I’ve been photographing inner city murals for four decades, and in Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and Detroit, Obama is the only U.S. president — aside from, occasionally, JFK — who is in serious rotation in the wall-painters’ pantheon. Obama is often portrayed with symbols of American power — the flag, an eagle — or in a lineup of African American greats from neighborhood VIPs to Martin Luther King Jr. and the first lady. In a South L.A. mural by Chuy Vasquez, a beaming Obama replaced a flag-draped MLK in 2013. “Obama es para todos.” Something for everyone — one muralist’s version of the Obama legacy. Tires, 9154 Livernois Ave., Detroit, 2014 (above) and 2015 (right)Fair Party Liquor Store, 6541 Gratiot Ave., Detroit, 2013Cheers Soul Food, 7414 S. Main Street, LA, 2010Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook

Source: Los Angeles Times January 15, 2017 13:00 UTC