Prominent activist and painter Judy Baca, renowned for her extensive mural “The Great Wall of Los Angeles” (1983), is facing accusations of diverting funds from a grant intended for her nonprofit to her own art business. Baca has firmly denied these claims.
As reported by the Los Angeles Times, ten former employees of Baca’s Social and Public Art Resource Center (SPARC) allege that she improperly utilized a $5 million grant from the Mellon Foundation, awarded in 2021. This grant was designated for enhancing “The Great Wall” mural. A segment of this mural was exhibited at Jeffrey Deitch gallery in Los Angeles last Saturday, February 20. The employees, whose wages were partially funded by the grant, claimed Baca assigned them personal tasks unrelated to the mural work.
The report mentioned that Baca’s salary increased from approximately $50,000 to a range of $211,000 to $236,000 following the grant award, aiming to align with her prior earnings at UCLA, where she taught for over 20 years. Both Baca and SPARC Board Chair Zojeila Flores have strongly rejected all accusations of financial mismanagement. Baca attributed the claims to dissatisfied former staff and expressed hope for completing the mural by 2028 without further conflict.
Baca initiated the mural in 1974 to celebrate California’s diverse cultural history along the Tujunga Wash flood control channel in the San Fernando Valley. The project, which involved over 400 local youths and their families, led to the founding of SPARC in 1976. The copyright of the mural was held jointly with SPARC until a 2011 restoration, after which Baca retained the rights.
The 2021 SPARC press release stated that the grant was for preserving and expanding a key monument to interracial harmony through civic engagement and muralist training, also aiming to develop digital resources for future artists. However, former employees claimed they were tasked with unrelated duties. Pete Galindo alleged he was asked to manage Baca’s personal art sales and resolve a termite issue in her archives while leading the mural project. He was reportedly dismissed in 2022 for raising concerns about the financial practices. Carmen Garcia, who briefly took on the role of director until 2023, also resigned after accusing Baca of fund misallocation. Despite allegations, Flores noted that Baca donated over half a million dollars from a separate sale of mural archives to SPARC.
