The distinctive Victorian roof of the Hotel del Coronado, a top San Diego resort and tourist attraction, appears in the letter S in a North Park mural.
I walked through North Park today with my camera. I had intended to continue up to Normal Heights and walk along Adams Avenue, photographing lots of street art, but I got distracted! I’ll head that way another time.
Meanwhile, stay tuned, because a whole bunch of super cool North Park street art is coming up! (I think North Park probably has more street art per city block than any other San Diego neighborhood.)
To get things started, check out this cool mural that caught my eye while I walked along 30th Street. Using the magic of the internet, I now send it to you! Greetings from San Diego!
Balboa Park’s iconic California Building and bell tower appear in the letter G in the same colorful North Park mural.Greetings from SAN DIEGO! It’s a postcard painted on a building wall! This cool urban art is on 30th Street, just south of El Cajon Boulevard in North Park. Images in the eight letters include the Ocean Beach Pier, La Jolla Cove, the U.S./Mexico border, and the Giant Dipper Roller Coaster at Belmont Park in Mission Beach!
This cool urban art was created in 2016 by New York graffiti artist Victor Ving and Ohio photographer Lisa Beggs. They have been traveling around the United States in an RV painting these postcard-like murals!
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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!
I’d like to bring two talented artists to everyone’s attention. I met them during my walk around San Diego yesterday. They show their colorful works of art on the sidewalk. I had spoken to Carlos several times in the past; I spoke to Juli for the first time and learned a little of her story.
Carlos often hangs out on the Embarcadero, right next to the Star of India. His fantastic Eagle Warrior appears to me to belong in an art gallery. (Click this image to enlarge it!)
Carlos hangs out next to the Star of India, right near the ship’s figurehead. He usually has a whole array of stone and wire creature creations on display. Many of them are antlike. They’re all a lot of fun.
Yesterday he had something absolutely amazing on the sidewalk. You can see it in my first two photographs. He has made several such figures using resin, acrylic, and in this case some some quartz crystals. I looked very closely at his Eagle Warrior and was completely blown away. To me, this piece appeared to belong in an art gallery!
Carlos is very friendly and interesting, with many wise things to say about life and the world. He has lived in San Diego for a long, long time. If you happen to walk along the Embarcadero, and you see some art on the sidewalk that matches what I have described, you’ve probably found him! Say hello!
Close look at jaguar and serpent at foot of Aztec warrior, an amazing work of resin, acrylic and quartz by San Diego artist Carlos.
And now, a small colorful work of art by Juli:
A small but beautiful work of art, painted by friendly Juli. You can find her sometimes on the Embarcadero, sometimes on Broadway by the Santa Fe Depot.
At times I have seen Juli along the Embarcadero, painstakingly using a small brush to paint her fantastic crystal-like watercolor creations. But yesterday I spoke to her for the first time. She was hanging out on the sidewalk just south of the Santa Fe Depot. Take a look at her work!
Juli is quite knowledgeable about the art scene and has travelled all around the country. Many of her friends and acquaintances know her as Tree. She recently came down to San Diego from San Francisco, and is working to recover from a difficult situation. Her attitude is of unbounded optimism!
If you’re ever walking about San Diego and you spy her small but very distinctive works of art, take a close look! They’re pretty amazing!
These wonderful small pieces of watercolor art were created by Juli, who also goes by the street name Tree. She recently came to San Diego from San Francisco. (Click this image to enlarge it!)
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Cool artwork on wall in the famous Donut Bar in downtown San Diego.
Another year. More opportunities for discovery!
Yesterday’s storm ended and the sun came out. So I decided to take a wander around my fair city on New Year’s Day.
I started mid-morning and went for hours, taking photos of everything and anything at my leisure. Mixed among more ordinary looks at life were a few cool discoveries.
I met two friendly street artists during my walk–Carlos and Juli–and meant to include a couple photos of their work here, but I’ve decided to write a special separate blog post tomorrow. Look for it!
