Today the finishing touches were being put on a new exhibition of outstanding art in Balboa Park. The San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild Membership Exhibition is now open in Spanish Village Art Center’s Gallery 21!
Several of the participating artists were in the gallery and were happy to talk about their creations. I learned the public is invited to attend the show’s official reception on Sunday, November 9 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm. Learn more here.
The San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild strengthens the bond between the Museum and the artist community of San Diego County by enhancing the Museum’s awareness and appreciation of local artists.
Their annual exhibition in Balboa Park will continue through November 17, 2025. Diverse works in many styles are on display. All of the pieces are for sale.
The exhibition was juried by Johnny Tran of the Thumbprint Gallery in La Jolla. I think you’ll really enjoy it.
Some photos, and friendly guild artists I met today…
Artist Charlene Mosley smiles beside her oil on canvas piece, This Is All That Is Me.Artist Olga Freedman’s very beautiful watercolor Aspen grove near Lake Sabrina.James Bliesner is both artist and President of San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild. His half-abstract/half-realistic piece is Wind and Sea. Materials are plaster, paper, acrylic, pastel and oil.
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My long walk in Oceanside last weekend resulted in many cool photographs. First, enjoy two murals at the corner of Civic Center Drive and Horne Street.
The first mural was painted on the west side of the Northern Pine Brewing Company building. It’s by artists Gloria Muriel and Matthew Perdoni.
On the north side of the building is a long, very colorful mural. Cars parked on the street close to the artwork caused me to take photographs in sections.
The artist is Isabel “Chavela” Figueroa. The mural’s title is The Sacred Offering (La Sagrada Ofrenda).
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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.
In time for Día de los Muertos, visitors to Old Town San Diego State Historic Park can now enjoy an extensive student art exhibit titled Remembrance & Resilience.
Students from schools throughout the San Diego Unified School District have created artworks based on Día de los Muertos imagery. The divided exhibit is located in two different Old Town buildings: the recently vacant Captain Fitch Store and the historic U.S. House.
If you find yourself walking through the State Park, look for the signs. The exhibit will continue through November 2, 2026.
My first few photos come from inside the spacious old Captain Fitch Store. Dozens of displays were created by kids of all ages, from elementary school to high school. They honor memory, identity and tradition.
The next few photos are from the U.S. House. Students from Crawford High School, Logan Memorial, Zamorano Elementary, and Lincoln High School partnered with Sew Loka to create wearable art using reclaimed fabric.
In one room, art glows in the dark when exposed to ultraviolet light!
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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.
I found two new murals in El Cajon’s very cool Arts Alley!
The Arts Alley is located in downtown El Cajon north of Main Street, between Magnolia Avenue and Sulzfeld Way. I visited the colorful alley in 2020 and 2022. See those photographs here and here.
Look what I discovered during yesterday’s walk!
ART HEALS
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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.
Check out this collection of photos! My camera was aimed at amazing chalk art at this weekend’s Galbani Bella Vita Fest in Little Italy!
The festival, produced by the ArtWalk San Diego team, is similar to the old Festa events held in San Diego’s Little Italy neighborhood years ago. In addition to chalk artists decorating several blocks of India Street, there’s plenty of Italian culture, including food, live music and wine tasting.
The public can stroll through the festival for free, which many people were doing this Saturday afternoon!
Dozens of chalk artists have arrived from all over, including from out-of-state. Most are friendly and welcome a few words from admirers.
The event continues Sunday, October 19, 2025 from 11 am to 5 pm. Consequently, many of the artists when I walked by were still at work on their colorful chalk masterpieces!
Here are some of the Italy-themed chalk art creations, most of which are works in progress. I’ve included artist team names in the photo captions…
Artist team Graceful Meadow.Artist team Cecelia Linayao Fine Art.Artist team Madonnara.Artist team The Kim Sisters.Artist team Kimberly Canilang.Artist team Shawdell Smith Art.Artist team Team Arcala.Artist team MDFerrera Fine Art.Artist team Tonie Garza.Artist team Meg Beverly Canilang.Artist team Gutierrez Family.Artist team Steele Canyon High School.Artist team Maddalena & Rogalski.Artist team Kat Brown.
Look who else was present at the festival. Friendly people representing KPBS!
They told me they could use a little extra help now that federal government funding has ended. Check out their website if you’d like to help.
And a few tables down India Street I found ArtReach! They engage youth with art education and paint beautiful murals all over San Diego. You’ve seen many on my blog.
People passing by had created small works of art at their table, too!
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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.
People in downtown San Diego have a special treat this weekend! Four metal sculptures by Ricardo Breceda (whose famous landmark sculptures can be seen around Borrego Springs) are on display in front of the San Diego County Administration Building!
Check it out!
