Upon reading the news, the San Fernando Valley native and photographer-filmmaker shook his head and redirected his focus. In that moment, surrounded by historic photographs of political agitators and artists he had taken over the years, he was reminded of just how critical their voices remain today.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is exactly what this project is: Aqu\u00ed estamos, y no nos vamos,\u201d Giunti said, evoking the a phrase that is commonly used by Chicano activists to assert their place in the U.S.<\/p>\n
The entirety of LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes\u2019<\/a> newest exhibition, \u201cA Great Day in East L.A.,\u201d where Giunti\u2019s portraits are on display, lives at the intersection of art, Latinx identity and political revolution.<\/p>\n Walking through the heart of the exhibit, visitors can see photos of Linda Ronstadt, the Black Eyed Peas, Little Willie G, Trini Lopez, Maya Jupiter, Danilo Lozano, Yolanda Ferrer of Fatima Recordz and many more. <\/p>\n The exhibit debuted on June 28 at the Downtown L.A. museum and cultural center, where it will remain until Aug. 23, 2026. The venue\u2019s Main Street location places it across the street from La Placita Olvera and indelibly ties it toward the shared project of uplifting stories from the Latinx community in the city. <\/p>\n \u201cA Great Day in East L.A.\u201d is co-curated by Giunti, as well as musician and historian Mark Guerrero, UC Riverside professor Jorge N. Leal and the LA Plaza curatorial team, which is headed by the organization\u2019s director of exhibitions Karen Crews Hendon. <\/p>\n (Robert Gauthier \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n \u201cGiunti and Guerrero have been working together on this project, which is to find East L.A. musicians, photograph them and record their stories,\u201d Hendon told The Times as she stood in front of the entrance to the exhibit, which features a collage of all 170 of Giunti\u2019s portraits. \u201cAside from just photography, it\u2019s an oral history project.\u201d<\/p>\n The duo worked on the project for over 10 years, with Guerrero leveraging his access to East L.A. music icons made available through his music career. It\u2019s also worth noting the legacy of his father, Lalo Guerrero<\/a>, the pioneering Mexican American singer who is locally recognized as the father of Chicano music.<\/p>\n \u201cGuerrero\u2019s website is where he has all of those oral histories. You can literally just go to markguerrero.com<\/a> and pick your poison,\u201d Hendon said. \u201cHe interviews all these musicians. No one does that. So that\u2019s why we were super attracted to this project.\u201d<\/p>\n The idea for the exhibit came to Giunti after he dreamed about Art Kane\u2019s<\/a> renowned photograph in a 1958 issue of Esquire, titled \u201cA Great Day in Harlem<\/a>.\u201d The photo shows 57 jazz musicians \u2014 including Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie and Mary Lou Williams \u2014 posing on the steps of a Harlem brownstone while dressed in their finest attire. <\/p>\n (Robert Gauthier \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n \u201cFor two weeks straight I saw [the photo] everywhere,\u201d Giunti said \u2014 and that\u2019s when he cold called Guerrero to gauge his interest in hosting an exhibit. Guerrero agreed.<\/p>\n But \u201cA Great Day in East L.A.\u201d is more than photographs and stories; it\u2019s an homage to the artists\u2019 staunchly DIY spirit. Elaborate onstage outfits, hand-drawn fliers, homemade recording machines, used instruments, local zines and eccentric band merchandise are also on display.<\/p>\n \u201cIt was a lot of community calls, broadcasting out to the community,\u201d Hendon explained. \u201cWe wanted to show what people have and to get to know those stories. Piero, Jorge and Mark made a million phone calls, went to people\u2019s houses, went to people\u2019s garages. I joined them and we were digging out of people\u2019s garages, asking, for example: \u2018What do you think tells the story of your late husband\u2019s band?\u2019 And so it took about two years to get [all that.]\u201d<\/p>\n Leal was consulted on the project due to his work specializing in Southern California culture in the 20th century \u2014 particularly his knowledge of Chicano rock and the East L.A. sound. His expertise lead him to create the Rock Archivo LA<\/a>, an online public history treasure trove that collects, examines and shares youth culture memorabilia and other assorted curios. <\/p>\n (Robert Gauthier \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the things for me as a historian is to highlight and honor people that are no longer alive and that for some reason in their time were not as written about, as celebrated, but that were instrumental for the East L.A. sound,\u201d Leal said. \u201cBeing able to share this subject in conversation with Piero\u2019s photos in such a dignified way that honors and highlights for visitors that, if this is the first time they come across this music and this history, that they learn more from this \u2014 it\u2019s something we think we accomplished well.\u201d<\/p>\n One of Leal\u2019s favorite aspects of the exhibit is that does away with the notion that history is strictly linear and stuffy. The \u201ckinetic\u201d nature of the showcase presents history through six themed galleries that together weave a holistic portrait of East L.A. <\/p>\n The first emulates a show venue, with ornate blue velvet curtains draping the walls and framing the personality-laden stage outfits and instruments of East L.A. musicians including Brenton Wood\u2019s<\/a> zoot suit, Lupita Infante\u2019s<\/a> traje de charro, a bass guitar and drum from the punk-folk collective Ollin<\/a> and Chicano rock band Quetzal\u2019s lead singer Martha Gonzalez\u2019s<\/a> Grammy dress \u2014 to name a few. <\/p>\n The second gallery is modeled after a rockero store and is filled with posters, records, merchandise and other assorted ephemera. A key aspect of the installation is its interactive component. Patrons are invited to play songs from a jukebox that has a bank of 40 records to chose from and projects each disc\u2019s album art. Visitors can also watch archived videos of East L.A. bands\u2019 live performances in the rockero section. <\/p>\n (Robert Gauthier \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n The interactivity and tactility of the exhibit reaches its zenith in the garage-themed section of the museum that attempts to recreate the aura of many people\u2019s first rehearsal place. Residing in the center of the gallery are an acoustic guitar, an acoustic bass, a ukelele, a mandolin, a caj\u00f3n and a keyboard \u2014 all of which guests are encouraged to pick up and play. <\/p>\n \u201cWe are aware that music is cut in schools. People don\u2019t have access to instruments,\u201d Hendon noted. \u201cWe really want people to jam out.\u201d<\/p>\n The subsequent gallery explores the political activism of East L.A., an aspect Giunti fervently connects to. His personal Rage Against the Machine<\/a> shirt, graced with signatures from all the band\u2019s members, is framed in this section alongside benefit concert posters, May Day March fliers and photos of artists who embraced and displayed their Indigenous heritage. As he grew more political throughout the years, Giunti found inspiration from the political movements in East L.A., such as the Chicano Moratorium<\/a> and the East L.A. walkouts<\/a>. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n
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