On Kobe Bryant Day, we honored the late basketball player and his daughter, Gianna, by revealing a mural on the West Coast Trial Lawyers headquarters building. Fans of the Bryant family are welcomed to visit the mural, which is located on 1147 South Hope Street in Downtown Los Angeles.
Our decision to commemorate Bryant and the legacy he left behind has been in the works for the past year. We wanted to make sure the mural captured specific aspects that relate to Bryant’s life. We worked together with Branded Arts to make this idea into a reality. With the help of two extremely talented artists, Odeith and Nikkolas Smith, the largest Kobe Bryant mural in Los Angeles history was created.
An Explanation of What Is on the Mural
Looking closely at the mural, you will find many detailed factors that describe Bryant. To the left, you will notice a black mamba. Bryant was often referred to as the “Black Mamba» due to his relentless hard work and effort he put into his career of being a professional basketball player. To the right is Gianna, who is seen wearing a jersey and holding a basketball. His daughter was greatly devoted to becoming a basketball player like her father and was planning to pursue a career in the WNBA. Behind Gianna are characters that reference Bryant’s book series, which is called “The Wizenard.”
Why We Chose to Have a Kobe Bryant Mural
Kobe Bryant delivered many motivational speeches to encourage people to never give up. On the day of his jersey retirement ceremony, he gave this powerful speech: “Those times when you get up early and work hard, those times that you stay up late and you work hard, those times when you don’t feel like working, you’re too tired, you don’t want to push yourself but you do it anyway, that is actually the dream. That’s the dream. It’s not the destination, it’s the journey. And if you guys can understand that, you won’t accomplish your dreams. Your dreams won’t come true. Something greater will.”
We greatly resonate with what Bryant had shared. His demeanor and what he represents is something that we admire, which is one of the many reasons why we chose to create a mural dedicated to the Lakers legend. Of course, the history he left behind for the city of Los Angeles is another reason we wanted to honor his greatness. Bryant helped unify the community with his accomplishments, especially when he brought home 5 NBA championships. His love for the city and the game of basketball was like no other, and for that we wanted to show our respect to him and the Bryant family by creating a mural that captured his essence.
Learn About the Team Behind the Mural
We wouldn’t have been able to make this mural possible without the help of Odeith, Nikkolas Smith, Branded Arts, Nate Stranzl, Granity Studios, Palinoia Productions, and South Park BID. Below, you can learn about each member of the team and what role they took on in our Kobe Bryant mural project.
Odeith
Sérgio Odeith is a world famous muralist from Lisbon, Portugal. Odeith is a self-taught artist who has been painting street murals for several years under the name of “Eith.” In 2003, he became known as “Odeith.” Two years later, he began his journey of becoming an internationally well-known muralist by using the anamorphosis technique in his murals. Odeith incorporates a 3D optical illusion effect on flat walls and 90º corners.
If you would like to take a look at Odeith’s murals, his instagram is @odeith.
Nikkolas Smith
Nikkolas Smith was born in Houston, Texas and is now living in Los Angeles, California. Smith is a Master in Architecture (MArch) from Hampton University. He worked as a theme park designer at Walt Disney Imagineering for 11 years until he became an ARTivist, film illustrator, movie poster designer, children’s book author, and a concept artist. Smith incorporates important messages surrounding social justice into his art to inspire change.
If you would like to check out Nikkolas Smith’s artwork, his instagram is @nikkolas_smith.
Branded Arts
Branded Arts offers artistic services, such as paintings, sculptures, and murals, for communities and businesses. The company also provides media packages, social media exposure, and content production for each project they work on. Within the last 9 years, Branded Arts has created more than 500 public and private art installation projects in over 50 cities around the world.
If you are interested in seeing what types of projects Branded Arts has worked on, the company’s instagram is @brandedarts.
Nate Stranzl
Nate Stranzl is based in Salt Lake City. He creates films at Palinoia Production with Brian Durkee. Stranzel had a close tie with Kobe Bryant. Stranzel worked at Bryant’s production company called Granity Studios. His position in the company was to come up with story ideas for novels. He also produced a children’s podcast called “The Punies.” Stranzel was inspired by Bryant to find his creative voice. In his short film “Grana,” he had paid tribute to Bryant for being such an inspiration to the world.
If you would like to check out Nate Stranzl’s work, his instagram is @stranzzz.
