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When Gustavo Zermeño Jr. heard about the death of legendary Dodgers pitcher Fernando Valenzuela in October, the Los Angeles artist knew what he needed to do. Paint.
Zermeño had a Dodgers wall in the Mid-City neighborhood, and adding Valenzuela’s image between those of fellow icons Vin Scully and Tommy Lasorda was a welcome distraction from the sad news. “My way of coping is painting, whether it’s a personal loss or something going on in the family or in a relationship or something.” Zermeño said.
“I don’t want to sound cheesy, but it is my way [of] escaping and just really kind of not thinking and just letting go and working. It’s really just my stress reliever, my meditation, all that stuff kind of combined together when I paint.” Fellow L.
A. artist Robert Vargas had already started on his massive Fernandomania mural in Boyle Heights when Valenzuela died at age 63 on Oct. 22.
Like Zermeño, Vargas was glad to have been working on something meaningful to help himself and others deal with the loss of such a beloved figure. “As devastating as his death was, it only sharpened my focus to continue doing the work, which I think in its production also supported the [Valenzuela] family in seeing it through,” Vargas said. “I had my own dialogue with him as I painted him and I think it was a safe space for everybody to be able to partake in.
” The number of local murals featuring Valenzuela has increased significantly in recent months, although there are some that have been around much longer. Here’s a guide to help find murals of the Mexican left-hander, along with some background on each one..
