Los Angeles-based artist Mario Ayala creates hyperrealistic paintings that mimic cars, food trucks, towing signs and bumper stickers, to irreverently pair non-artistic formats with highly skilled painterly technique. His work draws inspiration from traditions deeply rooted in Californian visual culture, such as muralism, tattooing, and industrial techniques used in automobile painting and commercial signage. For this public art project, he enlarged a painting of a bumper sticker featuring a portrait of the deceased Puerto Rican astrologer and TV sensation Walter Mercado. Depicted in a radiant aura from a realm beyond, Mercado evokes a sense of calm amidst chaotic traffic – a nod to Miami’s vehicular congestion and unruly drivers.
