SILVER LAKE WANTS ITS OWN ART TUNNEL

Silver Lake art enthusiasts want their own version of the Cypress Village pedestrian tunnel-turned-outdoor-gallery, as I wrote for the Los Feliz Ledger. The article is short and I was limited to one photo. Unfortunate, as the photos tell the story of how the Sunset tunnel in Silver Lake now sits, and what Yancey Quiñones created in Cypress Park.

Another untold element of the story is why people believe that it will be closed permanently. I first heard it from Councilmember Mitch O'Farrell's deputy in a Silver Lake Neighborhood Council meeting. But on follow up with that office, O'Farrell's press rep Tony Arranaga told me he didn't know where that came from. A rep for public works also said no projects were in queue.


The view into the tunnel on the south side of Sunset Boulevard at Golden Gate Avenue, across the street from Micheltorena Elementary School. Photo courtesy: Matthew Mooney

The view into the tunnel on the north side of Sunset Boulevard just outside the perimeter of the Micheltorena Elementary School campus. The proximity of the tunnel - a haven for transients and drug users according to the LAPD - to elementary school-aged kids was one of the reasons for the movement to close it. Photo courtesy: Matthew Mooney




The tunnel is visible through the window on the Loreto Street side of the coffeeshop. 
The tunnel sits, clean, pained, and locked, apart from designated hours for tours.

Simple vertical planks with nails are used to hang the artwork. 



Quiñones pays out of his own pocket, with no city or artist reimbursement, to light the tunnel. He bought a generator for it, to power light bulbs installed for each tour. 






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