Tag: azalea park

A hike down Manzanita Canyon to Jamie’s Way.

Last weekend I hiked down part of Manzanita Canyon in City Heights. I started at the trailhead just east of the Ocean Discovery Institute and walked along the dry creek bed to a place where the trail splits, then I climbed a short distance up Jamie’s Way trail into Azalea Park.

It was an easy walk full of nature’s beauty. Manzanita Canyon is one of many canyons sprinkled throughout San Diego. These narrow semi-wild corridors provide habitat for birds and a bit of wildlife, and when there are trails like this one, they provide refuge for the spirit.

Jamie’s Way is named after a beloved child from the Azalea Park neighborhood who perished in a car crash. If you’d like to learn more about this amazing little person, who seemed like an angel, click here.

It appears the small rocks along the trailhead at the beginning of my hike were painted by kids at the nearby Ocean Discovery Institute. I saw many sea creatures. I once was told students walk into the canyon here to explore our natural environment.

To learn more about the small park area where Jamie’s Way begins (and where my short, easy hike ended), at the 4200 block of Manzanita Drive, click here. You’ll also see a photograph of a plaque on the bench which is dedicated to Jamie. I took a photo of the plaque, but it is severely weathered beyond recognition, so I’ve chosen not to post it.

Just ahead a few steps I turned to the left and began the short climb up Jamie’s Way.

If you’d like to see an amazing mural that depicts and celebrates the canyon trails in this area, and Jamie’s Trail in particular, click here!

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More fantastic art in Azalea Park!

Here are more photographs of fantastic art that I discovered during my recent adventure in Azalea Park.

This neighborhood on the south end of City Heights is full of surprises, with murals, sculptures and mosaics just about everywhere one turns!

If you’d like to see more public art in Azalea Park that I’ve already shared, you can click here or here or here or here.

Large mural at intersection of Poplar Street and Jamie’s Way by Gloria Muriel.
Mural shows map of City Heights Urban Wilderness Trail.

If you’d like to see a detailed map of the City Heights Canyons Loop Trail, which connects four urban canyons, click here!

One of these days I’ll go hike it!

Natural beauty and wildlife one might see exploring the canyons of City Heights, including nearby Manzanita and Hollywood Canyons.
Teach the Youth above graffiti and Mexican sweet bread, painted on the side of a bakery near the entrance to Azalea Park.
I learned from local artist Jim Bliesner that these colorful palm trees on Poplar were originally located on University Avenue in City Heights.
Murals on The Brown Building community center.
Abstract mural with eyes by Isaias Crow.
Mural on building’s southwest side by @SART95.
A suspended leaf on a street corner. A common sight in Azalea Park, whose street names come from plants and trees.
Amazing artwork on the fence of a very artistic resident of Azalea Park!
Shipping containers by the playground at Azalea Community Park are covered with fantastic murals!
Cool spray paint art by muralist Maxx Moses.
A wall just east of the Azalea Park Water Conservation Garden has been decorated with beautiful murals. Gloria Muriel teamed with several other artists.
Calla Ditos and Gloria Muriel, aka Glow.
Amandalynn and Lady Mags together are known as Alynn-Mags.

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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!

Neighbors create sculptures for community garden!

There’s an outdoor sculpture garden in San Diego that very few know about. It’s called the Azalea Park Water Conservation Garden. You can find this special place in Azalea Park, a neighborhood in south City Heights, at the east end of Azalea Community Park.

Last weekend I was given a tour of the sculptures by local artist Jim Bliesner and members of the Azalea Park Mosaic League!

As you can see in my photos, all of the garden’s imaginative artwork is made of recycled materials. What I really loved is the pieces were all created by people who live in the neighborhood!

Come wander with me through this peaceful garden, down several dirt paths through native drought tolerant vegetation, and let’s see what we might discover…

A tall sculpture attracts those who are nearby. Curious eyes will discover something special.

PEACE BEACON

INSTALLED ON JUNE 12, 2016

IN HONOR OF THE VICTIMS OF THE SHOOTING THAT OCCURRED ON THIS DATE IN ORLANDO, FL.

Donated to the Azalea Park neighborhood, where people of all faiths, cultures, and ethnicities proudly live together as one community. May we shine as a beacon to the rest of the country.

Artist: Vicki Leon, 2016

Installation team: Vicki Leon, Bonnie Brooks, Jennifer Lindsey, Brent Lindsey, Aiya Lindsey, Aiden Lindsey. Title by Aiden Lindsey (10 years old).

City Heights artist Jim Bliesner stands by his fun sculpture Joy Ride. It’s made of colorfully painted car hoods!
A dreamcatcher made of recycled metal objects.
A bull made of old car mufflers.

“The Bull”

By Karim Carlock

Welded by Jose Orozco

I.W.U. Local 229

All the sculptures in the Azalea Park Water Conservation Garden are wonderful. Take a look at this!

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An amazing urban transformation in City Heights!

