MTA Chief Orders Mural Uncovered
The curtain has fallen on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s latest controversy.
Hours after the MTA found itself besieged with calls over its covering of a mural featuring photos of a man’s exposed derriere, the agency’s interim chief executive officer, Joseph E. Drew, Friday ordered that the curtain be removed.
“We’re trying to be an agency of common sense,” said MTA spokeswoman Andrea Greene.
She said Drew acted before he saw a letter from the ACLU Foundation of Southern California condemning the covering of the mural as censorship and an “unconstitutional abridgment of free speech under the 1st Amendment.”
After The Times reported on the controversy Friday, visitors streamed to the MTA’s new Union Station headquarters, lifting the plastic sheet to take a peek at the mural. The agency received inquiries from several national TV outlets, including PBS, NBC and CBS, several art magazines and National Public Radio. More than 300 employees signed a petition supporting the artwork.
The mural was covered up after a handful of employees complained about a series of 19th century photographs taken by pioneer photographer Eadweard Muybridge featuring a naked man running.
When the covering was removed, dozens of employees broke into applause.
“Great. That’s wonderful,” artist Patrick Nagatani said when told about the liberation of his artwork.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