My first stop this morning was the Donut Bar. One Boston Cream, please! Super yum!Walking past Symphony Towers, I noticed this graphic on their outdoor display. A free concert for the community next weekend!My feet this New Year’s Day took me through Horton Plaza Park. I recently posted a blog with photos of the Broadway Fountain lit for Christmas at night.An unexpected discovery! It appears Horton Plaza Park has a time capsule buried between the grass and the Starbucks! History happens here.And a few steps to the west I spotted another plaque at my feet. The Salvation Army held its first San Diego meeting here, March 31, 1888.Crossing an intersection in the Gaslamp, I spotted an odd thing at ground level. This tile showing a burglar has been cemented to the asphalt in the middle of the street!It appears Monkey King is a restaurant soon to open in the Gaslamp Quarter. I discovered a shining gold mural on their wall!No mural on this interesting wall. A lady in pink shoes walks her dog in downtown San Diego.Just a cool photo of light and shadow and architectural geometry. The tall glass building is the new corporate headquarters of Sempra Energy in East Village.In East Village, this brightly shining mosaic sculpture in a medical office window caught my eye!Look what I found! These must be new. Two huge baseballs at Petco Park near the Padres Hall of Fame.One huge baseball has the autographs of the 1984 National League Champion Padres!And, of course, the second baseball has the autographs of the 1998 National League Champion team!A car carrier freight train covered with graffiti has stopped along Harbor Drive.People crossing the Harbor Drive pedestrian bridge seem to walk in the clouds.Tourists on Segways pass the Coming Together sculpture by artist Niki de Saint Phalle.The Holiday by the Bay ice rink near the Hilton San Diego Bayfront seems to be winding down. A few skaters were out on New Year’s Day morning.Folks with a dog walk along San Diego Bay, approaching the high masts of superyachts.Two superyachts behind the convention center have really, really, REALLY high masts!The futuristic black superyacht Ahimsa has been docked in San Diego for at least a year, it seems. According to one website it’s worth 80 million dollars. Passersby have referred to the sleek vessel as the Bat-boat!The San Diego International Car Show is taking place this weekend. Test drives can be taken in the parking lot behind the convention center.Looks like some folks will be test-driving a new Ford.I saw this guy walking along with a large flag. He seemed to be on a mission. I didn’t think to pursue him and ask why.Just beautiful yachts in the Marriott Marina.I am fortunate to live in such a beautiful city.I spied the new downtown San Diego Central Courthouse between the silvery Marriott Marquis buildings. I believe the courthouse’s construction is nearly finished.The Silvergate ferry heads toward Coronado beyond the Embarcadero Marina Park South fishing pier.Two pelicans hanging out at the pier. A good day to kick back and fish.People descend the San Diego Convention Center steps that lead to the Flame of Friendship sculpture.An art installation in the new passageway between the Marriott and Hyatt waterfront hotels titled Kelp, created by artists Katie MacDonald and Kyle Schumann of After Architecture.Dogs stretch and relax with a human near Seaport Village.Lots of cranes in the skyline lately! The two nearby are for fishing boats. The construction crane on the left is for the new InterContinental Hotel. On the right, a high crane rises by Pacific Gate by Bosa.On New Year’s Day lots of people are enjoying a walk by the water. I see what appear to be two Navy oilers docked at North Island.Uh, oh! Look what I spotted. The live bait-catching seiner Cachalot seems to be drifting away from the Tuna Harbor’s G Street Pier! Those ropes seem loose. Perhaps last night’s storm is the reason.In San Diego, walks are often accompanied by music.Very strange! Wisconsin’s Pulaski High School Red Raiders marching band is in San Diego today! Why? A little searching indicated that they will will perform tomorrow morning in the Tournament of Roses Parade, up north in Pasadena!That isn’t a cruise ship. It’s the MV World Odyssey, a floating classroom! Its Semester at Sea allows students to study abroad, while touring the world!Dozens of sailboats out on San Diego Bay during New Year’s Day. It’s a sailing regatta!Curious gulls analyze a bicyclist at the Embarcadero’s new observation deck, just north of the Broadway Pier. Life is full of surprises!
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Amazing, revolutionary holographic painting by visionary San Diego artist Tom Liguori. Photo taken through a window. Image contrast and sharpness adjusted. Photo cropped to eliminate reflections.
You might recall that earlier this year I blogged about some genuinely revolutionary holographic art. I had discovered some dazzling paintings in the windows of downtown’s old Gaslamp 15 movie theater, which has now been closed for almost a year. The paintings were created by Tom Liguori, a retired local entrepreneur, who is working to develop a completely new holographic art form.
