The world of Batman features crazy, mad characters. So it’s not surprising that superheroes Batman, Batgirl and the supervillain Mad Hatter are lurking in one of Balboa Park’s most crazily creative corners: the San Diego Sculptors Guild courtyard in Spanish Village!
Batman and Batgirl together form a bench on which anybody can sit. Snap a selfie with two legendary heroes! The artwork, titled Bats United, was built by artist Kim Ogburn.
Across the courtyard of sculptures, a Mad Hatter chair invites fans of DC Comics supervillains. It’s the Mad Hatter Chatterchair!
Are you an Alice in Wonderland fan? Perhaps this Mad Hatter isn’t part of Batman’s rogues gallery, but merely mad. The chair might make the perfect accessory for a Mad Tea Party!
Both fun seats are for sale outside Studio 36, home of the San Diego Sculptors Guild!
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All sorts of tasty sights are popping up around downtown San Diego before the start of Comic-Con 2023!
Today is Saturday. Check out some of the fun stuff I came across while walking around the San Diego Convention Center, through the Gaslamp and into East Village!
A funny hamburger with eyeballs promotes Good Burger 2 from Nickelodeon.The anime film Sand Land will have its world premiere screening at Comic-Con on July 21, 2023.This cool structure will be part of Hulu’s Animayhem activation behind the San Diego Convention Center.And beyond it, you can see the big Star Trek wrap on a Marriot Marquis tower.Archer prop probably needs to be transported over to the FX area.More structures being set up for Hulu’s Animayhem.I can’t wait to check it out during Comic-Con!Adult Swim on the Green hasn’t made much construction progress, seemingly.The FX offsite this year is under construction. It appears to be less elaborate than usual.FX will promote its shows here.Alice in Wonderland and the mad tea party have been painted on the windows of Starbucks at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront.Looking across Harbor Drive toward the huge Special Ops: Lioness building wrap.I love the FOX animation wrap on the Omni so much I took another pic today of one section!Looking toward the Gaslamp Quarter Archway from Gaslamp Square.Looking at Hard Rock Hotel from Gaslamp Square.Worker setting up the NBC offsite at Gaslamp Square.The NBC activation appears to have several structures.A big Yellowjackets wrap being applied to the front of the Hard Rock Hotel.This should look pretty cool when finished!Here’s one of the nearby Amazon Prime Video wraps: Invincible.Happy Does will be the site of Paramount’s “The Lodge” offsite.Workers busy getting The Lodge ready for Comic-Con.Part of the big Daryl Dixon wrap on the Pendry hotel. The dead are still walking on AMC.Dead City on a Pendry window.Fear the Walking Dead. I don’t want to become food, so I’ll keep my head on a swivel!A super cool activation at Ninth Avenue and J Street. It’s the Sonic the Hedgehog Speed Cafe!Sonic runs across an East Village window.A few would-be-Sonics were waiting in line for the unique culinary experience. Hungry fans weren’t moving too quickly, but quite excited!
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I’m covering Comic-Con again this year. To see all my current and past blog posts concerning Comic-Con, click here and scroll down!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
I was heading through the Gaslamp Quarter up Fifth Avenue when I noticed a new mural was being painted. An artist was working in the outside stairwell entrance of Vin de Syrah, a “hidden” subterranean wine parlor. Over the years, I’ve noticed that new murals appear in this stairwell every so often, but until I performed a little research today I hadn’t known where these steps led.
In the past, fantastic murals that I’ve seen at the entrance to Vin de Syrah have often included elements from Alice in Wonderland.
When I noticed the muralist at work below, I looked down and said hello, but it didn’t appear that she heard me. Her style seems familiar, but I can’t identify the artist. I have a hunch I’ve photographed the work of this artist elsewhere in San Diego!
Today I walked past this new Vin de Syrah mural and took the following photograph:
UPDATE!
I’ve learned the artist is Delilah Strukel. Check out her Instagram page here!
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The Mad Hatter in street art at one end of a Logan Heights alley.
That alley in Logan Heights where I discovered Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles street art is home to even more spray paint characters and graffiti. Bold images reflect life in a sometimes tough urban setting.
