Enjoy a stimulating Sound Shower in Escondido!

A couple weeks ago this interesting sculpture was installed on the grass near the box office of the California Center for the Arts, Escondido. It’s titled Sound Shower.

Artist and neurobiologist Victor Hugo Minces created this immersive sound sculpture. He’s a research scientist at UC San Diego and has published work about how neural networks in the brain represent the sensory world.

The webpage concerning Sound Shower features a video that shows how the sculpture can stimulate the senses of those who stand within it. Using a hammer, a subject strikes the large chime-like pipes and experiences sound as it “showers” all around!

I wish I’d understood the sculpture’s function while gazing at it a few days ago. If by chance Sound Shower is still there when I return to Escondido, I’ll try it out.

(Different sculptures have temporarily appeared in this same place. You might recall how I blogged about a star-like sculpture a year ago.)

(While reading through Victor Minces’ website, I’ve noticed he has another sensory sculpture installed near the WorldBeat Cultural Center in Balboa Park. I think that today I’ll go experience that one!)

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Mexican mummies arrive in Balboa Park!

Several human mummies from Mexico have arrived in San Diego’s Balboa Park!

Okay–they’re replica mummies to be exact. Visitors to the House of Mexico cottage can now view them as well as other artifacts from Guanajuato, a state in central Mexico.

The House of Mexico opened this exhibit a day or two ago. Every three months they celebrate one of Mexico’s many states with a new exhibition.

Not only is Guanajuato famous for its mummies, but the mountainous region is known for mining, its unique culture, and colorful architecture that includes many tunnels. Displays in the cottage include photographs, historical information and crafts from this Mexican tourist destination.

Today I enjoyed a free sample of ice cream unique to Guanajuato! I received a beautiful bilingual magazine titled Roads of Guanajuato, too!

Between the mummies and the ice cream, and all the colorful sights inside the House of Mexico cottage, your family will be sure to enjoy a visit!

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A sunny Easter walk through Balboa Park!

Today is Easter. It’s spring. The sun is out in San Diego. A perfect day for a leisurely walk through Balboa Park!

What did I encounter?

Second day of the Makers Arcade on Balboa Park’s West Mesa.
People enjoying yoga near the lawn bowling green.
Flowers are in full bloom at the Inez Grant Parker Memorial Rose Garden.
Vendors at the San Diego Turtle and Tortoise Society’s Annual Show and Plant Sale.
A tortoise in Room 101 of the Casa del Prado.
The Spring Exhibition of Art inside the Village Arts Outreach Gallery.
Here comes the Balboa Park Miniature Railroad!
Many native flowers are showing color along the San Diego Natural History Museum’s Nature Trail.
Beautiful butterflies and a ladybug inside the San Diego Sculptors Guild courtyard.
A small bird enjoys the green grass growing near the Botanical Building.
It’s busy inside the Botanical Building on a sunny Easter day.
The new pergola west of the Botanical Building is looking good!
Uh, oh! Somebody forgot their bunny ears!
Free roses made of corn husks offered by a street performer.
Happy Easter in a window at the International Cottages.
Looks like Quinceañera photos are being taken at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion.
Some cool cars and lowriders have arrived in the park.
Spring beauty at the Alcazar Garden in Balboa Park.

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Artist honors former slave who discovered gold in Julian.

Tony Bingham is presently the artist in residence at the California Center for the Arts Museum in Escondido. Visitors to the museum have the opportunity to meet Tony and experience his work when he is present. I was privileged to meet him a couple days ago. He loves to interact with curious people!

Tony told me about his fascination with A. E. “Fred” Coleman, a former slave who discovered gold in Julian back in 1869, launching a gold rush. The gold mining camp Coleman City quickly sprang up by what today is named Coleman Creek, a tributary of the San Diego River. Among other accomplishments, A. E. Coleman created a toll road into Julian.

