Buffing in Reverse - Action Shots

Action shots of the buff being removed from the wall on Fairfax earlier today.

Great action shots of the buffman in action, but this time he is not spraying paint on the wall, but removing it with an applied solvent and a pressure washer.

Also notice another pic of the toxic sludge as it pools up and then gets washed down the drain.

And, via LA TACO who have been right on top of this story, they just issued an update and a great synopsis saying that

Dennis Romero of the LA Weekly has the following statement from GM Jeff Woods:

It was a mistake. We did not do it maliciously. It turned out to be misinformation. There was no intent whatsoever to destroy a mural. We were informed by people in the neighborhood that it was an illegal mural and was to come down. As soon as we were informed on site that it was there with permission we ceased removal.

It’s unfortunate that a priceless artwork could be damaged because of “people in the neighborhood”. There should be much more oversight, but there isn’t because despite recent advances (such as the upcoming MOCA show), ‘graffiti’ is still not an approved art form and it’s vulnerable to this kind of action. We’re also trying to figure out why someone would spend money on paint and labor to just buff any old mural– does the city pay after the fact? If so, who decides what gets buffed? They just ask around the neighborhood and go on people’s word? The whole thing doesn’t make much sense and there are still a lot of questions to be answered.




***Big thanks to Hershy for sending us these pics. Stay up!***