By Darlene Donloe
Contributing Writer
LEIMERT PARK — By the time a friend told Imad Obegi in mid-June that he should enter the fifth annual Leimert Park Jazz Festival Art Competition, he didn’t have much time to think about it or come up with an idea for something to paint. The deadline was June 28.
“Once I decided to enter the competition, I settled in and got it done in four days,” said Obegi, a versatile artist proficient in a myriad of mediums, including encaustic painting, oils, pastels, watercolor and photography. “I gave it my all. I worked 10 hours a day for four days and got it done. I put everything on hold to enter this.”
Obegi’s efforts paid off. His “Rhythms of Leimert Park,” one of three finalists, won the competition.
His work will be on display during the festival, which will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Aug. 31 at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza (rooftop parking deck).
“I was really happy,” said Obegi, a first-time participant who entered the competition because he “loves a challenge.” “I did a social media and a word-of-mouth campaign to get votes. I also told people to look at my website. I don’t know how many votes I received, but I’m happy I won.”
The other finalists included DeMario Morgan’s “Soul of Music,” and Gail Oliver’s “I Am Jazz Man Guardian Angel.”
Obegi’s piece depicts a female jazz singer with a large Afro belting out a song.
Obegi, who is white, said he took extra care to be respectful of how he depicted the subjects in his poster. He wanted the poster to reflect the culture of the festival.
“I wanted a diverse poster which is why one of the other guys in the poster is lighter,” Obegi said. “The features, the hair. I really wanted to capture and reflect the spirit of the community, so I had to have African Americans in the poster.”
After a panel of four jurors selected the three finalists, the final decision was left up to the community who chose Obegi as the official 2024 Leimert Park Jazz Festival visual artist for his, making him the recipient of the $1,000 prize.
Jurors who selected the three finalists included acclaimed artist Charles Bibbs, Khalil Kinsey, chief curator and creative director of the Kinsey African American Art & History Collection; Steven O’Connor, logo designer, artist, and winner of the 2023 Leimert Park Jazz Festival Art Competition; and Larry Earl, senior curator and historian of the Kinsey African American Art & History Collection.
“All three of the posters were dynamic,” Earl said. “One of the key things we were looking for was entries to convey Leimert Park’s spirit. We wanted the entries to be vibrant, colorful, about community, a variety of blackness and all its iterations.
“We looked for technique. We looked at how they are using the medium they chose and how they manipulate it to create an image. What the three finalists had in common was that they embodied the spirit and brought out the spirit of art.”
Earl, who won’t reveal which of the three final posters he was rooting for, said all of the entries spoke to him.
“They all hit the right notes,” he said. “When I think about jazz, I think about great jazz singers. Obegi’s poster evokes an image. It harkens back to so many things including pride and cultural love.
“Art should make us feel something,” Earl added. “It should move us to an emotion. It should have the capacity to be enduring. Art is a way of expressing thoughts and feelings and recounting time. It invokes a song. It gives me joy. It gives me life.”
Diane Robertson, executive producer of the Leimert Park Jazz Festival said, “The winning piece of our companion art competition beautifully embodies the essence of Leimert Park its vibrant culture, deep-rooted history as the center of African-American music, art and culture in Los Angeles.
“This artwork not only captures the soul of jazz but also reflects the creative heartbeat of our neighborhood,” she added. “We are proud to showcase this exceptional work at our festival and have it become the commemorative poster for this year’s fifth festival where we celebrate the intersection of music and visual arts that define our community.”
Obegi is no stranger to winning awards for his art.
His accolades include the first-place award for Best Catalina Art Scene and a second-place honor in the photography category at the Catalina Island Art Festival, and winning three years consecutively at Berkeley’s Chocolate and Chart Festival.
Obegi, who trained formally in art classes, poster design, airbrushing, oil painting and figure drawing, said the guidelines for the competition included original art, creating something that shows the atmosphere and culture of the festival, and using creative artistic skills.
“I brainstormed with my girlfriend and her friend,” said Obegi, whose medium of choice is pastel. “I also looked at reference photos. I wanted my subject to sing and have mouth movement. I wanted to represent the music coming out of the community. It needed to reflect the culture of the festival.”
Obegi said his inspiration for “Rhythms of Leimert Park” comes from the vibrant energy and rich musical heritage of Leimert Park.
“With many years of experience in figure drawing and portraiture, I challenged myself to use oil painting as a medium to create a vintage-style posterized image, with a limited color palette that captures the liveliness of jazz,” he said.
Obegi said it’s nice to be recognized by the community for his art.
“I love showcasing my art and expressing myself,” he said. “The art is helping me to communicate. It feels like success when people show appreciation for my art. This is an exciting moment to know I can continue to have that drive and really affect people.”
Obegi, 59, who is Syrian, grew up in Northern California, in the East Bay area before moving to Los Angeles and eventually Santa Monica. He attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and received a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry.
He worked in that industry for 35 years before deciding to focus his energy on his art.
“When I was working in biotech, I didn’t have time for my art,” he said. “Now, I have time. Only the future will tell how this will affect my career. I am so proud to say I’m an award-winning artist.”
Obegi said he never thought about how art makes him feel, but now that he’s been asked, he realizes “it means everything.”
“Art is a profound outlet for creativity and expression,” said Obegi, who is also a professional photographer. “I get to convey my emotions. Words alone can’t describe it. Art gives me a sense of fulfillment and joy.”
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The fifth annual Leimert Park Jazz Festival, executive produced by Diane Robertson, takes place from 11:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Aug. 31 at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza, (rooftop parking deck), 3650 W. Martine Luther King Jr. Blvd. For information, visit leimertparkjazzfestival.org.
The talent roster includes the Stanley Jordan Trio, Billy Childs Trio, Gilbert Castellanos Quintet, Justo Almario’s Afro-Colombian Ensemble, the Chris Powe Quartet, and Fernando Pullum Community Arts Center Jazz Band with special guests Nolan Shaheed on trumpet and George Bohanon on trombone.
Darlene Donloe is a freelance reporter for Wave Newspapers who covers South Los Angeles. She can be reached at ddonloe@gmail.com.
