Tag: artists

Public art in Escondido: two female bronzes.

Lorelei, Gale Pruitt, 2005.
Lorelei, Gale Pruitt, 2005.

Two female bronze sculptures welcome visitors to the Plaza Civic Center shopping mall in Escondido. I saw them yesterday as I walked to the California Center for the Arts. The sculptures can be found on North Escondido Boulevard, directly across from the regional cultural complex.

Both fine pieces of public art were created by local sculptor Gale Pruitt. Lorelei depicts a woman summoning with her outstretched arm as she lies on a rock, just as the siren-like figure in German lore. Elation depicts a girl with her head bent skyward in joyful ecstasy.

I took several photos!

Lorelei, Gale Pruitt, 2005.
Lorelei, Gale Pruitt, 2005.
Lorelei, Gale Pruitt, 2005.
Lorelei, Gale Pruitt, 2005.
Elation, Gale Pruitt, 2006.
Elation, Gale Pruitt, 2006.
Elation, Gale Pruitt, 2006.
Elation, Gale Pruitt, 2006.
Elation, Gale Pruitt, 2006.
Elation, Gale Pruitt, 2006.

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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!

Cool new mural at Humphrey Appliance!

A cool new mural has been painted on the east side of Humphrey Appliance in Normal Heights! I noticed it while walking down Adams Avenue yesterday.

The artist is Jonathan Wenner (Unity21). I did my best to get good photos, but various boxes and pieces of furniture in the small parking lot block the lower part of the artwork.

Enjoy!

UPDATE!

I got an unobstructed photo on a later walk…

IMG_7530

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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!

Beauty by a street artist who vanished.

It has been nearly three years since I’ve seen the street artist who calls herself Tree. I wonder where she is.

Our lives are all in motion. We tumble along down intersecting sidewalks and Time is our wind.

Like colorful leaves, the small, beautiful works of Tree remain scattered about the world.

Discover public art sculptures around San Diego!

Over the years, I’ve photographed many of the public art sculptures that can be found all around San Diego.

Because Cool San Diego Sights is now over six years old, and most readers have seen only a small fraction of my blog, I thought it would be fun to link to some old posts.

The following links don’t include all of the sculptures I’ve photographed, but they do provide a convenient starting point for a journey of discovery!

Click the following links:

Amazing public art is a hidden San Diego gem.

That big bronze pelican in Pacific Beach!

Photos of Donal Hord’s iconic sculpture Aztec.

Fun photos of Sun God bird sculpture at UCSD.

Photos of Queen Califia’s Magical Circle!

Bronze lifeguard watches the surf in Ocean Beach.

The Spirit of Imperial Beach surfer sculpture.

The Pioneers sculpture at Old Poway Park.

Photos of Tony Gwynn statue at Lake Poway.

A walk through history in The Village of La Mesa.

The arches of National City’s Morgan Square Plaza.

Art and history at Lemon Grove Trolley Depot!

Giant seashell sculpture is a Growing Home!

A shining Flame of Friendship from Mexico.

300 year old Kannon statue in Balboa Park!

Dr. Seuss and Cat in the Hat sculpture at UCSD.

Photos of The Padre sculpture in Presidio Park.

Two cool sculptures at a National City marina!

Sculpture of Bum, San Diego’s famous town dog.

Shedding the Cloak sculpture inspired by MLK.

New public artwork at Bayside Fire Station!

Pacific Soul by Jaume Plensa rises in San Diego!

The cool sculpture at Humphreys on Shelter Island.

Photos of cool sculptures at Liberty Station.

Terracotta female figures at Heritage Plaza.

Sea Passage sculpture and fountain in Coronado.

A crazy handstand at the edge of a rooftop!

Small bubble bath child: a bronze sculpture.

Creative urban trees add smiles to a San Diego walk.

Here are several links to my other website, Beautiful Balboa Park:

Art of the Open Air in beautiful Balboa Park.

Sculpture and mural in Balboa Park Club’s grand foyer.

The faces of the Panama-California Sculpture Court.

Public art at Liberty Station invites interaction.

Facetime is a site-specific public art piece that offers three separate spaces for both interaction and contemplation, while providing temporary shelter.
Facetime is a site-specific public art piece that offers three separate spaces for both interaction and contemplation, while providing temporary shelter.

Very cool new public art was installed at Liberty Station this summer. I saw it for the first time last weekend while I experienced the La Jolla Playhouse’s outdoor WOW festival.

The public art is titled Facetime. It was created by Ocean Beach artist Miki Iwasaki. Three angular sculptures made of corten steel contain seats, inviting face to face human interaction.

I watched a couple enter one shelter, promptly pull out phones and bow their heads.

At least they sat near one another.

Facetime on grass near walkways at Liberty Station.
Facetime on grass near walkways at Liberty Station.
Instead of speaking face to face, two people stare silently down at their phones.
Instead of speaking face to face, two people stare silently down at their phones.
Miki Iwasaki. Facetime. August 2019. Corten steel with seating elements. In partnership with Mingei International Museum.
Miki Iwasaki. Facetime. August 2019. Corten steel with seating elements. In partnership with Mingei International Museum.
Materials will patinate over time, enhancing the visible connection to natural forces and site context.
Materials will patinate over time, enhancing the visible connection to natural forces and site context.
Three can sit near each other in this shady sculpture and share an experience.
Three can sit near each other in this shady sculpture and share an experience.
Facetime is public art located in Liberty Station's ARTS DISTRICT.
Facetime is public art located in Liberty Station’s ARTS DISTRICT.
Cool public art invites human interaction.
Cool public art invites human interaction.

