This old rusty steel skeleton of a ship is actually one of two cool sculptures near the Pier 32 Marina in National City.
Check out these two very cool sculptures! I spotted them as I walked from a National City trolley station to Pepper Park yesterday, on my way to the big International Mariachi Festival.
Both of these sculptures are located at the Pier 32 Marina. And both are a lot of fun!
This huge metal sculpture by the marina flags is called Le Bateau Ivre, by artist Alber De Matteis, 2008.More detailed photo of this work of awesome nautical art! Looks like a ghost ship!The second sculpture, just down a pathway, is School of Blue Bottle Noses, by artist David Boyer, 2008. It was part of an Urban Trees exhibition on San Diego’s Embarcadero.Those blue Bottlenoses are actually bottles! Like a pod of turning dolphins, they shift direction in the wind!
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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 fun photos for you to share and enjoy!
Faces in a Mission Beach alley peer from behind trash bins.
During my walk down Mission Boulevard through Mission Beach, I discovered an alley just south of Pismo Court that’s overflowing with super creative street art! A friendly dude named Vinny told me he created the scrap metal sculptures, and his buddy painted the walls. Check it out!
Awesome street art can be seen in an alley off Mission Boulevard just south of Pismo Court. Local guys have painted walls and created cool metal sculptures.A spray painted sea lion near a door in the alley.A sea turtle and dolphin swim across a wall.The sculpture with American flag was created by Vinny after 911, who used scrap metal that he found discarded in the neighborhood.Loads of creative art and fun beachy stuff in front of Vinny’s place, an example of the happy, laid-back Mission Beach vibe.This alley is like a treasure chest full of street art gold!
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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!
Street mural by artist Amandalynn, painted in 2016 near Mission Boulevard in Pacific Beach.
On Saturday I walked down Mission Boulevard through both Pacific Beach and Mission Beach. I was blown away by some of the really cool street art that I found. As you’ll see, many of the colorful murals that I spied in Pacific Beach were painted just last year.
This batch of photos represents my walk south along Mission Boulevard, which is a block from the beach, from around Emerald Street to Pacific Beach Drive. In a coming blog post, I’ll share the fun and very unusual art I encountered as I continued south through Mission Beach.
A second photo of the eye-catching mural by Amandalynn, which shows beautiful ladies in a colorful underwater scene.The Pacific Beach Mermaid hangs out on a rock painted on a wall. Art by Jared Blake Lazar a.k.a Jared Black Lazer.A humorous sign on the sidewalk. Head into this barber shop and come out a completely different person!
I don’t know if some critics would classify the above as art–but it was undeniably funny!
Street art on a utility box. The curl of this coffee’s steam resembles the surf beyond the sand.Bunny Kitty carries a cigarette butt away as a fierce sea monster emerges from the deep. Pacific Beach art created in 2016 by Dave Persue for PangeaSeed.A cool mural near The Local Pacific Beach restaurant and bar, painted in 2016 by artists Sean Dietrich and Kai Martin. A blonde on roller skates, the PB boardwalk, surfboards, and a rather unusual car.A very funny utility box. This side shows a woman at the beach covering the eyes of a small boy.Another side shows Pacific Beach tourists who have spotted something that is both interesting and alarming.100 years of skating talent between us, but……nobody notices!Another utility box is covered with mermaids. This friendly purple mermaid watches humans driving down Mission Boulevard.Another long-haired mermaid on the same box.And a third happy mermaid!Two ladies walking along the edge of a parking lot toward the nearby beach. They pass someone snoozing in a hammock strung between palm trees.Street art on doors shows a surfer climbing toward a lifeguard tower at sunset.One additional look at the gorgeous art painted in 2016 by muralist Amandalynn in Pacific Beach.
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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 fun photos for you to share and enjoy!
The Valeiras Sculpture Garden includes several works. It’s located near the front entrance of San Diego Central Library’s Art Gallery on the Ninth floor.
Head up to the Ninth floor of San Diego’s downtown Central Library and you’re likely to see the small Valeiras Sculpture Garden, just outside the Art Gallery. Several lattice-like metal sculptures attract and interest the eye. They were created by local artist Christoper Puzio, who incorporates a variety of geometric patterns into many of his pieces.
Just in case you can’t see them in person, here are a few photos.
