Mural honoring famed mountain lion P-22 unveiled in West Hollywood
Vivian Chow
A new mural honoring the famed mountain lion P-22 was unveiled in West Hollywood Friday night.
The mural, called “Keep LA WILD,” features the majestic mountain lion with a monarch butterfly perched on his nose.
The new piece marks artist Corie Mattie’s third mural in collaboration with The National Wildlife Federation.
P-22, the beloved mountain lion who roamed the Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles for over a decade, was humanely euthanized in Dec. 2022 after being struck by a car near Griffith Park.
The 12-year-old died of multiple severe injuries and chronic conditions that impaired his ability to function in the wild, officials said. He also had kidney, liver and possible heart disease.
Since first being photographed in Griffith Park, P-22 became a symbol of California’s endangered mountain lions and their decreasing genetic diversity. He was also a mascot for wildlife conservation in Los Angeles.
Mural honoring famed mountain lion P-22 unveiled in West Hollywood on August 4, 2023. (KTLA)
Mural honoring famed mountain lion P-22 unveiled in West Hollywood on August 4, 2023. (KTLA)
Mural honoring famed mountain lion P-22 unveiled in West Hollywood on August 4, 2023. (KTLA)
Mural honoring famed mountain lion P-22 unveiled in West Hollywood on August 4, 2023. (KTLA)
Mural honoring famed mountain lion P-22 unveiled in West Hollywood on August 4, 2023. (KTLA)
A limited edition library card honoring the late P-22 is seen in a Los Angeles Public Library image.
This Nov. 2014, file photo provided by the U.S. National Park Service shows a mountain lion known as P-22, photographed in the Griffith Park area near downtown Los Angeles. (U.S. National Park Service, via AP, File)
A remote camera set up on a fresh deer kill in Griffith Park captured more than 1,500 photos of P-22, some of which were published Dec. 3, 2014. (Credit: Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area)
A mountain lion believed to be P-22 was spotted outside a Hollywood Hills home on Aug. 25, 2022.
P-39 licks her face during a meal break following a kill on June 22, 2015. (Credit: Santa Monica Mountains National Recreational Area)
Mountain lion P-22 is seen is in a photo released by the National Park Service on Feb. 18, 2021. (NPS / Jeff Sikich)
A photo posted June 22, 2015, by the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area shows an unmarked kitten of P-39 who is about 7 months old.
Adult male mountain lion P-64 walks out of a tunnel at Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area on May 22, 2018. Los Angeles and Mumbai, India are the world’s only megacities of 10 million-plus where large felines breed, hunt and maintain territory within urban boundaries. (National Park Service via AP)
Mountain lion P-22 seen here captured and sedated after being caught in the backyard of a Los Feliz home Dec 12, 2022 (Sarah Picchi)
Ouaj Ghribi from Paris, France takes a picture of Chiara Rode, 2, with the mural of mountain lion P-22 in the Fairfax district of Los Angeles Friday, Dec. 23, 2022. The mural by street artist Corie Mattie is dedicated to the memory of P-22, the celebrated mountain lion who lived in the city and was recently euthanized amid worsening health and injuries likely caused by a car. P-22 became the face of a campaign to build a wildlife crossing over a Los Angeles-area freeway to give big cats, coyotes, deer and other wildlife a safe path to the nearby Santa Monica Mountains, where they have room to roam. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
A mural featuring P-22 is seen in Silver Lake on Oct. 5, 2022. (KTLA)
A girl looks at a photo of the famed mountain lion known as P-22 as the exhibit wall is covered with Post-It notes paying tribute to the big cat at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County in Los Angeles, Friday, Jan. 20, 2023. The popular puma gained fame as P-22 and shone a spotlight on the troubled population of California’s endangered mountain lions and their decreasing genetic diversity. But it’s the big cat’s death — and whether to return his remains to ancestral tribal lands where he spent his life — that could posthumously give his story new life. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Griffith Park’s mascot, P-22, has gone from a mange-infested puma in 2014 to his healthy self again, as a recent image shows. (Credit: National Park Service)
Mural honoring famed mountain lion P-22 unveiled in West Hollywood on August 4, 2023. (KTLA)
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“It’s all about bringing light to conservation efforts and urban environments and that’s a part of P-22’s legacy moving forward,” Mattie explains of the art. “I think it’s important to continue to highlight that.”
Mattie’s love of P-22 stemmed from a close encounter she had with the cougar that she said changed her life.
“Once I met him, it was surreal,” Mattie recalls. “He could have eaten me alive, easy, but he didn’t. I feel like he became my spirit animal. He became almost humanized.”
Mattie said the inspiration behind her mural pays homage to Steve Winter’s iconic photo of P-22 with a lit Hollywood sign behind him.
Visitors who admire the mural up close can notice other endangered animals hidden within P-22’s body such as bats, rabbits and more. Mattie said the idea of including the other animals speaks to P-22’s legacy of spearheading animal conservation in Southern California.
“With L.A., I think it’s important, even after he’s gone, to bring him to light because he continues to be so relevant and stand for something bigger than just him,” Mattie said. “It’s important to tackle conservation in a way that people can understand and beautify the area.”
The mural’s unveiling was attended by West Hollywood city officials and The National Wildlife Federation.
“I think she captures the spirit of P-22 that L.A. loves, so we love it when people go to her murals specifically and take photos,” said Beth Pratt, California Regional Executive Director for The National Wildlife Federation. “It’s honoring such a remarkable animal and she’s such a remarkable artist that she just gets his soul right.”
Visitors can see the mural for themselves at 450 North Doheny Dr.
Mattie previously unveiled a P-22 mural in the Fairfax District in Dec. 2022. The giant art piece features the cougar standing tall while wearing a golden crown. Alongside the cat are four white doves and large text reading, “Long Live the King.”
Mattie’s murals also include a QR code that, when scanned, will direct viewers to resources for saving endangered wild cats just like P-22.