Well, I noticed a new crop of his holographic paintings in the same windows the other day, so I’ve taken more photos. This new batch of works, if possible, seems even more vibrant and visually interesting. Some paintings are presented on a turning carousel allowing the sidewalk viewer to perceive their three dimensional quality. Placing my camera right up to the window glass, I tried hard to take photos without morning street reflections, and I’ve cropped some of the resulting images and adjusted contrast and sharpness to present this spellbinding art to the best of my ability. But you really have to see the holographic effect in person!
I was fortunate to meet Tom Liguori by chance a few months ago while I was walking around the Gaslamp. He was out on the sidewalk with some photographers, who were documenting one of his fantastic paintings. He’s a super friendly and interesting guy!
To see my earlier blog post, which I published in June before I met Mr. Liguori, click here. I didn’t adjust the images of those paintings a great deal, and the street reflections are much more evident. In that earlier blog post I also provide much more background about this new art movement, and what it all means to Mr. Liguori, an artist with an interest in physics and philosophy. Fascinating stuff!
I see he now has a website, where you can learn even more. This revolutionary artwork is available for purchase. To check his website out, click here!
Another work of fantastic, light-imbued art by Tom Liguori, a retired businessman who experiments with proprietary holographic paints.Colors and light change appearance in this holographic painting as the point of view shifts. This almost looks like an abstract still life.Several brilliant paintings turn in a spotlight on a carousel. One can see these at the now closed Gaslamp 15 movie theater on Fifth Avenue.A shield-like work of holographic art seems to produce streams of light in this photo. But it’s actually reflections on the window from the nearby street.One can get lost in this shining, jewel-like art. Wonderful!
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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 enjoy!
Electrical box on North Torrey Pines Road near the Gliderport intersection features colorful fish with huge eyeballs!
I walked around both the University of California San Diego and the Salk Institute in La Jolla this morning. Stay tuned to my blog and you’ll see why. (The next two posts are going to be very cool!)
As I headed up the sidewalk along North Torrey Pines Road back to my car, I spied all sorts of creative street art painted on utility boxes and transformers. In many instances, I believe, the art was produced by students at the university.
I was a student at UCSD’s Muir College decades ago. Wandering around the campus was like a brief voyage back in time. The years have gone by so very quickly…
Across from the North Campus of UCSD, this octopus carrying a book and donning a graduation cap is also riding a surfboard!Another nearby box features street art in the form of a breaking ocean wave. Excellent surfing can be found nearby at Black’s Beach.Another side of the big utility box has yellow fish forming a triangle as they swim above seaweed.And lastly we see a purple seal on a surfboard!Another corner of the same intersection has a utility box with four cool images. This side shows a golfer taking a swing at the nearby Torrey Pines Golf Course.On this side we see the interior of a biotechnology lab. Of course, the internationally famous Salk Institute building is about a 30 second walk from here! You can just glimpse a part of the parking lot in this photo. Stay tuned to this blog for more!Also nearby is the Torrey Pines Gliderport. This fun street art depicts a couple of paragliders soaring above the Pacific Ocean! The Gliderport is one of my favorite places.The fourth side of the box shows the natural beauty along the coast of La Jolla. Pine trees rise atop eroded sandstone cliffs.Now for some more street art along North Torrey Pines Road. I took this photo while walking along the sidewalk.This urban art looks to me like a city inside the outline of a Christmas tree.More great urban street art on a utility box.Wisdom written for all to see. Make time to make art and make love.On the next side of this box we see a hand with brush, making beautiful art.A transformer box with fish and whales swimming among trees and flowers!Human creativity expressed in public with paint.A bucket for cigarette butts next to the sidewalk. Fish! Don’t Smoke! Now that was an unexpected discovery!One side of a box near an entrance to UCSD. Hands of La Jolla by Rebecca Asch. It’s holding food.Another hand. A broken pencil and perhaps caffeine for those late nights of studying.An underwater guy in scuba gear and a pink mermaid seem to be in love. The spray painted words Silence is Violence probably was applied later, or perhaps not.Colorful blooms on branches. I think those might be Japanese cherry blossoms on the right.There are many crows (and seagulls) that flock in this coastal cliff area near UCSD. They perch on lampposts all over the place. Crows are taking flight right here, as well!More cool street art. Two crows fly across the angled sides of a utility box on North Torrey Pines Road.
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A simple, homemade lending library box next to somebody’s front yard in Crown Point, a neighborhood on Mission Bay. Leave a book or take one!
Here’s a cool idea that almost anyone can bring to life!