Jacob’s Staff, by artist Christopher Puzio, 2015.Morocco, by artist Christopher Puzio, 2015. This piece hangs on a wall just inside the Art Gallery’s front door.Bishop, by artist Christopher Puzio, 2015.The small Valeiras Sculpture Garden at San Diego’s Central Library is located on the Ninth floor, adjacent to the Art Gallery.
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Do you like to read? You might enjoy a short story that I’ve written. Final Real Magic is its title.
A special exhibit at the public library in downtown San Diego showcases modern graphic design from the mid-twentieth century.
A fascinating exhibition at the San Diego Central Library will be running through May 7, 2017. You can find it on the 9th floor in the library’s Art Gallery. The exhibition, titled Print Culture: Midcentury Modern Graphic Design in San Diego, concerns artistic expression and the evolution of printing technology during the mid-20th century. Emphasis is placed on San Diego-based independent artists and local businesses, particularly defense contractors.
Artists, graphic designers, printers and those who enjoy learning about San Diego’s history and culture really should pay a visit to the gallery. Here are some photos which provide a taste of what you’ll see.
Print Culture: Midcentury Modern Graphic Design in San Diego is an exhibition now showing through May 7, 2017. The work of local designers, illustrators and artists is on display.Many images created locally for various purposes are shown in the gallery. A uniquely bold style of graphic design emerged in the 1950’s and evolved over the ensuing decades.I was interested to see an image of Donal Hord’s sculpture Aztec. A few days ago I posted several photographs that I took of this iconic work of art.More examples of graphic design from this sometimes overlooked period. Many creative artists produced their own printed material.The defense industry in San Diego produced many posters, drawings, charts, presentations and signs in the mid-20th century. Printing machines evolved which facilitated their production.More interesting examples of printed artwork and ephemera.Small-scale press operations created many types of colorful printed material, including greeting cards.A display case in the Central Library’s gallery contains more unique examples of printed art from the mid-twentieth century.This special exhibition contains many pieces that one can study and admire.Colorful posters, invitations and cards were popular in the mid-1900’s.Graphics designed specifically for fine art galleries are also on display.Some graphics produced by San Diego-based companies for the military.The U.S. Navy’s large presence in San Diego required the production of many pamphlets, charts and other printed documents.One display explains how physical art was first conceptualized and created before finally being printed on a magazine cover.A fascinating look at another era’s artistic expression through graphic design. It’s apparent that our culture has been greatly influenced by the evolution of printing technology.
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Writing is a struggle. After revising my latest short story over and over again, I believe that I finally have it right. This story is so short you’ll be able to read it in less than one minute! It’s called The Piano Player Sat Down.
An amazing drawing of a human eye. Window to the soul.
A professional henna tattoo artist was set up near Seaport Village, and as I walked by I was struck by a drawing that she was patiently working on. You can see it in my second photograph.
Jaya Tulasi is a super nice person who let me see some of her artwork. Her drawings are so elegant and precise that they truly are stunning. It’s like looking at small pieces of perfection. She likes to draw while waiting for henna customers. All I can say is, keep on drawing! Wow!
Jaya is based out of San Diego and Los Angeles. Please check out her website!
This elegant drawing of a sunflower stopped me in my tracks. Patience combined with great talent.
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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!
Face of iconic sculpture Aztec, presented to SDSU in 1937 by San Diego artist Donal Hord.
An iconic work of art can be found at San Diego State University. The diorite sculpture is considered by many to be a modernist masterpiece–some have called it one of the finest stone figures ever sculpted. Its renowned artist, Donal Hord, who lived most of his life in San Diego, referred to his creation as Aztec or The Aztec. He presented the amazing sculpture to SDSU in 1937 during a Founder’s Day celebration.
I headed over to SDSU yesterday to see the sculpture for myself and hopefully take some photos. I was struck by the quiet strength, nobility and simplicity of the work. I could have rested my eyes and mind upon the Aztec for a very long while. It touched my innermost feelings about humanity–elevating those feelings. Art done well cuts deeper than philosophy. It reaches deep inside like potent magic.
