves less impure.’ “ -Herbie Hancock, 1968 (Liner notes for “Speak Like a Child”)

To help spread love around Los Angeles County, we collaborated with El Mac to share one of his beautiful designs for our Attune Valentine’s Day card series. Born and based in Los Angeles. El Mac (Miles MacGregor) is best known for his meticulous paintings and large-scale murals exploring feminine beauty and honoring ordinary, overlooked, or marginalized people. For over twenty years he has aimed "to uplift and inspire through careful, perfectionist renderings of both the sublime and the humble". The first 200 guests at each location will have the opportunity to receive this limited edition card and others by our amazing local artists.

Short video showing the process of painting ‘Only You’ in Wuppertal, Germany last year. Grateful for the opportunity, support, + positive feedback 💙 Mural made possible by @wuppertal_tanzt Video by @collab.cologne . . ‘For nothing is fixed, forever and forever and forever, it is not fixed; the earth is always shifting, the light is always changing, the sea does not cease to grind down rock. Generations do not cease to be born, and we are responsible to them because we are the only witnesses they have. The sea rises, the light fails,
lovers cling to each other,
and children cling to us. The moment we cease to hold each other, the moment we break faith with one another, the sea engulfs us and the light goes out. -James Baldwin, (from Nothing Personal, 1964) 🩵

“Only You”, 2025 … I painted this mural in Wuppertal, Germany last summer. The image is based on a photo from legendary German dancer + choreographer Pina Bausch in the mid-1990s, when she was visiting the US Southwest to collaborate with universities in California, Arizona, and Texas to create her dance piece “Nur Du” (Only You). The piece was a kind of portrait of the American West, presumably taking its title from the classic Platters song from the 1950s. I love imagining the details behind this: a romantic embrace shared by two unknown dancers in the Southwest, as seen through the eyes of another dancer visiting from Germany… and then nearly thirty years later, her record of this brief moment of public intimacy being interpreted into a mural by a painter from the US Southwest on a wall in Pina’s German hometown… Foreign and familiar, particular and universal, a fleeting moment of connection rendered with spraypaint on a wall in a neighborhood largely populated by immigrants, shawarma spots and Halal markets at the end of the Schwebebahn suspended train line… There’s so much anxiety, fear, and violence in our world these days, these have been distressing times for many. It’s also been challenging trying to navigate parenthood and an art career through turbulence, uncertainty, and loss. Grateful for every blessing + opportunity to share my art, including being able to do this mural, and that my wife and son could share the experience with me💙 Many thanks to the kind and supportive folks we met in Germany, and an immense danke schön to Valentina for everything!!: @wuppertal_tanzt Additional thanks to everyone else who made it possible: @pinabauschfoundation @bundeskultur @helgelindh @kimberz_ @bandy_pants @alexoface

‘Treasure’, 2025 Acrylic and oil pastel on canvas .. A small quiet painting for a place where Ferraris compete for attention alongside old SUVs covered in Christmas lights💖🧡🌴 Tried to capture a certain feeling found in sun-bleached Miami with this. Also, in keeping with my ‘Wynwood Saints’ mural from 2019, I hoped this image might carry some spirit of the everyday working class folks from there. Even surrounded by so much extravagance + wealth, the most precious of all are still the people.. It was good collaborating with my old camarada @realretna after so long. Proud of the new work + excited to share it. Thankful as ever for the interest + support 🌹 ... “GGA Gallery is honored to present new collaborative works by @mac_arte and @realretna for ONLY HUMAN, bringing together two of Los Angeles’ most influential visual languages. Known for their distinct approaches - El Mac’s contemplative portraiture and RETNA’s architectonic script—the artists reunite more than a decade after their last landmark collaborations across Los Angeles and Miami. Their practices converge through gesture, precision, and a shared interest in how identity is shaped and expressed. Created exclusively for GGA Gallery, the works extend a longstanding dialogue between the artists. The result is a renewed, focused exchange rooted in the evolution of both practices.” Now on view @ggagalleryofficial