Posted: April 24th, 2008

The Central Avenue Jazz Park across the street from the Dunbar Hotel in South Los Angeles, and a tile mural created by community youths in the Park, commemorate the Golden Age of Jazz in Los Angeles. The Park and tile mural are a best practice example of a cultural, historical, or artistic resource that celebrates democracy and diversity.

The Dunbar Hotel is official Cultural and Historical Monument 131. The Dunbar, completed in 1928, stood at the center of African-American social, musical, and artistic life from the 1920s to the 1960s. From the 1940s to 1960, jazz blossomed on Central Avenue, the center of African American business and entertainment in Los Angeles. There were over a dozen jazz clubs along Central Avenue. Established jazz musicians arrived from New York and Chicago to play or cut records in Hollywood. For decades when Los Angeles was racially segregated, black jazz musicians commonly stayed at the Dunbar Hotel, next door to the Club Alabam, even when theyplayed at white venues throughout town.

The HeArt Project linking teens, artists, and the community created the tile mural jazz tribute in the Central Avenue Jazz Park across the street from the Dunbar Hotel.

This best practice example is noteworthy in several respects. Even though the Hotel is an official monument, there is little at the site that explains the significance of the Dunbar in the life and times of Los Angeles. Many official monuments have nothing more than a bronze plaque stating that the site is a monument, without explaining the significance of the site. Many monuments do not have even a plaque.

In contrast, the tile mural in Jazz Park tells a story about diverse Los Angeles faithfully and accurately.

Every monument should include interpretive elements to educate this and future generations. The Cultural and Heritage Commission should publish a web site with images and the story of each monument. For example, the book Landmark L.A. published by the City of Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department in 2002 describes the 700 official monuments that had been recognized as of the year 2000. There is no systematic telling of the stories of the 199 landmarks that have been since then. Interpretive elements at each site, and a web site dedicated to all the official monuments, should be at least as educational as Landmark L.A.

Learn more about Monuments, Diversity, and Democracy.

Visit the Heritage Parkscape online and on flickr.