Meet Meghan Hall

Where does any artist’s journey ever truly ‘start’? I believe each artist experiences a series of death’s & re-births, like the phoenix rising from the ashes. Always evolving, facing challenges, growing, learning, starting again & again.

It is when we consciously & proactively begin to recognize & take accountability for our highest reflection of self, that we actually ‘start’ our mission and create art that lands… at least that’s been my experience over the last few years.

At 6 years old I started creating symbols & shapes to spare my adhd mind from complete boredom in the classroom. These hieroglyphic sacred geometeric lines came to me easily, like a language, and continued to develop over the years, but it wasn’t until around 2016 that I started understanding what my art was saying.

In 2016, I was given an opportunity to be a part of a street art fair in Downtown Los Angeles. 26 street artists were selected to showcase their art to the masses. Up until that point most of my art was done on mural walls illegally. So this opportunity would allow me to actually see who resonated with my work, without me having to hide from the authorities patrolling the area. The art fair weekend was a huge success, not only because my artwork was now officially recognized in the street art community, but my art booth (3 full mural walls & floor) was packed with art enthusiasts who resonated with my art! They ‘understood’ me. I felt ‘seen’ for the first time by strangers who I had never met and may never see again. But for that moment in time we all connected. It was that resonance that uncovered what would become my next ‘start’….

By 2019, I had successfully collaborated on various art projects with various other artists, creating murals (mostly legal), selling limited edition prints, selling commissioned artwork in homes across the Hollywood Hills, and being invited to draw live at Hollywood events like, LA Fashion Week, private Pre-Oscar Parties, & high end Emmy Soiree’s. It was also at this time that I had the privilege of being introduced to Christian Mitman & Andre Mirlapolsky at Google Headquarters in Venice, CA. This particular art event marked the 50 year retrospective of Andre Mirlapolsky’s work, which comprised of the exhibition at Google HQ & the Google talk about Andre and Viva LA. It was at this time that Viva LA was in full swing , so the creative energy was ripe & ready to go!

Then suddenly, 2020, the Pandemic hit the world, and we all had no choice but to go home & self reflect on our lives, wether we wanted to or not. Another death & re-birth ‘start’ – for the entire planet. It was the first time humanity had to take a hard look at itself & unite in survival & camaraderie as human beings. In the following months of 2020 that took place, we experienced fear, lost loved ones, political unrest, war propaganda, and various marches & riots for justice. Artists worldwide took to the streets & created murals & messages of hope to help the masses. I had just finished a mural in Hollywood on a building ironically called “Liberate Hollywood”. After 5 full days, I created a colorful display of our 7 chakra’s in a series of sacred geometric lines with secret words hidden throughout the wall. It was at this mural, during one of marches/riots in Los Angeles, that I observed what would later become my ‘Great Awakening’ start. I observed thousands of people marching the streets, protesting injustice & demanding freedom for all people, all races. Fights between police & rioters started to ensue, but when the masses started passing by my mural, the tension & anger started to ease, the energy shifted, and ‘we the people’ took notice of my sacred geometric symbols, pointing at the hidden words, and taking time specifically to enjoy the work, taking selfies & pictures in front of my wall, hugging each other, and forgetting about all the injustice in the world, at least for a moment. It was upon experiencing this that I started to consciously reflect on what my mission as an artist was becoming or could become. Not just in Los Angeles, but worldwide.

The self reflection & authentic expression of my artwork, since 2020, has been nothing short of divinely guided. Funny how when you ask the Universe to humbly show you how to be of service, the Universe will answer. One of those answers came in 2021, when I was contacted by Christian Mitman & Andre Mirlapolsky, the CEO’s of Viva LA, to collaborate with them & 6 other artists for Viva LA’s art exhibition in DTLA’s Pershing Square. Christian explained his vision which was to create a brand that “celebrated the creative culture of Los Angeles at home & around the World.” This includes supporting artists of all genre’s (art, music, fashion, food, etc) & giving LA her own well deserved slogan “Viva LA!”, brilliantly created by Andre 15 years ago. This brand launch couldn’t have come at a better time. I’ll never forget listening to a stranger who happened upon the Viva LA murals & said to me “this has brought life back to Los Angeles”. I wholeheartedly agreed.

The success of Viva LA’s Pershing Square art exhibit opened up more opportunities to work directly with Christian & Andre on other projects. One of them being the biggest project I had yet to take on as an artist – LA Art Show. The next ‘Start’ for me… I’ll never forget, Christian called me on a cloudy Tuesday afternoon & offered me a Viva LA sponsorship to be apart of the largest contemporary art movement in the World. Read that again. It was the first time I felt fully supported as an artist.I felt believed in. I felt..like I had a lot of work to do, the show was in 2 months and I had no artworks to show, and no art space to create!

Another great thing about Christian, he never backs down from a challenge. This is true in all aspects of his life. I told him he could take a toothpick and a band aid and build a shopping mall. Without having a location to paint, Christian came up with the brilliant idea to create a mobile art studio. I kid you not, this guy took a 26 foot box truck & in 3 days turned it into a fully functioning art space for me to create in. Complete with artificial grass. From there we coordinated a plan that would allow for me to create 30 artworks, in 30 locations, in 30 days. Just in time for LA Art show opening night. For the record – I finished my last artwork during LA Art Show’s opening night. It was a hit.

Now for the art. Each location chosen was specific and conscious. I set the intention that each artwork be activated by the energetic signature of that specific area. For example, at dawn on Christmas morning, I selected a mountain top on Runyon Canyon. Viva LA didn’t hesitate to drive the huge art truck to location & help me set up & film the experience. It was magic, humming birds flew around me, and clouds formed a portal around me as a drew. Then, that Christmas evening, at magic hour, Viva LA drove me to the Griffith Observatory & I drew a new artwork that matched the color of the sunset.

Christian dedicated 100% of his creativity and energy into assisting my art. And in the midst of me creating, he challenged me to be more courageous & daring with each new piece. To utilize colors & lines in ways that I hadn’t thought I could, or should. My success wouldn’t have been possible without him believing in me & supporting me. As I am growing as an artist, Viva LA has been cheerleading and encouraging me all along.

Thank you, Viva LA, for inspiring me to grow and providing opportunities to push myself and expose more people to my art. May the next ‘start’ for you and all of us continue to shine a light on our creative mission, and allow for our outreach to continue at the heart of Los Angeles and beyond. You always say “Together we can do so much more than any of us can do alone.” And I couldn’t agree more. Viva LA!

Website: https://www.vivala.us/collections/viva-la-co-lab-artwork

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mego_streetart/