Tag: community

Art and creativity at Goldenpalooza!

Art and creativity were busting out everywhere at today’s big, very colorful Goldenpalooza festival at the Golden Hill Recreation Center! Check it out!

The festival offered families creative opportunities at every turn. There were multiple art-making stations and workshops for every age. You could learn how to make a cyanotype, a monster and a zine!

Friendly artists were painting, printmaking, demonstrating their technique and showcasing fantastic creations. There was even a cool, highly original video game created by San Diego locals that kids (or adults) could play!

All this while listening to live music from the stage!

Literacy also had a big presence at the festival. Kids were encouraged to read. Reading is fun and expands your mind!

Okay, can you tell I really loved Goldenpalooza? It was my first ever visit to the festival, and will likely not be my last.

Words Alive San Diego encourages children to read. It’s done with art and adult participation.
A lot of activities for Makers!
Sun Art! Golden Hill is the perfect place for this!
The Joey, Jeremy & Camille Trio wave from the Goldenpalooza stage.
INSIDE:ART (@insideart_sd) supports the fostering of identity for adults with developmental disabilities through dignified access to the creative arts community of San Diego.
The Wall of Questions & Colors by Compagnia Creativa (@compagniacreativa) asks festival goers “What makes you smile?”
Made me smile!
Testing out the cool, locally developed Behemoth video game (find it on STEAM). A bit like the classic arcade game Joust.

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Feeding San Diego brings smiles to Goldenpalooza!

Everyone was smiling at Goldenpalooza in Golden Hill today, especially those at tables stocked with free healthy food, courtesy of Feeding San Diego!

The cost of living seems higher than ever in San Diego, so keeping food on the table is a struggle for too many residents. Feeding San Diego is there to fill in the gaps (and hungry stomachs).

At the Goldenpalooza community festival, people could fill a bag with potatoes, melons, tuna, low fat milk, and other nutritious essentials.

On behalf of so many in San Diego, thank you!

If you’d like to help Feeding San Diego fulfill their mission, or receive help putting food on your own table, visit their website here.

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Dogs of Downtown gather in San Diego!

Another fun Dogs of Downtown event was held today in San Diego! Canines were the furry superstars on the outdoor WeWork Terrace at 600 B Street!

Downtown residents and four-footed best friends enjoyed free live music, a pup fashion show, dog-centered art, crafts and goods, and the opportunity for dog adoption. There were even VIP tickets available if you wanted your pet to be drawn by a caricature artist, have its tag engraved and more!

It was a great way for people and dogs who live at the center of San Diego to make new friends. And take a pic or two!

The tail-wagging annual event is courtesy of various supporters and the Downtown San Diego Partnership.

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Clean and Safe program beautifies San Diego!

This morning I noticed somebody freshening one of the hanging planters in downtown San Diego’s Cortez Hill neighborhood. On a ladder above the sidewalk, he was adding geraniums and other flowering plants!

It was a friendly worker from Downtown San Diego Partnership’s Clean & Safe program!

Thank you!

Lucky Lane street sign in North Park.

At either end of the 3800 block of Grim Avenue in North Park you might see a street sign. Honorary Lucky Lane.

A couple days ago I photographed the sign while walking down University Avenue. And I wondered: What makes this lane so lucky?

Well, this article provides an explanation. The block was renamed Lucky Lane last year after “Lucky” Wong, who opened Lucky’s Golden Phenix Restaurant on the corner of North Park Way and Grim Avenue in 1975.

Lucky was known and beloved by many in the community. He ran his restaurant for an incredible fifty years, kindly greeting and serving everyone, never changing his prices. Lucky died in December at 90 years old, in the restaurant where he lived.

A petition to change the block’s name to Lucky Lane quickly gathered signatures. Within weeks, more than 4,200 people signed.

North Park residents who traveled down this lane for half a century were indeed lucky. They were fortunate to have Lucky call the place home.

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Construction of Pride Promenade in Hillcrest.

The construction of Pride Promenade in Hillcrest is making great progress. I spoke to a worker and he indicated the pedestrian promenade and its new bikeways should be completed this summer.

Yesterday I took several photographs over a construction fence, north of University Avenue. The finished promenade will stretch from this location, near the base of the Pride flag, up to Washington Street.

