Who painted over the Frankie Knuckles and Juice WRLD murals?
CHICAGO (CBS) -- You might recognize the murals of artists Juice WRLD or Frankie Knuckles.
But no more -- both have mysteriously vanished. no one knows who painted over them. CBS 2's Sabrina Franza is looking into who's responsible.
From near and far, video and photos provided to CBS 2 show some of the thousands that came to visit this memorial of Juice WRLD. The American rapper died in 2019 of a drug overdose.
His image painted next to one of dj Frankie Knuckles. Now, you wouldn't even know they were there.
"Any kind of piece of artwork that has that kind of power should be protected."
Levar Hoard is the founder of B_Line project, managing a series of murals along Hubbard Street in the West Loop.
"I was definitely disappointed that we're in a city that does not value art," Hoard said.
It's a huge claim. CBS 2 asked the Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation if it was responsible. The answer was no. Union Pacific runs along the same viaduct. It said it didn't remove it either.
On one side, it's gated. On the other, the wall sits next to a parking lot with security cameras. CBS 2 reached out to the owner but so far no response.
"To be honest, it came as no surprise. There are a few people who have expressed a high level of displeasure that the mural has brought."
Neighbors said there's more to this story. That there were multiple complaints about what was going on around this mural, and they have photos and videos to prove it.
"It was madness there"
A neighbor who asked CBS 2 to conceal her identity provided pictures of parties at the murals dating back to 2020.
"It's not supposed to be a venue at all. It's not meant to be a place for people to be gathering. It's a parking lot. A parking lot is meant for cars," said the neighbor.
Does the person have any idea who painted over the murals?
"None of us do. And the funny thing is we all wanted so much for this to be changed for something to happen in 2020 in 2021 but in 2022, 2023, nothing's really gone on," she said.
Advocates have vowed to repaint the murals, but the details are still to be determined.