Short-lived Coleman City is now a vanished ghost town, but the legacy of A. E. Coleman remains an important part of African American history in the San Diego region. Tony Bingham’s art honors that history.

Tony, with his art, also honors two African American trailblazers: Albert Robinson and Margaret Tull Robinson. In 1887 they started the Robinson Restaurant and Bakery in Julian. Today the establishment is called the Julian Gold Rush Hotel.

Tony Bingham loves to create images using pinhole photography.

He went up to the property through which Coleman Creek runs and took a series of pinhole photographs, often experimenting with different exposures. Here are some of the results…

The words you see above are the names of different mines that were established around Julian during the gold rush.

Tony has also created clay plates that recall the historic Robinson Hotel & Restaurant. The earthy plates among them were formed using the actual grassy soil along Coleman Creek.

Tony has conjectured what food items the restaurant might have had on its menu, and if any vegetables were grown on location.

He has produced plant music that reflects different vegetables, resulting from bioelectrical activity within a living plant. It was very cool listening to a plant “symphony” from his laptop! The potatoes were quite lively!

Tony Bingham is a multi-disciplinary artist and educator from Birmingham, Alabama. His very unique work invites contemplation. It honors the life and legacy of African Americans.

Perhaps his most notable work is the Praise House, an open-air sculpture at a former plantation in Harpersville, Alabama.

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Photos of Tartan Day in Balboa Park!

The House of Scotland hosted their annual Tartan Day today. They were celebrating their 77th year in Balboa Park!

A good crowd came out to the International Cottages to enjoy cultural entertainment, Scottish food (meat pies!) and a gathering of various clans.

The House of Scotland Pipe Band and the Helix Highlander Pipes & Drums performed rousing music. Traditional dancers took the stage. The Ashworth Academy of Highland Dance and the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society were represented.

The festival atmosphere was also educational. It seemed every sort of organization that promotes Scottish culture in San Diego appeared on the lawn.

What is meant by Tartan Day, you may ask?

A tartan is the patterned cloth, traditionally made of wool, featuring crisscrossed horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colors, originating from Scotland. Different clans and regions have their own unique tartan. San Diego has a special tartan pattern, too!

One more thing. The epic Scottish Highland Games and Gathering of the Clans is returning after an absence of a couple years. Instead of in Vista, the games will now be held this June 20 and 21, 2026, at the SDSU Mission Valley River Park! Check out the official website here.

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A Day at the Park in National City!

Lots of families came out to A Day at the Park in National City today! The fun waterfront event was held at Pepper Park, thanks to the Port of San Diego.

There was free food, plus live entertainment by the San Diego Symphony, Mariachi Nuevo Aguadulce, and others. For the kids there was face painting and henna tattoos. Many community organizations showed up as well.

The Port of San Diego was demonstrating how they are electrifying their maritime operations to help protect the environment.

I also learned how the National City Historical Society is trying to save Granger Music Hall, an architecturally important building designed by Irving Gill and on the National Register of Historic Places. If you’re curious about their efforts, or would like to help, check out this webpage.

I was eager to see how Pepper Park’s major redevelopment has turned out. I’d seen the new beach during my last visit, but now there’s also the pirate-themed playground and splash pad!

As you can see from my photos, the park has become truly amazing! People who reside in National City and San Diego’s South Bay are very fortunate!

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Persian carpet garden in Escondido!

This is one of the most uplifting and creative exhibitions of art you’re likely to experience. It’s a garden of flowers, trees and animals that was created using Persian carpets! You read that correctly!

This unique exhibition at the museum of the California Center for the Arts, Escondido is titled Maryam Bayat: Unrolling Paradise.

I stepped into the “garden” yesterday during my museum visit. With the sound of birds chirping in the background, I wandered through the plush, colorful foliage and wished there was a “park bench” where I could sit and simply be happy and alive.

In this garden paradise life is good. All cares drop away. From my photos you might understand the wonderful feeling this installation produces. It’s like a comfy living room that has come to life all around you!

