INDIANAPOLIS — Mpozi Tolbert left an impact on the Indianapolis arts scene before his sudden death in 2006. A Broad Ripple mural in his memory disappeared just as suddenly this week.
The alley-facing wall of Lava Hookah Bar on Guilford Avenue is now plain white after hosting a tribute for Tolbert since 2008.
Artist Dan Handskillz repainted the mural in 2020. He had no idea the building's owners would paint over his work.
"You really are erasing the very idea that this took place at all," Handskillz said. "What could paint a starker picture than painting it white?"
Tolbert was best known as a photographer and a DJ, including inside of the building where his tribute had stood. He died at age 34 due to a heart attack.
The Broad Ripple Village Association was also surprised by the mural's removal. Executive Director Jordan Dillon told WRTV the repainting was "disappointing and disheartening."
Dillon said the association told the Lava building's new owners about the significance of the Mpozi Tolbert mural in May, and the owners assured them then that the mural would stay in place. She said the association received no warning that the mural would be removed.
The building's owners did not respond to a request for comment, and the building itself was closed when WRTV tried to enter.
Jeff Miner, a longtime friend of Tolbert, said he understands why the building owners would start fresh, but that it does not make the action any less painful.
"You did the wrong thing, but it's your building, your choice, your piece of property," Miner said. "It just seems callous and cold. Why would you do this? Now you've got this ugly wall when you had this beautiful piece of work that someone spent hundreds of hours on."
Artist Matthew Aaron decided to paint the words "Mpozi Lives" in a Broad Ripple alley after he learned the mural was gone.
"He was my friend and I loved that mural," Aaron said. "For it to be gone meant that I had to do something. It's heartbreaking."
A mural in memory of Mpozi Tolbert remains in Fountain Square.
"If someone's painted two stories tall, they must've been somebody," Handskillz said.
