In Dialogue
L.W.D. sees himself as an observer of modern society—a world that has, in many ways, passed him by over the last three decades. L.W.D.’s work is rooted in the assertion of his personal identity within the fractured American society. His art reflects the painful shift from childhood to adulthood, a transformation that feels almost brutal, marked by the loss of innocence in the face of America’s historical realities. His perspective of the American way of life, capturing both the disappointments and fleeting joys, recalls the social commentary of Philip Guston—particularly in the simplicity of his cityscapes, yet with a distinctive handwriting, palette, and choice of subjects. L.W.D.’s visual language fuses the emotional character originating from blues lyrics and the iconic symbolism of Roy Lichtenstein’s pop art. Working within the tradition of the naive picturesque narrative, L.W.D. incorporates the humor of a comic book while maintaining his focus on the historical and the social.
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You were born and raised in Los Angeles. While your work is far from what one imagines when thinking about “LA style”, some of the central topics in your work are rooted in the LA culture. How, in your view, is your relationship with this city reflected in your work?
I once read a quote on the internet, supposedly from Picasso: “It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.” I think this quote sums up how my lack of formal art education allowed me to bypass the constraints that classical training might impose, as well as the doubts that can creep in as an adult artist. With my painting style, I want to create from the perspective of a child, something that speaks to a kid as much as to someone my age. I’m getting older, after all. My work is influenced by music—jazz, rock ‘n’ roll, rap—but also by the stories the city delivers to your front door every morning. At some point, don’t you just become part of the city?
We met at your solo show at Sade gallery in LA. One of the central motifs in it were the cars. You mentioned that you have a special thing with cars, could you tell us more about it?
Los Angeles, where I grew up, is, by definition, the city of cars. Car culture is dominant, largely shaped by the major players in the industry who, since the 1930s, imposed it on the population by dismantling the city’s once-large and efficient tram system. When you spend as much time in isolation as I have, you begin to read a lot and see things differently. You come to view history as a spectator. You don’t have much beyond the freedom of thought, and I believe artists have a clear understanding of their position and role in society.
American society is clearly divided today, probably as much as it was during the Civil War—divide and conquer. The art world, in many ways, mirrors society. This realization led me to understand that through my painting, I want to describe my life and my analysis of history, without pointing to any one race, class, or group. For me, cars are the perfect symbol to represent humans and human emotions in my work.
Oh interesting, I love the metaphor of cars as people, which serves as an equalizer, while focusing on individuality rather than on constructed identity. Talking about individuality, perhaps you can share something from your personal relationship with cars beyond the cultural/historical one?
When I was a child, the world was a completely different place. Children back then did things that would be unthinkable now, and so did their parents. When I was twelve, my father gave me the keys to a Volkswagen Beetle. I drove it around the neighborhood, and the kids would chase it, like in a scene from a Charles Burnett movie. Since then, the automobile has been a part of me.
You are a self-taught artist and your career as an artist is relatively new. Could you tell us a bit how and when you arrived into making art and how has your work evolved since?
I used to see art as a spectator. I had the preconceived notion that if you didn’t study art or weren’t professionally trained, you couldn’t create something that would engage an audience. When I was released from the penitentiary, job opportunities weren’t exactly knocking at my door, and the world didn’t wait for me to change. I took all sorts of jobs: security for jazz clubs, distributing food to the homeless, art handling, working for artists, and with museums like the Palm Springs Museum, run by Adam Lerner. These jobs gave me the chance to build confidence, observe, and learn—how to paint, make sculptures, create videos. My work evolved, I suppose, like anyone’s, through the things you hear, read, the people you meet, the stories you learn, and, of course, through personal experience while staying true to myself.
It is impressive that just in the few years since you were released, having no previous ties to the artworld – you’ve already managed to establish an artistic reputation, land several solo shows, and get on the radar of curators and gallerists. How did you manage that?
