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Heavy-gauge steel bars protect the windows of the homes around Ted Watkins Park in Watts. If you have private space here, you must protect it fiercely from the gangs and poverty that thrive like a cancer. Small bungalows and townhomes dot the area, but public housing sets the tone. Nickerson Gardens, Jordan Downs and Ozie B. Gonzaque Village--some of the most dangerous housing projects in the nation--are home to many of the kids and families who come to the park. For them, Ted Watkins is a place to get outside and escape the urban indoors.
This past May, residents encountered something rarely seen in a park like this--contemporary art. Even more startling was the subject. On an undulating platform two feet off the ground, visitors confronted the rippling form of "Magic Carpet/Home," the floor plan of a Nickerson Gardens apartment painted on soft...