Diego Mendoza-Moyers, and Johana Restrepo

The Republic | azcentral.com

Corrections & clarifications: A previous version of this story incorrectly identified the landowner and billboard commissioner La Melgosa LLC.

A billboard depicting President Donald Trump's face next to explosions and dollar signs created with typography imitating Nazi swastikas went up in downtown Phoenix on Friday afternoon.

The back of the billboard shows five fists forming sign language letters with the word "unity" beneath the fists.

The billboard is near Grand Avenue and Taylor Street in Phoenix.

Santa Monica, Calif., artist and activist Karen Fiorito is the artist of the two-sided billboard.

The piece was commissioned by La Melgosa LCC, which is owned by longtime Grand Avenue champions Beatrice Moore and Tony Zahn. Moore said the billboard is on land owned by La Melgosa LLC.

La Melgosa commissioned Fiorito to do a similar anti-President George Bush billboard in 2004 when she was a graduate art student at ASU. When approached with this opportunity, she accepted and said this billboard piece is "even more powerful" given the current political climate.

"I was given the opportunity to just say what I want," Fiorito said. "And that's what I did."

The artist said she has a "real fear" of the direction of the country politically under Trump. She said the dollar signs imitating Nazi swastikas originally were designed by New York artist Hugh Gran for her 2004 billboard, but she believed they were appropriate for use in this piece as well.

"I felt that those really symbolize politics and money and power," Fiorito said.

Fiorito first shared the billboard on her Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. She added the hashtag #TheResistance in a tweet, referencing anti-Trump sentiment on social media.

"So this happened today. Still awaiting the backlash, death threats and the like," Fiorito said on her Facebook page, Buddha Cat Press.

The sign went up amid the Art Detour event happening through the weekend in Phoenix, although event organizer Catrina Kahler said she had not heard about the billboard and had no prior knowledge of the project.

Eventgoers at Art Detour can peruse nearly 90 galleries in uptown and downtown Phoenix.

The billboard caught the attention of passers-by throughout the afternoon. Shawneece Durham was struck by the image on her way to lunch nearby.

"We just drove up coming to eat pizza and got out to look out at it," Durham said. "It's kind of deep. It speaks volumes to what's going on."

The billboard is near 11th Monk3y, a local design and apparel shop. Owner Ruben Gonzalez was not aware the billboard was going up, and while he supports the message, he said he hopes there is no violent backlash.

"I think the message is, resist. It says 'money-hungry world domination,' " Gonzalez said. "Most people are wowed. I don't want my windows bashed in."

State Sen. Steve Smith, R-Maricopa, called the piece "offensive." Smith said he recognized that the First Amendment protects offensive speech but questioned Fiorito's message about politics, money and power.

"I'm wondering why it hasn't been up the past eight years, considering President Obama has amassed more debt than every previous president combined," Smith said in a statement texted to The Arizona Republic.