Friday, December 16, 2011

The Pope of Broadway

The Pope of Broadway, a mural by Eloy Torrez/Photo: (C)2011 Glenn Primm Photography

The Victor Clothing Building in downtown Los Angeles features several outstanding murals on both its north and south walls. This mural of actor and East Los Angeles native Anthony Quinn (born Quinones) was painted by noted muralist Eloy Torrez in 1984. It depicts Quinn in one of his most famous rolls, that of Zorba in the motion picture Zorba the the Greek, from the book of the same name by Nikos Kazantzakis.

The title of the mural, the Pope of Broadway, is a reference to Mr Quinn's stature as a successful native son of Los Angeles, as well as a reference to the physical space in which the mural is viewed. Apparently Torrez felt that the adjacent buildings define the mural's viewing space as an urban sacred grotto, and he depicts Quinn as a figure of almost religious adoration by his fellow East Los Angelenos.

Exposure data: Nikon D70s / Nikon 20mm f2.8D AF, 1/250 sec @ f8