Early October. A walk in Balboa Park. Another fine Sunday full of sunshine and magic.
I headed nowhere in particular.
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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!
Visitors to Balboa Park should be warned that an army of evil creatures is gathering in the southwest corner of the park, along what is known as The Haunted Trail.
Every October grisly ghouls, bloody demons and creepy clowns assemble under the trees to scare thrill-seekers in the dark of night.
Perhaps it all has something to do with the approach of Halloween.
Beware!
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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!
A super fun and enjoyable exhibit is now on display at the Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park!
Toying with Design intentionally coincides with San Diego Design Week 2022, which concludes today. Fortunately, however, this very unique exhibit will continue on until February 2023.
So what will visitors to one corner of the Mingei’s upstairs gallery see? Lots of clever designs! Including all sorts of inspired designs that make common functional household items as playful as toys!
I particularly enjoyed how ordinary kitchen utensils were creatively infused with surprising humor!
Check it out!
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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 Mexican state of Nayarit was celebrated today at the International Cottages in Balboa Park!
Baile folklórico dancers performed outside the House of Mexico cottage, and various displays promoting tourism in Nayarit greeted surprised visitors wandering through the park.
As soon as I noticed all the costumes and smiles, I was drawn right in!
As I understand it, the Mexican Secretary of Tourism teamed up with the House of Mexico to promote Nayarit with this special cultural event.
The state of Nayarit is located on the west coast of Mexico and features popular beaches, fascinating history and beautiful scenery.
This is what my camera recorded…
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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!
Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away earlier this month, is being memorialized inside the House of England at Balboa Park’s International Cottages.
Inside the cottage visitors will find notes of sympathy and bits of artwork accompanying photographs of the late Queen. During her long reign, through seven decades of the world’s turbulent history, Queen Elizabeth II remained beloved by many.
I stepped into the House of England’s cottage during my walk through Balboa Park today and took these photographs…
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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 historic Starlight Bowl in Balboa Park has been out of operation since 2011. The organization Save Starlight has been working diligently to bring this beloved open air amphitheater back to life!
If you’d like to lend a hand, consider signing this online petition. Add your voice to others who urge the City of San Diego to grant Save Starlight a lease, so that they can begin the needed renovations and finally open to the public!
I added my name to the petition a moment ago. Will you?
You, too, can sign the petition, or learn more about the project, by clicking here!
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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!
Where can you listen to exquisitely played classical music, then laugh at absurdly silly slapstick humor . . . all in one sitting?
At Silent Movie Night!
This evening, acclaimed concert organist Clara Gerdes played classical compositions by Dvořák, Duruflé and Liszt on the incomparable Spreckels Organ in Balboa Park. Then immediately after, the audience was laughing uproariously to the gag-filled antics of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton! (Accompanied by organ, of course!)
From the sublime to the absurd. That was the magic of Silent Movie Night at the 34th San Diego International Organ Festival!
You didn’t go? Why not?
Silent Movie Night is one of the most fun events every summer in Balboa Park. A couple thousand happy people fill the benches at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion. And it’s free!
So watch for it next year!
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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 COVID-19 pandemic was difficult for all of us. Tragically, many would not live through it.
We all remember the long days of uncertainty, fear, loneliness, forced isolation.
If you head to Balboa Park today, you need to stop by the San Diego Museum of Art to experience Paintings from the Confinement. Today is the final day of this emotionally moving exhibition.
I viewed the small egg tempera paintings, created by San Diego artist Marianela de la Hoz, at the urging of my museum docent friend Catherine.
The images are symbolic, spare, often grim. There is darkness. There are claustrophobic spaces. There is flat human life on small cold screens. But there are a few rays of hope beyond the confining walls. Thank goodness those walls have now mostly come down.
The artist found it hard to honestly paint her many feelings. In particular, it was very hard to portray death.
In her statement, Marianela de la Hoz explains the only treasures I have are my loved ones, family, friends, and art; everything else remained as non-essential.
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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 San Diego Museum of Art in Balboa Park has been invaded by wild beasts!
Les Fauves is French for Wild Beasts, and paintings by early 20th century artists known as the Fauves are running rampant in one amazing gallery!
These particular paintings are part of a wider exhibition titled Monet to Matisse: Impressionist Masterpieces from the Bemberg Foundation. I visited the San Diego Museum of Art back in May and blogged about the exhibition here.
During my visit yesterday, my docent friend Catherine took me through several of the museum galleries and explained how Impressionism evolved into Post-Impressionism and other avant-garde movements.
Fauvism was a modern movement that shocked art lovers in France between 1905 and 1908. It was led by Henri Matisse, André Derain and Maurice de Vlaminck.
Looking at these canvases, museum visitors can see how the Fauves loved strong contrasts, saturated colors and bold brush strokes producing abstract, often weirdly unexpected forms.
Trees can appear as gangly streaks of pure color. Thick smudges and dabs of paint create startling still life images and brilliant landscapes.
In a strange way the dreamlike effect is similar to the gauzy, delicate work of the Impressionists. The viewer feels the momentary impression of a place or object. But these particular dreams are quite vivid!
The more I looked at these unique works, the more I appreciated the artistry and visionary genius of the Wild Beasts.
Head down to the San Diego Museum of Art and experience this famous artwork with your own eyes!
Monet to Matisse: Impressionist Masterpieces from the Bemberg Foundation was to end in August, but it has been extended through October 10, 2022.
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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!
Look what I stumbled upon this morning!
I was walking through Balboa Park near the San Diego Automotive Museum when I spied a bunch of Pantera sports cars. And the proud owners were taking a group photograph.
What was going on?
Today, August 27th, is Drive Your Pantera Day!
From what I could gather, these were all members of the San Diego Panteras club.
Considering the fact that only about 7,000 Panteras were manufactured, it was awesome to see about a dozen of these cool cars collected in one spot!
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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! 