Things are going all right. I think it’s a mixture of analysis, work and luck, and encounters. It is also important to understand that I do not have the same relationship with art or a potential artistic career at almost 68 years old as a younger artist. This trait of my personality and my life experience is perhaps what pushed gallery owners to exhibit my work. Perhaps the metaphor of cars speaks to people, and they find themselves in my paintings or in the emotions they can transmit. But beyond my work, life is made up of opportunity, luck, encounters—good and bad—which accompany you along the road.
Your work is multidisciplinary: you work in painting, sculpture, and installation. How do you switch modes and how do you decide each time, what medium is the work going to be?
The limitations of materials, versus the drive to create, push me to observe things around me—things I can use that will benefit the story I’m trying to tell. It makes sense in the moment of creation, but also because we are human, and we react with instincts. Sometimes, you can’t explain why a color moves you, or why you fall in love with someone instantly.
You just wrapped up another solo show featuring small works at the Nationale in Portland, OR. Can you share a bit about the main topics and the curatorial choices?
The show presented at the Nationale Gallery is called “North Country.” May Barruel, who owns this wonderful gallery and space for artists, came to my studio with the co-curator Gabriel Garza last June while I was preparing my solo show with Karen Galloway & Greg Ito at Sow & Tailor. I had been in conversation with May for a few months before that about the show. The title of the show refers to a family road trip from my childhood, heading up north to see relatives, but also to Bob Dylan’s lyrics. Dylan became incredibly popular among the Black community after the 1963 Civil Rights Movement. I thought the show should translate those memories. I gave May and Gabriel carte blanche to select the works that resonated with them. The concept of the show is that each painting is like a postcard you pick up along the road and send everywhere. Now, all those postcards are in one place: the Nationale Gallery in Portland, Oregon. Collectors will take them home, and the story will continue.
Are there any specific Bob Dylan lyrics that you had in mind?
“Advertising signs that con
You into thinking you’re the one
That can do what’s never been done
That can win what’s never been won
Meantime, life outside goes on All around you”
From Its Alright Ma’ by Bob Dylan on Bring it All back Home. I think the lyrics speak for themselves.
Are there local artists currently working in LA that inspire you at the moment?
Los Angeles is a fantastic hub for all kinds of artists—painters, musicians, you name it. Tim Presley just closed a great show of portraits at the Sade Gallery, run by Brian Lee Hughes. He’s also a great musician, which makes sense. I really enjoyed Danny Fox’s show, which Henry Taylor put on at his Chinatown gallery. Henry offers an incredible platform to emerging artists based on his instincts, and I admire someone who does that for the community. Los Angeles itself is an infinite well of inspiration, and it will continue to guide me along my journey.
About the artist: L.W.D. L.W.D. (Born 1957, Compton, CA) is a multidisciplinary artist who sees himself as an observer of modern society in a world that has, in many ways, passed him by over the last three decades, most of which he spent in detention. L.W.D began painting in detention and in the years following his release has been dedicated to his art practice. L.W.D. recently presented his multidisciplinary works in his solo show “Traffic” at Sow & Tailor (Los Angeles), followed by “For All Those Years” at Sade Gallery (Los Angeles), and “North Country” at the Nationale (Portland, OR). His work has garnered attention from a number of prestigious curators and institutions, and has earned the support of internationally recognized artists. This month L.W.D. was awarded the Right to Return Fellowship from the Center for Art and Advocacy and he will be showing his most recent body of work at Outsider Art Fair, NYC with Ruffled Grouse Gallery.
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About the writer: Vita Eruhimovitz is Los Angeles-based artist, and occasional curator and art writer. Vita was born in Ukraine and grew up in Israel. Through her work, she navigates the tri-lingual mind and non-conceptual states of being. Vita’s background in science and technology inspire and inform her interest in the intersection of biological life and consciousness. Vita holds a BFA from Shenkar College and an MFA from Washington University in Saint Louis. Her work has been shown nationally and internationally, including at the Mildred Lane Kemper Museum, the Contemporary Art Museum in Saint Louis, Museum of Design Holon in Israel, Brattleboro Museum in Vermont, and at the San Diego Art Institute Museum. Her work is in private and public collections in the US and abroad.