Once in a while, as I walk about, I notice cabinet-like wooden boxes on neighborhood streets that are filled with books. They’re usually placed near a sidewalk–a spot that anybody passing by can easily reach. These community “lending library” boxes are filled with used books, magazines and other reading material that neighbors can freely borrow and return when they please. Anybody can add to the small library. Now that’s very cool!
Here are photos of several boxes I’ve come across. Their designs appear to be rather simple. They can be built however one likes, as long as the shelves are visible and sheltered from the elements. And they can be painted creatively!
Does your neighborhood have a “lending library” book box? Looks like a fun, inspirational project! It enriches the life of your community and promotes literacy!
A lending library book box built like a two-door cabinet along a sidewalk in San Diego. The contents are always changing. Today the shelves were almost empty!This fancy book box has a sliding glass door and sloped roof. You can find this tiny library at the east end of the Quince Street Trestle pedestrian bridge in Bankers Hill!If you’re feeling really creative, you could make an imaginative “Little Free Library” like this!A lending box created by Boy Scouts and the Friends of the Coronado Public Library.
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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!
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Visitors to Balboa Park walk the meandering single path of a labyrinth near the Botanical Building.
Life is a bit like walking a labyrinth. We navigate twists and turns on our forward path.
Yesterday I saw a cool labyrinth set up on a lawn in Balboa Park, right next to the Botanical Building. String was laid on the grass, creating boundaries defining the path.
A labyrinth is not a maze. The walk is peaceful, the sudden smooth turns reorient one’s vision, there is no hurry. Many use labyrinth walking for meditation. It also looks like fun exercise!
Walking through a curving labyrinth can enhance meditation, bringing together body, mind and spirit. Everyone is on their own path through life. (Click image to read.)It’s a beautiful December weekend in Balboa Park. There is much to do, much to see. Our walk through life takes many turns.
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I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! Navigating downtown streets can be like moving through a labyrinth! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!
A sexy San Diego lady and graffiti on a wall inside the very unique SILO venue in East Village.
Check out these photos! I discovered more street art murals at SILO in East Village!
I’ve blogged about this very cool special event venue several times in the past, here and here and here. The spray-painted murals and graffiti are constantly changing, and there are a number of newer works that I hadn’t seen until I walked by this morning. Here they are!
The wall along F Street at SILO has been painted with various cool bits of urban art. That doughnut is making me hungry.A San Diego Sea Walls mural on the same wall features a bearded face and two hands. Not sure about the symbolism.Walking along the sidewalk, we now spy a funky purplish face.A squished-up greenish face.An orange face with oddly protruding eyeballs.Some colorful graffiti I hadn’t seen previously inside SILO. It’s probably been a year since I walked by here. I took this and the following photos through a fence.Looks like a strange scene from Alice in Wonderland.Female face spray painted on a wall.A look down into the fantastic SILO special event venue. I don’t recall seeing that cargo container before.Just tons of cool images. Like a crazy dream in the center of the city! I think that mural on top might be somewhat new.A very cool abstract jumble of street art on a brick wall.Looks like some sort of cosmic bird deities have arrived from outer space. You tell me what this one means!
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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 unique photos for you to enjoy!
Colorful faces and complex depth are elements of a public mural located in Golden Hill.
I haven’t taken a walk through Golden Hill for several months. But this morning I discovered some photos of a cool Golden Hill mural languishing in my computer. I forgot!
This public art at the corner of 25th Street and B Street celebrates the diversity and the vibrancy one encounters in San Diego’s small Golden Hill community. It’s an enlarged version of a 8.25 by 19 inch mixed media collage, created by artist Giancarlo Pia in 2013. I love how three dimensional and richly colorful this mural is!
Giancarlo Pia. Golden Hill, 2013. Mixed Media Collage. This mural is dedicated to the residents of Golden Hill and reflects the vibrancy and diversity of the community.Many lively images can be seen in this artwork. The rich culture and history of Golden Hill is celebrated.A very cool mural at a street corner in Golden Hill.
UPDATE!
Here’s a much better complete photo of the mural that I took on a later walk…
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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!
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This blog now features thousands of photos around San Diego! Are you curious? There’s lots of cool stuff to check out!
Here’s the Cool San Diego Sights main page, where you can read the most current blog posts. If you’re using a small mobile device, click those three parallel lines up at the top–that opens up my website’s sidebar, where you’ll see the most popular posts, a search box, and more!
To enjoy future posts, you can also “like” Cool San Diego Sights on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.
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