I read that a public art project in Logan Heights targeted several neighborhood alleys, so I assume these images were part of that effort. As I walked along, I spotted many different artist names.
(On a later visit to the neighborhood I learned the community group that created all this cool art is called the San Diego Art Team!)
Lewis Carroll characters have been spray painted alongside graffiti in Logan Heights.
The blue Caterpillar on a mushroom smoking a hookah is from Alice in Wonderland.
A section of bold urban art on a long wall.
A wicked-looking character seems to be spray painting the graffiti next to him.
Another section of colorful graffiti.
Somos Todos Pistoleros above a pyramid in The Alley Gallery.
A bird-like character drinking from a green bottle.
A character with sunglasses and headphones holds a boombox with fang-like teeth.
Elaborate urban artwork completely covers a long alley wall in Logan Heights.
That looks like one mean cockroach!
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!
Just inside the O’Brien Gate at the 2016 San Diego County Fair. This year’s theme is Alice in Wonderland.
I have photographic proof that Alice has popped back out of the rabbit hole. In fact, she has emerged from Wonderland only to find herself smack dab in the middle of the San Diego County Fair!
Yes, the slogan this year is “Mad About the Fair.” And should you head up to Del Mar and purchase a ticket, you’ll find yourself among thousands of San Diegans enjoying scenes and characters from the classic children’s book Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by the immortal author Lewis Carroll.
The San Diego County Fair is a wonderful place to enjoy a lazy summer’s day no matter what the theme. You can eat deep fried Twinkies, take a ride in the Fun Zone, toss a ring at a bottle, and see all sorts of cool performances, craft exhibits and livestock. But this year it might be better than ever. Alice in Wonderland is just too much fun.
Walking down the good old midway. Once known as the Del Mar Fair, the county fair is a wildly popular summer attraction in Southern California.
There’s a White Rabbit walking along! Don’t follow him! You don’t know where he might lead!
Alice falls down the rabbit hole. One of many outstanding works of art by high school students displayed at the San Diego County Fair.
A high school pencil drawing of an imaginative Wonderland.
A first place winner at the San Diego County Fair. This student created a very nice visual composition.
More fantastic art. Alice tries to make her way through endless weirdness and absurdity.
One of many fun displays outside at the Paul Ecke Jr. Garden Show. I see the grinning Cheshire Cat and all sorts of other Alice in Wonderland stuff.
Some steampunk contraptions at the outdoor garden show. I see a cool steampunk washing machine and a weird metal Mad Hatter taking a shower.
Another fun entry at the garden show. These gardens seem to contain many teacups and mushrooms.
Flowers, butterflies and trees shaped like hearts, diamonds, spades and clubs.
The Queen of Hearts wants people to have their photo taken here. Or it’s off with their heads, I suppose.
It’s Tweedledum and Tweedledee. They’re from the sequel to Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, the equally classic Through the Looking-Glass.
Some more fun Alice in Wonderland pottery characters created by The Madd Potter.
A long colorful mural above some fair vendors depicts beloved characters created by Lewis Carroll. Their appearance has evolved due to popular culture and now incorporate steampunk elements like goggles.
Alice plays flamingo croquet in a fantasy world full of rampant irrationality and nonsense.
Even the Cheshire Cat has gone steampunk!
Get ready to enter the Mad About the Fair exhibit. It’s dark inside, so many photos didn’t turn out so good.
I’ve spotted Alice! She’s passing a huge hat possibly worn by The Hatter. He must have one huge head.
One display highlights differently illustrated Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland books over the years. Some are imaginative adaptations or interpretations.
A super long table in the exhibit was set for an epic tea party!
A whole variety of displays paid homage to the Steampunk genre. Here are some Victorian ladies in cool steampunk top hats.
A very cool steampunk mechanical man made of brass gears, with a glass globe for its head.
Clocks seem to be a common Wonderland motif. All sorts of fun old clocks were displayed on this wall. I didn’t see the White Rabbit’s pocket watch.
The cool artwork of singing legend Grace Slick was on display! You might remember the Jefferson Airplane smash hit White Rabbit.
The White Rabbit represents curiosity–always in a hurry and just out of reach. He is a moving mystery.
