Live Art For Johnnie Walker at LA Music Festival

I collaborated on some live art with Johnnie Walker for the Head in the Clouds Music Festival in Los Angeles, CA in 2023. This was an Asian music festival organized by 88 Rising held at the Rose Bowl in my hometown of Pasadena, CA. It was a pleasure to get to paint at a festival literally 5 minutes away from my home! I was in touch with the folks at 88 Rising a while back and they reached out for this opportunity that was in my backyard so I couldn’t resist. It’s also amazing to be considered a “local artist” for once after 5+ years touring on the road.

I worked with my friend Ray (another local artist) to do some of the final touches in brush during the festival. I did most of the background and lettering outline in spray paint prior to the doors opening. This way, we would avoid fumes and overspray during the event. The mural was a huge hit for festival goers as they started to line up to get their photos taken.

As an Asian American artist, it’s inspiring to see the Asian art community coming together to perform and enjoy this festival. There’s quite a large demographic of Asian Americans in the San Gabriel Valley and they definitely showed up. I couldn’t get over the fact that they host this large event in my own neighborhood. They also do another festival in NYC (where I grew up.) Within the lettering, we incorporated elements of the LA skyline as well as Pasadena-centric imagery (including the Colorado Bridge, City Hall and the Rose Bowl.)

We loved partnering with Johnnie Walker, their agency Proof and 88 Rising to create this interactive live artwork for the Head in the Clouds music and arts festival. We look forward to partnering with them more in the future! Until then, check out some of the photos we got at the event of everyone enjoying the artwork.