Donal Hord with Aztec, 1937, at San Diego State University. Public domain image from the collection of the Archives of American Art.The sculpture’s base, which was presented to SDSU by the graduating class of 1937, has a plaque with the title Montezuma. The artist himself called his piece the Aztec.A tranquil, bold sculpture that evokes feelings of human nobility.Side view of the Aztec shows gracefully folded hands and strongly planted feet.The diorite sculpture seems to be carved from the eternal substance of the black, star-filled cosmos. Light upon its curving surface is like gentle light on rippled water.An expression of strength, thoughtfulness, humility. An iconic image one will not soon forget.
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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 share and enjoy!
Something cool has sprung up at the center of Balboa Park’s theater complex.
Look what I spied today during my walk through Balboa Park! Some people were milling around an interesting work of interactive art in front of the Old Globe, and I had to check it out. Turns out I had stumbled upon The Journey, some fun outdoor artwork created by Dan Reeves. The Journey is inspired by the Old Globe Theatre’s production of Steve Martin’s play Picasso at the Lapin Agile.
I learned this is a section of a larger torus that will appear at the next Burning Man. The Journey is a mortise and tenon structure made of wood, which produces a unique lighting and audio experience best seen at night. Illuminated with colorful LED lights, people can pose for photographs!
Better check it out soon. The Journey will be on display at the Old Globe until this Sunday, January 19!
The Journey is a small section of a larger torus that will be a brilliant, spectacular work of art at Burning Man.The Journey is on view at the Old Globe Theatre’s Copley Plaza through this Sunday, February 19. A cool experience inspired by the Steve Martin play Picasso at the Lapin Agile.Pose in this uniquely colorful work of art after dark and you can have a spectacular photo taken!
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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!
Colorful quilting artwork in a window of the Visions Art Museum at Liberty Station.
I’ve blogged many times about Liberty Station. But there’s always more to discover.
Yesterday I walked around the historic old Navy base, and was pleased to take a few photographs that you might enjoy. I spotted some artwork and framed some of the place’s beauty.
These few moments in time and space might seem random, but it was all new to me. That’s why I like to walk.
I spotted this bust in a nook while walking along the North Promenade. It was probably created in a nearby art studio. I could find no information.The beautiful Galinson Family Fountain at NTC Liberty Station.I spotted this cool metal wire sculpture of a man dining on the planet Earth near an old, peeling Naval Training Center wall. Plastic Dinner, by Spenser Little. The art includes a dangling mobile and casts a thin, weird shadow.Peer into one window at IDW Publishing, headquartered at Liberty Station, and you’ll see a huge statue of Leonardo, of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!A peaceful place of natural and man-made beauty, perfect for a slow thoughtful walk.Decoration above an arch. I believe that is explorer Cabrillo’s ship San Salvador. He entered San Diego Bay not far from here.Looking down a long colonnade where U.S. Navy sailor recruits once walked.Photo of the eye-pleasing USNTC North Chapel, reflecting the Point Loma sunshine one Sunday.Nautical symbols above the front entrance to the Navy’s old North Chapel at Liberty Station.
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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 fun photos for you to share and enjoy!
A huge postcard has appeared on Dewey Road in Point Loma, at the southwest end of Liberty Station’s Arts District!
I walked around Liberty Station today before sitting down by the boat channel to write another short story. And look what I discovered! It’s the first time I’ve seen this cool mural!
This new public art resembles a gigantic postcard, which reads: Greetings from U.S. Naval Training Station. It was created by the two artists who painted the postcard-like Greetings from San Diego mural, which I photographed a month ago in North Park. Victor Ving and Lisa Beggs are travelling around the country in an RV and creating a whole bunch of these huge colorful postcard murals!
Painted inside the letters I see scenes from Ingram Plaza, the Barracks Arcade, Liberty Public Market and the USS Recruit!
As you might know, the U.S. Naval Training Station, or Naval Training Center San Diego, was a military base where thousands of sailor recruits learned the ropes upon enlisting in the U.S. Navy. It closed in 1997 and has been redeveloped into a mixed cultural, recreational, shopping, business and residential complex in Point Loma. It’s like a spacious park with lots of grass, arched walkways and fountains–a perfect place to relax!
During my stroll today though Liberty Station, I discovered even more public art, which I’ll blog about shortly. And please watch for my new work of fiction at Short Stories by Richard. I think it’s almost done!
Greetings from U.S. Naval Training Center. A cool new mural at Liberty Station by artists Victor Ving and Lisa Beggs.
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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!
Cool San Diego Sights! 