Through watercolor, artist Keni Davis—known as Keni Arts—has been documenting the impact of the Eaton Fire across Altadena. Like thousands of his neighbors, the artist lost his home in the deadly January wildfire, the place where he and his wife raised three daughters. By painting the charred landscape left in the community, he uses art to cope and find beauty amid profound loss.
Despite the wreckage, the artist continues to paint as he did before the fire, revisiting familiar sites around town and capturing scenes reduced to rubble. Yet Altadena pushes forward—Keni Arts and his family are among those determined to rebuild from the ashes.
Beauty For Ashes
These paintings are part of his latest series, Beauty For Ashes, which depicts Altadena after the fire, before the debris is cleared. The title is inspired by the Bible verse Isaiah 61:3: “[God] will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair.”
Speaking with NewsOne, Keni Arts shared a selection of paintings from his Beauty For Ashes (BFA) series, along with the stories behind them, pairing each piece with a painting he created before the Eaton Fire.
My House
“I did that painting from my front yard in about 1985. That was home. That’s the same house I had lived in for a little over 38 years.”
My House BFA (2025)
“On the 10th (of January) I did the painting that you see there, of my house in Altadena. The air kind of cleared up, so I set up my easel and painted the house—so that’s how that scene came about.”
The artist recounted the night of the Eaton Fire as the flames began to spread from east Altadena.
“The fire in Eaton Canyon started on the 7th. I was at home watching it on TV that afternoon. There had been fires in Eaton Canyon before, so I thought, okay, we’ll just watch and see what happens. As the afternoon wore on, the fire started to spread westward in my direction—but still not that close.
“By midnight, there was an evacuation warning all the way up to Lake Avenue, but there was no warning issued to those of us on the west side of Lake. So I told my wife, go to bed and I’ll keep an eye on things. The electricity was off. I was in the back of my house, by the candlelight, listening to my portable radio.
“Around three o’clock in the morning, I decided to get up and walk to the front of my house, which faced the mountains. The whole mountain was lit up with fire, so clearly it had spread way beyond Lake Avenue and was close to my home.
“My daughter lived even closer to where the fire was, so I called her and I told her to get out right now. We evacuated to her studio, and around four o’clock in the morning we finally got our first notice to evacuate. By then, I’m sure her house had burned down and possibly mine at that time. A lot of people on the west side of Lake had no idea that the fire was coming, so that’s why I think so many lives were lost there.”
The Eaton Fire claimed 17 lives, all of them west of Lake Avenue. Residents in west Altadena received emergency evacuation alerts hours after those in the east, sparking demands for answers.
“The morning of the 8th, I told my family I’m going back to check on the house. I had been warned that it may have burned down, but I had to see for myself. So I decided that I would return to Altadena.
“By then, the police had cordoned off the area and weren’t letting anyone drive up. So I parked my car and because I had painted around the area so many times, I knew how to get up and down Altadena. So I walked up to my house about two and a half miles uphill, and found out that it had indeed burned down.
“I had my paint kit with me, and I thought, I’m going to paint this scene. But the smoke was still so heavy and I was anxious to see about my daughter’s house, so I decided not to paint then. So I walked over to her house, and it was gone.
“Then I walked down to Lake Avenue and down the street there, and practically all of the buildings, the businesses that I had painted there, had burned down.”
Keni Arts has been capturing Altadena and Pasadena en plein air since the 1970s—moving through town with his paint kit, drawing inspiration from everyday scenes and the people he’s met along the way.
Painting has been a way to connect with the community around him. “I get inspiration from the people I meet when I’m painting. It is as much about the community as it is about the artwork,” he told NewsOne. “I’m typically a very quiet person, but something happens when I’m out painting. I really enjoy talking to people. I’ve found out a lot about Altadena just from people I’ve met on the streets.”
Altadena’s local post office was one of the structures lost in the fire down Lake Avenue.
Altadena Post Office
Altadena Post Office BFA (2025)
“I spent a lot of time in the post office mailing calendars at the end of the year and I got to know some of the people by name. It’s just one of the iconic spots in Altadena that a lot of people have gone to, so I decided to go back and repaint that one.
“The last time I did a calendar was about three years ago. I think I’ll do that again this year. I will probably do a calendar featuring some of the artwork that I’m doing now.”
Farnsworth Davies
The artist had revisited and painted dozens of sites around Altadena before he captured this next scene on paper. It almost didn’t happen.
“Davies is a historic building in Altadena. Because it’s in a park, Farnsworth Park, a lot of people are familiar with it. I’ve gone to picnics there, I’ve gone to concerts there. They have an amphitheater. So I’d painted that at least half a dozen times, probably more, over the years.”
Built in the 1930s, the William D. Davies Memorial Building served as a community center, seated on the corner of Mount Curve and Lake Avenue.
“As I started to return to paint all the sites that had burned down, Davies was last on the list of major sites. I had gone through all the primary sites like the post office, the coffee shops, and things of that sort, but I hadn’t gotten to the Davies building. Well, the city put a fence up around it—a big eight-foot-tall fence.”
Though disappointed to find the site mostly obscured, the artist was determined to find a way to paint it. “I started to call around to all the people I knew, asking them how I could get inside that fence to paint the Davies building so I could complete that part of my series.”
It seemed like he wasn’t getting anywhere. “So I said a simple prayer that night. Well, the very next day, (I got a call and they said) ‘Keni, the fence blew down, get over there right away!’ I grabbed my paint kit and I was able to get there within half an hour. And sure enough, the fence was down.”
Farnsworth Davies BFA (2025)
“The fence went back up a couple of days later. I had probably painted about 30 sites up to then, and that was the last one I really wanted to get to.”
Altadena Hardware
In this final set, Keni Arts pays tribute to his favorite neighborhood hardware store, Altadena Hardware, a family-owned business that has been serving Altadena since 1934.
“I got to know the owners and the employees real well, and we became friends. They had practically anything I needed, not just for the house. I had to get all of these specialized bits and tools to design my paint kit, and Altadena Hardware always had it. I don’t think I came up with anything odd that they didn’t have.”
Altadena Hardware BFA (2025)
“When I would print a calendar, they would always sell it in their store. It was a place that was special. I hate to shop, but the one place I did like to shop was in the hardware store (laughs). I had to include that one. So I’m hoping that they will return.”
The Orlandini family, the owners of Altadena Hardware, will rebuild, as will Keni Arts and his family. “Both my daughter and I have been making plans on rebuilding, so yes, we plan on staying. It’s home,” he said.
Though Altadena may look different, the artist remains, faithfully documenting his beloved community—strengthened by his faith, his wonderful family, and his art. “Whenever I’m behind my easel, I don’t have any problems. I don’t think about anything other than the scene that’s before me.”
SEE ALSO:
Altadena Businesses Reopen After The Wildfires, But Need Support
New Podcast Spotlights Altadena’s Path To Recovery After The Wildfires
Altadena Artist Paints ‘Beauty For Ashes’ After Eaton Fire
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