American Dreamers - Vhils

The mural "American Dreamers" (in Spanish, "Soñadores de América"), also known as "Welcome," is a collaboration by Portuguese artist Vhils with American Shepard Fairey and was completed in 2018. Located at 4314 Effie Street, Los Angeles, this work examines the challenge faced by immigrants in their quest to establish and thrive in the United States. Measuring approximately 60 x 300 feet, the mural highlights themes of perseverance and strength in the migrant community.

Fairey designed the central focus of the work with the image "Target Exceptions" (in Spanish, "Objetivos de exclusión"), which addresses themes of segregation in immigration policies, while Vhils used his distinctive carving technique to sculpt female faces into the walls, symbolizing the lives and intergenerational legacy of immigration. The piece uses contrasts in color and texture to emphasize the importance of individuals within a collective, underscoring social challenges in an urban art and social critique aesthetic.

This collaboration is part of the street art tradition and is supported by the organization Branded Arts, which seeks to spread messages of social change in public spaces.