Alice awaits at the 2016 San Diego County Fair. Follow her back down into the rabbit hole, if you dare!
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
Do you like to read short pieces of very imaginative, thought-provoking fiction? You might enjoy checking out Short Stories by Richard.
Amazing wood art. A hooded figure takes a break at an inn. Just Off The Road, Basswood, Randy Stoner.
Today I moseyed around Del Mar and Solana Beach. My walk included a couple of stimulating hours at the San Diego County Fair. I just wandered about, soaking it all in, and found my feet heading toward my favorite part of the fair, the Design in Wood Exhibition.
Some of the best wood artists in Southern California–the world, for that matter–submitted their incredible pieces this year to be judged. The exhibition, a collaboration with the San Diego Fine Woodworkers Association, is celebrating its 35th year.
Here is some of the wildly creative woodwork that really caught my eye. You’ll notice many pieces have an Alice in Wonderland theme. That’s because this year’s San Diego County Fair is all about that timeless children’s book penned by Lewis Carroll. White Rabbits, March Hares and Mad Hatters abound! Everywhere you turn there’s a tea party or a grinning Cheshire Cat!
The Alice in Wonderland theme intersects with Steampunk, of course, so many fantastic contraptions and quirky bits of wood art are included in the exhibition. Take a look!
Glass table supported by fantastic underwater character carved from wood. Califa’s Realm, Avocado, Lorenzo Foncerrada.
A steampunk writer might enjoy creating new worlds while sitting here! Time Machine Desk, Recycled Pine and Plywood, Jeffrey Comulada.
Yikes! Get out of the way! This eye-catching contraption is just too cool. Scorpion Wheelchair, Pine, Roger Aceve.
A truly amazing fantasy woodcarving. Julia the Dragon Killer, Bass, Antonio Barrios.
Ancient warrior and an incredibly elaborate helmet made of wood. Dracon Soldier, Bass, Antonio Barrios.
More outstanding artistry. Heron in a scene from a San Diego lagoon. Spirit of San Elijo, Torrey Pine, Lorenzo Foncerrada.
Wood grains flow in this crazy organic bench. Ongoing Conversation, Baltic Birch, Alan Johnson.
A very cool tangle-tentacled wooden octopus. Denizen of the Deep, Maple, Tom Edwards.
Perhaps this is a wood version of Strider from Lord of the Rings. Ranger, Basswood, Randy Stoner.
A mountain lion carved from wood keeps guard among other spectacular works of art. Kitty Kitty, Mahogany, Bill Churchill.
This skeleton pirate with a brass steampunk telescope is beyond awesome. Mutiny, Bloodwood Fir, Mike Anderson.
Two very cool handmade guitars with an Alice in Wonderland theme. I see clocks, the White Rabbit, a mad tea party, even a mustache!
I love this example of imaginative wood design. Jack Rabbit, Alder, Ray Camien.
Members of the San Diego Scrollsaw Clubs demonstrate their craft to people visiting the Design in Wood Exhibition at the San Diego County Fair.
A wonderfully inventive piece of furniture. Birdcage Chair, White Oak, Patrick Atangan.
Looks like an animal skull in the desert Southwest. Early, Early American Chair, Poplar, Del Cover.
This might be the most intricate model tall ship I ever saw. Sovereign of the Seas, Boxwood, Mahogany, Ebony, Sycamore, William Norris.
When a person becomes old, there’s no need to become dull. Two Canes, Various, Tracy Talbott.
A fun chest of drawers perfect for a kid’s room. Buddy Bear, Walnut, Ralph Crowther.
I wonder if Lewis Carroll imagined there would be steampunk powerboats one day. Looking For Alice, Various, Michael Rumsey.
I love the cosmic layered wood sky with Saturn behind buildings. Night Surfing, Hardwood Plywood, Robert Stafford.
Gears aplenty. Steampunk Cat, Various, Stephen Knight.
Now this work of wood art totally blew my mind. Absolutely beautiful. Stormy, Various, Chuck Collins.
Yeah, some days this pensive chimp could easily outwit me. Thinking, Various, Daryoush Ababaf.
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of fun photos for you to enjoy!
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