According to this webpage of the Hillcrest Business Association: The northern anchor of the Promenade will be a restored streetcar. In recognition of the streetcars that once traveled on Normal Street, this facility will serve as a concession stand, gathering point, and information booth. There will also be a playground north of the streetcar. Check out the above webpage to see a map and learn more.

You can also purchase a custom paver to be installed in the Pride Promenade. Funds will help create the Friends of the Promenade nonprofit. Learn more about this program here.

If you’re curious about the new Eastern Hillcrest Bikeways that are being created in and around the Pride Promenade, check out this descriptive SANDAG webpage.

In the above photo you can glimpse a colorful mural that faces the promenade. I’ll be blogging about that next!

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Mingei celebrates San Diego Craft Collective.

The Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park has a great exhibit outside its east entrance that celebrates the San Diego Craft Collective. Beautiful objects crafted by members of the collective are proudly displayed!

A collaboration between the Mingei and the San Diego Craft Collective makes perfect sense. The museum collects, conserves and exhibits folk art, craft, and design. The family-friendly San Diego Craft Collective, located in Liberty Station, teaches it members traditional craft, including woodworking, ceramics, textiles, fiber arts, glass art and more. They are dedicated to sustainability, utilizing natural and recycled materials. The collective even teaches organic gardening!

A couple years ago I visited the San Diego Craft Collective. I was amazed by the extent of their facility and the diversity of work by its members. If you want to read that past blog post and see those photographs, click here.

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La Mesa Downtown District sign rises!

The La Mesa Downtown District sign is rising on La Mesa Boulevard near Palm Avenue! The landmark arch, similar to many others in neighborhoods around San Diego, will welcome those entering the heart of La Mesa’s historic downtown.

Construction officially commenced in February. Yesterday I noticed the two supporting posts now stand on the opposing sidewalks, and several banners on fences announce the Future Home of the Downtown District Sign.

The La Mesa Park & Recreation Foundation website contains more details concerning the project, which has been spearheaded by the La Mesa Village Association.

The archway will feature two support columns adorned with a “Community Quilt” of 1,512 hand-painted tiles created by residents and local businesses.

As I walked up La Mesa Boulevard, I took several photos…

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Improvements coming to Escondido Creek Trail.

Yesterday, as I walked to the new Escondido Creek Trail Outdoor Art Gallery, I noticed a lot of construction.

Many improvements are currently being made to the Escondido Creek Trail!

An effort is being made to make the trail more inviting to pedestrians, bicyclists, and lovers of the outdoors.

New landscaping is coming, as evidenced by many flags in bare dirt. There are new shade structures and seating, and winding side paths. There is new paving, signage, bridge-spanning art, an exercise area, and even attractive brickwork that is being installed at one intersection!

Here’s a City of Escondido webpage that describes what I saw. It explains: This project aims to encourage safe and healthy lifestyles through an improved sense of security, enhanced street crossings, fitness and play amenities, native and CA-friendly landscaping, and further opportunities for walking and jogging in addition to improvements to the bike path. The goal is to revitalize the Creek Trail Corridor through enhanced activities and partnerships with local businesses, artists, schools, and other organizations.

My photographs were taken along a relatively short section of the Escondido Creek Trail, between Juniper Street and Fig Street…

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Escondido Creek Trail Outdoor Art Gallery debuts!

Two days ago the Escondido Creek Trail Outdoor Art Gallery made its official debut!

Having missed the ceremony, I headed up to Escondido today to enjoy my first look.

Congratulations to ESCO ALLEY ART, the community organization that presented these six murals to the City of Escondido. To learn more about their ongoing efforts to beautify Escondido, visit ESCO ALLEY ART’s website here.

These half dozen murals each measure 15 by 10 feet, depict local flora and fauna, and were transferred onto Aluminum Composite Material. Their super shiny surfaces made photography without reflections nearly impossible. I did my best!

The murals are located on the Neighborhood Healthcare building at 460 North Elm Street. They face the Escondido Creek Trail–a pedestrian and bike path that is presently undergoing improvement. (I noticed some of the improvements during my walk and will blog about that coming up.)

Curious who the mural artists are? Check out the captions of my photographs…

Nature Watching by artist Laura Green.
Coyote by artist Berthis Myers.
Wildlife in the Poppies by artist Joanne Sullivan.
Aspire by artist Kat Furrow.
Tunas Doradas by artist Andres Marin.
California Dreaming by artist LaRetta Small-Zamora.

This ESCO ALLEY ART webpage links to information concerning each artist!

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