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Since their tragic deaths in a helicopter crash on January 26, former L.A. Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gigi (an aspiring basketball star herself), have received an outpouring of tributes across the country. New York City has responded in its own inimitable fashion, remembering Kobe with billboards in Times Square and at Madison Square Garden, not to mention a DIY memorial that popped up in the Bryant Park subway station.
Missing in all of the encomiums, however, are the sort of street art murals of Kobe that have sprung up in Los Angeles and Miami. That is, until now.
Enter artist Efren Andaluz, a lifelong Lakers fan despite being a Queens native currently based in Long Island. Wanting to commemorate Kobe and Gigi in a mural, Andaluz looked around until he found a landlord willing to donate the side of a building for the project. The spot is located in Brooklyn at the corner of Flatbush Avenue and Pacific Street, opposite the Barclays Center where Kobe and Gigi were seen attending a Nets game in December.
Andaluz based his mural on an image taken by photographer Jon SooHoo, which shows Kobe in his Laker’s uniform, lying on the floor with his head propped up on a basketball. Andaluz added Gigi to the picture, who’s seen wearing a huge smile as she looks out over her father. Fans and concertgoers on their way to the Barclays Center will be able to see the mural for at least six months, which is how long it’s expected to be on view.