By Jarret Liotta
While the project was sidelined by the harsh realities of the Palisades fire, a planned restoration of the Temescal Canyon Mural is back on track. With two of its original artists taking part in the restoration work, the iconic 42-year-old mural depicting some of the region’s history is getting new life and a much-needed facelift.
“This is such an exciting project, and such a special moment,” Cathy Salser, one of the original artists, said. “The restoration journey holds many roots and branches that extend far back, and also far into the future.”
Salser is working in tandem with Kat Kozik, who was a Palisades Charter High School senior in 1983 when she and classmate David Strauch came up with the idea for the mural. “We were inspired by learning about public art — art that belongs to everyone — from our teacher, Mary Redclay,” said Kozik, who enlisted classmates Salser and Jenny Wilsey.
Redclay was an inspiring art teacher for the students, who credit her with instilling an appreciation for and understanding of the Indigenous people that remain a key part of the Palisades deep history.
“As the project evolved, we realized that the story we most wanted to tell was about the natural land itself in the Pacific Palisades — it’s abundance and beauty, and different ways people have interacted with it,” Kozik said.
Salser, who became a professional artist, said of Redclay, “She was a teacher who encouraged us to think outside the box of how our society functions, the box that it tries to put us in,” Salser said. “She always encouraged us to think and experience life in such a deeper way.”
The group also connected with muralist Judy Baca, who they met through the Social Public Arts Resource Center in Venice, and received guidance in starting the project.Permission was granted by the Citywide Murals Project, which was part of the Cultural Affairs Department of the City of Los Angeles.
“The initial funding came from the Palisades High School 1983 senior class gift,” said Kozik, who now lives in Berkeley. “After that, David and I also approached various community groups and businesses, and we painted a sign on the wall asking for donations.”
The mural was funded by more than 400 donors when it was painted in 1983-1990, she said, and there are about 200 additional donors for the restoration underway.
Over the years various factors have negatively impacted the mural, including water seepage and continuous vehicle pollution from Sunset Boulevard.
In November of 2024 the idea was broached to start restoring the mural, with the kickoff planning meeting held days before the Palisades fire struck on Jan.6, 2025.
“The fires accelerated the deterioration that was already happening,” Salser said, though to a large extent the mural was spared from direct fire damage.
Salser lost her home in the fire, but looks forward to moving back.
MuralColors, an L.A.-based public art firm that specializes in mural production and conservation, is working closely with Salser and Kozik.
“The local community has been advocating for the restoration and preservation of this community mural for a long while,” said Davida Persaud, MuralColors COO.
In November, the restoration coalition organized a “Mural Bubble Bath,” where community members worked side by side with the MuralColors team to safely clean the mural.
“The restoration involves a detailed technical process that focuses on preserving the original brushstrokes from the 1980s,” Persaud said. “Our team will conduct direct treatments to clean, consolidate, and restore the original pigment, and we will work with original artists Kat Kozik and Cathy Salser to in-paint the areas where delamination has occurred.”
In reviving the mural, Kozik and Salser want to see it having an impact on the community, hoping to add interactive features that might allow residents and viewers to leave their own virtual marks on that history.
“We’re still figuring out tangibly what that interaction looks like and what is the simplest and most sustainable way to hold that interactive space, where folks can engage with the message,” Salser said.
The group is also working with local representatives of Indigenous people, including Tongva tribal leadership.
“We’re not just restoring the paint, but we’re also in dialogue looking at what’s being painted and looking to see if changes need to be made,” Salser said, in order to best capture the picture of what she said is a 10,000-year history.
Kozik said the mural’s exploration of how people interact with the land is more poignant than ever since the fire. “I hope that the revitalized artwork will help people feel grounded on the earth and will be a vehicle for people to reflect on our connection to nature, including our connection with each other,” she said.