The exhibition webpage explains: Unrolling Paradise explores the Persian garden as a living design tradition carried through textiles, memory, and everyday objects. Interdisciplinary artist Maryam Bayat reinterprets centuries-old carpet aesthetics through sculptural works that merge traditional Persian rugs with contemporary form and function.

Raised in Tehran in a family of rug producers and now based in North County San Diego, Bayat draws from inherited craft to create installations that reflect on place, belonging, and cultural continuity. Her woven sculptures—appearing as furniture, abstract trees, and domestic interiors—extend the symbolism of the garden into three-dimensional space, linking ideas of sanctuary to personal and collective memory.

If you tend not to visit museums, this might be the time you consider going. There are several other exhibits, as well, including one that concerns graphics used in computer and video games. Swing on by and have a great time!

Maryam Bayat: Unrolling Paradise can be experienced through Sunday, August 16, 2026, at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido’s museum.

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New mural at renovated Escondido Library!

I recently read that a huge new mural was being painted outside the Escondido Public Library during its major renovation. So I had to swing by to see what I might see!

The 100 foot mural is by artist Tim Topalov of Flow&Form, a San Diego-based studio. The Escondido community voted to select the design.

I found this Instagram story showing the mural being painted!

I took these photos today from behind a construction fence, but you can see how amazing this public art will be when it’s finally in full view.

You can find the mural on the east side of the library building, at the corner of East 2nd Avenue and Kalmia Street.

The mural tells a mythological story. It begins:

In the beginning, the earth was covered with water. Two brothers lived under the water and wondered what lay above. They climbed a high mountain, and the younger brother reached the top first. From there he saw the earth being formed by insects coming up from inside the mountain, each carrying a small bit of rock, building the land as ants built their hills…

It is the Kumeyaay creation story. Read more about it here.

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Live glassblowing and beer in Escondido!

A cool event is being held today and tomorrow at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido. Hot Glass, Cold Beer: A Fundraiser for the Arts features lots of amazing glass art created by local artists! Beer, too!

By sheer coincidence I ran into the event today while walking to the nearby museum. It’s very similar to the glassblowing event I experienced last year in the same Cal Club Courtyard.

If you want to check out an amazing variety of glass art and colorful glassware, head over tomorrow, April 4, 2026, between noon and 5 pm. The event is free. The glassblowing demonstration is led by renowned glass artist James Stone of Stone & Glass.

Sit down, watch, and enjoy a beer. Here’s the event website listing some of the participating artists and organizations.

James Stone and participating artists will generously donate hand-blown glass cups, which will be given away with a complimentary drink ticket in exchange for a $25 donation.

My next photo shows some of the hand-crafted fused glass created by Parris Toyzan (@parrisorginals). Here’s the website.

Parris was nice enough to describe how he carefully makes these amazing creations with a kiln and colored glass!

By purchasing a beautiful glass on one table you support kids learning glassblowing at schools in Escondido and North San Diego County!

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Award-winning quilt in Balboa Park Visitors Center!

Next time you enter the Balboa Park Visitors Center, move to the left side of the front counter and look up. You’ll see an amazing quilt on the wall!

The quilt, titled THE BOTANICAL GARDENS OF BALBOA PARK, depicts the Botanical Building and Lily Pond. It’s so detailed and exquisite that it won a prestigious national award. It took First Place in the Group Quilts category at the American Quilter’s Society 32nd National QuiltWeek competition in 2016! Here’s the AQS website with all the winners.

Who created this fantastic work of art? The eight members of San Diego quilting group Bobbin Buddies! The quilt was made to celebrate Balboa Park’s centennial.

The award-winning quilt would go on to be included in the Brigham City Museum’s 46th International Quilt Invitational Exhibit in 2018.

This webpage describes how the beautiful quilt was created, and how it was purchased by the Balboa Park Conservancy and has been on display in its Visitors Center. (Today the Visitors Center is operated by Forever Balboa Park.)

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