There are two bighorn sheep about to butt horns, a giant coiling rattlesnake, and a fierce dinosaur on a flatbed! They’re on display in the sunshine on the grass near Harbor Drive. You can’t miss them!
Ricardo Breceda’s sculptures in Borrego Springs have won the artist international renown. He brought these four pieces here so residents of San Diego can enjoy some of his work, and so everyone is hopefully inspired to head out to the desert where over 130 of his incredible sculptures can be viewed. Here’s his website.
(Five years ago I photographed his Wild Horses public art installation in Vista, California. You can see those photos here!)
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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.
Imagine owning a table umbrella that’s also a work of fine art!
No need to imagine. Look for Studio 26 in Balboa Park’s amazing Spanish Village Art Center. That’s where you’ll find Edward Juarez, the friendly artist who you see in these photographs!
He was painting away when I walked through Spanish Village yesterday. I asked him about the umbrella. When finished, it will have multiple coatings and will be absolutely waterproof. The finished carousel umbrella on the patio nearby has been outdoors for a good while and still looks great.
It was incredible how the cowboy image he was painting came to life and acquired depth as he continued to apply color. This umbrella will be as vibrant as an oil painted framed canvas! He kindly took me into his studio and showed me other Western paintings perfect for this umbrella.
It would be super cool to own one of these table umbrellas, don’t you think? Good news! Edward told me he does commissions! Step into his studio and you’ll notice he paints every kind of subject matter.
Walk through the front entrance of Chula Vista City Hall and you’re immediately greeted by very unique art.
Symbiotic is the name of this Civic Center exhibition. All of the pieces are by printmaker, painter, writer and poet Joelle Cook (@wolfprintsart).
As a nearby sign explains: Symbiotic is the debut solo show of artist and author Joelle Cook… Her art is an exploration of the ways the biological world and the architecture of manmade forms overlap, and how that lends to a new kind of worldbuilding driven by this mix of natural beings and hard shapes.
I noticed that for many of the artists’ pieces, images of living things are created by combining simple and complex polygons–“hard shapes” defined by rigidly straight lines.
In an unexpected way, these creations might remind viewers of a scientific truth. The astonishingly complex living world around us arises from more basic geometry. Think individual molecules and atoms.
Go check out this cool exhibition and see it all for yourself!
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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.
In San Diego’s Civic Center Plaza, near the Civic Theatre Ticket Office, you’ll find these words:
Blooming is the wild body unmarred by the limits of this world
Its petals temporary but you’d never know it
The two lines were written by Paola Capó-García, San Diego Poet Laureate 2025-2027. A special City of San Diego webpage provides her biography.
Paola Capó-García lives in North Park. Her accomplishments and accolades as educator, author and journalist are numerous.
The thought-provoking words in Civic Center Plaza are actually the conclusion of her poem Wild, which you can read here. Her poem explains the difference between blooming and blossoming.
Are you blooming?
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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!
I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.
I can’t believe how many great artists came out this afternoon to the 2025 Chula Vista ArtFest! The annual event, which celebrates local artists from South Bay, was held in the outdoor courtyard of Chula Vista City Hall.
A big crowd gathered to meet artists and view some live painting. Most of the creators I saw had a table overflowing with completed works for sale.
The festival also featured representatives from the City of Chula Vista, community organizations, art-related vendors, live music on a stage and plenty of food.
I met many of the artists, and was wowed by their amazing creativity. As you’ll see, one of the artists was winner of a super prestigious Eisner Award!
Consider supporting these artists by clicking links to their websites or social media.
First, let’s meet some smiling people working for the City of Chula Vista. They were providing information that helps residents care for the environment.
On Saturday, October 18, you can join others in your community to Beautify Chula Vista!
Learn more about this great volunteer activity by clicking here.
Now a few fun photos before we meet some artists…
First artist is Tanisha McCullough, aka Nini, a super talented youth who loves to create portraits in oil paint!
The next creator, Tony Washington, won a 2024 Eisner Award at Comic-Con! He’s also a New York Times best selling artist!
His professional accomplishments, which include work in comic books, animated movies and video games, will blow your mind. See them here!
Next artist I met was Ed Roeder. Check out some of his awesome pop culture stuff!
He and his wife, both artists, operate the website Castle by Design.
Next is cool self-taught artist T. Jay Santa Ana. He’s fascinated by Time, Space, and Line… an expressionist and a surrealist experimenting in a framework of abstractions.
@GRASSHOPPERCV.OFFICIAL was airbrushing shirts and stuff at Chula Vista ArtFest.
Last, but certainly not least, is Chicana artist Isabel Garcia (@artbyisbl) from Southeast San Diego. She was just as nice as the first time I met her, years ago! Still going strong!
Cool San Diego Sights! 