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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!

Fantastic ikebana exhibitions in Balboa Park!

Today I got lucky!

I stumbled upon two different ikebana exhibitions while strolling about Balboa Park!

The first show I enjoyed was being held inside the Casa del Prado. Sogetsu San Diego Branch had filled a large room with many fantastic Japanese flower arrangements.

The Sogetsu School of ikebana originated in 1927. This school of floral arrangement allows for wider individual expression than traditional ikebana, which adheres to formal rules.

According to what I read in a brochure at the show: Sogetsu Ikebana can be created anytime, anywhere, by anyone in any part of the world, and with any kind of material.

You can see in a few of the upcoming photographs that some rather strange materials are indeed used!

The second show I enjoyed was being held inside the Exhibit Hall at the Japanese Friendship Garden. Fantastic arrangements had been created by the Ohara School of Ikebana, La Jolla Chapter.

A friendly artist explained that the Ohara School often creates a sense of natural landscape with flowers and common plants, like grasses, ferns, holly and even garden vegetables! Wide basins and water can enhance the sense the viewer is hovering above a wild garden or beautiful lake.

The careful design of each arrangement incorporates at least one triangle. You can see several of those triangles in my photos:

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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!

The Pioneers sculpture at Old Poway Park.

Last weekend I walked all around Old Poway Park. During my visit I took a look at the park’s many historic structures and interesting sights. When I approached the front of the 1886 Templars Hall, I noticed a large bronze sculpture standing near the foot of the front steps.

The Pioneers is a seven-foot-tall bronze sculpture by renowned local artist Richard Becker. It was commissioned in 2006 by the City of Poway. The gentle figures of a mother, child and faithful dog provide a beautiful tribute to Poway’s early pioneer founders.

Plaque reads: The Pioneers. Sculptor Richard Becker, 2007. Mother and child welcoming families to Poway. A tribute to the pioneers who settled in Poway at the turn of the 19th century.
Plaque reads: The Pioneers. Sculptor Richard Becker, 2007. Mother and child welcoming families to Poway. A tribute to the pioneers who settled in Poway at the turn of the 19th century.

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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!

Colorful new murals on Park Boulevard!

Check out these colorful murals that now decorate the east side of the old Firestone Complete Auto Care building on Park Boulevard, just north of Smart Corner.

All three murals were recently created by the female artists of @ladieswhopaint!

UPDATE!

I took more pics on a later walk…

IMG_3434z

IMG_3429z

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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!

Niki de Saint Phalle’s Grande Step Totem.

One fantastic sculpture by renowned French-American sculptor Niki de Saint Phalle presently stands at the California Center for the Arts in Escondido. Those who pass by the cultural center on their way up North Escondido Boulevard can’t fail to miss it.

I stopped by to have a look at the monumental sculpture, which is titled Grande Step Totem.

A plaque near its base is weathered and cracked and is difficult to read now. I’ve tried to transcribe the English portion of it accurately:

Grande Step Totem

Based in Native American spirituality, Saint Phalle’s Totem is more solemn than much of her work. With a muted color palette and subject matter, this piece encourages introspection. The Totem returned to Escondido on December 19, 2012 after spending the summer on view with several other Saint Phalle pieces on Park Avenue in New York City.

NIKI DE SAINT PHALLE

2001

Polyurethane foam resin, steel armature, ceramic tiles, stained glass, tumbled stone.

As you can see, some construction work was being done around the base of the sculpture when I visited last weekend. Here are my photos…

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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!

Art inside the Balboa Park Activity Center.

The Balboa Park Activity Center is a popular destination for San Diego residents who enjoy indoor sports. During a walk last weekend I poked my nose inside to see if anything interesting was going on. What I discovered was a whole lot of art!

A variety of beautiful artwork can be observed both inside and outside the Activity Center. Four years ago I posted photographs of the outdoor installation titled The Circle and the Self: A Picture Story, which is located in the south plaza. To see those photos, click here.

The photos I’m posting today are of the artwork inside the building.

Detailed information from the artist is displayed near the Activity Center’s front door:

Joyce Cutler-Shaw

In 1996, I was invited to be part of the design team for the Balboa Park Activity Center with architects Rob Wellington Quigley, Richard Blackman, landscape architect Martin Poirier and artist Raul Guerrero. It was a most rewarding collaboration. In April 1999, I completed five installations of my work, which are integral to the building. There are twenty-five drawings in terrazzo squares (@ 16″ x 16″), titled The Circle and the Self: A Picture Story in the south plaza (1); leaf “paintings” with shadows etched into the double glass panes of the sliding front doors (2); two terrazzo floor “paintings” in the entrance lobby at the reception desk and window wall (3′ x 20′ and 5′ x 11′) of, respectively, 26 colors and 68 color/chip combinations (3); and seventy-two metal plates at the corner connections of the gymnasium – these are another translation, by flame-cut drawing in steel, of The Circle and the Self: A Picture Story (4).

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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!