The artist behind the infamous Kobe Bryant mural in Indianapolis, that went viral after it was removed, has reached out to Black Indy Live.

In the heartfelt, message the artist — who only wishes to be identified as “Luis” — explains the rush of emotions that led him to paint the mural.

My name is Luis(go by Lui) and I am the artist that painted that Kobe mural. I would like to remain anonymous if possible but this is what I have to say. I’ve been painting for a while, never done murals however I did not mean to be disrespectful in any way.

He states it was his first-ever mural and realized the facial area needed work.

(Images of Artist working on mural)

I wanted to pay tribute to Kobe, his daughter and the other people that passed away on that accident. I had more to add and I know the face needed work so I was trying to get help from another artist(s) but it all happened so fast that I didn’t get to it.

He explains afterward he took his son to see the mural, and to his disappointment, the facial area had already been covered up. It’s not clear whether Luis or the gas station covered up the rest of the remaining image.

I took my girl and son to look at it and when I got there his face had been covered up, so imagine the feeling.

Luis apologized to those offended by the mural, saying he only meant to show his love for art and inspire his young nieces. He said he will continue to express himself through painting and won’t let the outcome of this situation deter him from continuing.

To all the people that got offended I apologize, and to all those who actually supported my art I am thankful to them. I love art and this won’t stop me from continuing to paint, if anything I will continue to get better and will continue to inspire others like my little nieces.

He also stated that he is looking for anyone willing to mentor him, but wishes to remain anonymous at this time. He ended his story with a message about the speculation that surrounded the situation, and the power of words.

One last thing, we can see how messed up society is these days, they speculated it had been a teenager possibly special needs, why do they have to look down on people like that…

There is no compassion, people don’t realize the power of their words. May God bless them regardless. If there is anyone out there who’d be willing to mentor me, I am all for it. You can use this as a statement if you want but again I would like to remain as anonymous as possible. #Godblesstheworld #worldpeace”

If you wish to support Luis, you can email us at info@blackindylive.com — and we will route all information and resources to the artist.

He also sent us a portfolio of some of his other work to share with the community.

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Laron Anderson Full-Time Servant of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Part-Time Founder & Editor-In-Chief of Black Indy LIVE. Work Referenced by publications such as: The Atlanta Black Star, Blavity, The New York Post, PopCulture.com, The Inquisitr, Clutch Points, and many more. See author's posts

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