In November 2013 an incredible thing happened. Over a hundred volunteers from several neighborhoods in City Heights–Castle, Swan Canyon, Fairmount Village and Azalea Park–came together to transform a dangerous, trash-filled vacant lot into a beautiful community gathering place.

In a matter of only a few days, the Manzanita Gathering Place, which you can see in the following photographs, was born.

I was introduced to the Manzanita Gathering Place in the northeast corner of Azalea Park last weekend and was absolutely amazed. The tranquil, rustic, art-filled spot, overlooking Manzanita Canyon, made me feel as if I’d traveled faraway, to the top of a mountain crowned with ancient magic.

Four columns around a stone sitting area are covered with mosaics. About 1500 square feet of mosaic art! The columns represent the four elements: earth, air, water and fire. They also represent the hearts of the many hands that made them–community members from four adjoining urban neighborhoods.

I was told the Manzanita Gathering Place is the perfect place to watch a sunset. I did see the Ocean Discovery Institute across the canyon below. Students often walk from there into the canyon to learn about nature.

A collaboration of community organizers, government, artists, business owners, schools and diverse neighborhood residents, the Manzanita Gathering Place was a Pomegranate Project. According to the Pomegranate Center’s website, the organization helps “communities design and build art-filled gathering places. In sometimes as little as four months from first community meeting to completion of the gathering place, hundreds of volunteers would give thousands of hours planning, designing and building their park. Between 1990 and 2017, Pomegranate Center created some 60 such projects in multiple cities, states, and countries…”

The Manzanita Gathering Place design team consisted of Brennan Hubbell, Ilisa Goldman, Vicki Leon, and mentor Milenko Matanovic, founder of the Pomegranate Center. In 2015 this truly amazing project received a Merit Award from the American Society of Landscape Architects.

A very beautiful nearby mural was painted in 2018 by San Diego artists Gloria Muriel and Alexander Banach…

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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!

The extraordinary mosaics of Azalea Park!

Some of the most extraordinary public art in San Diego can be found in Azalea Park, a neighborhood at the south end of City Heights. Walk or drive along the streets of Azalea Park and you’ll discover unexpected mosaics decorating the sides of trashcans and round sidewalk benches.

When you stop to look closely at these mosaics, it becomes evident that a great deal of effort, thought and artistry was involved in their making. The beautiful designs are truly stunning. Look at the coming photographs and see for yourself.

I was surprised to learn that all of these fantastic mosaics were created by a volunteer group of Azalea Park residents! The team of community beautifiers call themselves the Azalea Park Mosaic League!

Led by local artist Vicki Leon, members of the Azalea Park Mosaic League continue to make their neighborhood a more attractive and welcoming place.

A couple days ago I posted photos of their Art’s Popping Up mosaic sculpture on Poplar Street. If you haven’t seen that yet, click here!

Last weekend I had the opportunity to visit Vicki Leon’s art studio in Azalea Park. The following two photographs show beautiful lotus mosaics that will be installed in Little Saigon, and how she is helping friends and neighbors to create their own mosaic street address signs! Check our her website here.

Her work, and the volunteer efforts of the Azalea Park Mosaic League, can inspire us all to make our own neighborhoods more beautiful!

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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’s Popping Up in Azalea Park!

Art’s Popping Up in colorful Azalea Park!

It is quite literally!

That’s because Art’s Popping Up is the name of a welcoming mosaic sculpture in the median of Poplar Street, at the entrance to Azalea Park, a friendly community in south City Heights!

I enjoyed an inspiring tour around Azalea Park yesterday and will be blogging about lots of amazing artwork.

The bright mosaics on the four sides of Art’s Popping Up were created in 2018 by members of the community. The lead artist, Vicki Leon, has a nearby studio. A team of friends and neighbors, who go by the name Azalea Park Mosaic League, not only helped to create this fantastic sculpture, but with the help of Vicki Leon they’ve produced numerous mosaics throughout Azalea Park.

Several tiles on one side of Art’s Popping Up explain: “This mosaic celebrates art emerging from within our neighborhood. It follows the theme of the Pop Street mosaics on Poplar Street…Framed artworks pop out of an Art Nouveau background, a style of art inspired by the curved lines of plants and flowers, used here to reference Azalea Park’s botanical theme and natural canyons…The continuous rainbow of color is created from hand-cut stained glass and represents our unity and diversity…”

At the top of the tall sculpture are four words selected during meetings of community members. They are: Community, Diversity, Unity and Creativity.

I love how the rainbow of color seems to splash, curl and spurt upward along the four sides of Art’s Popping Up. The mosaic shines brilliantly in the San Diego sunshine as it greets residents going to and from their homes.

Two awesome members of the Azalea Park Mosaic League smile for a photograph of Art’s Popping Up!
Azalea Park is bounded by Manzanita Canyon and Hollywood Canyon. Trails from residential streets provide easy access to nature. Images of hiking, plants and other natural elements that have been sandblasted on colorful ceramic tiles add meaning to the community mosaic.

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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!