Eight Walls, One Afternoon

Murals are the one kind of art in this city you do not need a ticket, a gallery or an opening for. You need a full tank, a free afternoon and somebody to read the map. Here are eight walls in one drive, north to south, finishing at the water at sunset.

Park and get out. Murals are painted to be seen from across the street and then up close, and they look different at each distance. Find the artist's mark, usually low in a corner. Look for the faces: muralists often paint the people who helped. And stay on the sidewalk. These walls are on businesses, schools and people's homes.

“You do not need a ticket for this kind of art. You need a full tank and somebody to read the map.”

Sol Arceneaux paints with crews of teenagers and has three walls on this route. If you see her working, the crew is usually happy to explain the grid.

Paloma Quintero paints at the scale of buildings and keeps the detail of a portrait. Grandmother's Garden is two storeys of hands.

Dara Chhim grew up in Long Beach's Cambodian community, a few blocks from Morning Tide. It is the newest wall on the drive.

Every wall on this list is in the Murals room, with a map pin. If you know one that should be there, add it. If you want to paint one, read how a wall actually gets painted and who pays for it.

A note on this guide: the murals and muralists are demo listings created for the Knect preview, and the photographs were generated with Higgsfield AI. The streets and neighbourhoods are real; the Watts Towers are too.