I noticed this poster at the San Diego Central Library today. It announces a very special event coming up on the evening of August 18, 2026. Painting the Town: A Night of Art and Community will take place on the Central Library’s main floor exhibit space.
According to the event website, the evening will be the special opening night celebrating artwork created through the Wellness Program at Father Joe’s Villages, which empowers clients experiencing homelessness through creativity and self-expression. Enjoy inspiring artwork accompanied by live music from the San Diego Symphony.
I encourage you to check out the above link!
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The San Diego Museum of Art could use your support!
I just read an article this morning concerning layoffs at one of San Diego’s most beloved and important cultural institutions. They’re stressed financially due to the loss of critical grant money.
If you love the San Diego Museum of Art, you can help them out by visiting this museum webpage, and perhaps think about making a donation!
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There’s a brand new website that follows the life and history of San Ysidro. It’s called San Ysidro Archive.
I learned about this new community resource today during my visit to The FRONT gallery and cultural center in San Ysidro.
San Ysidro Archive‘s stated mission is to serve as a living repository for the countercultural histories of 92173. By documenting local activism, joy, and resilience, the archive curates a communal memory that thrives independently of the border.
The website collects old and new photographs that people can contribute. It also tells the stories of individuals who make San Ysidro their home, including business owners, artists, longtime residents, and everyone in between. The website also helps people stay up to date with what is going on in the neighborhood through upcoming events, recent happenings, or ways to get involved.
What an awesome community project!
The San Ysidro Archive website is up and running, even though it officially launches in a couple days. I encourage you to check it out today!
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Casa Familiar has been serving residents of South San Diego County since 1968. Over those many years, the organization has amassed a collection of art that represents the life and culture of the South Bay border community. Through the collection, preservation, and exhibition of art, Casa Familiar promotes and encourages appreciation for the vibrant artistic community it serves.
Casa Familiar operates a gallery and cultural gathering space called The FRONT in San Ysidro. Today–and for about another week–The FRONT is home to an exhibition of pieces from Casa Familiar’s art collection. The exhibition is titled MOMENTOUS.
The exhibit contains four distinct sections: transborder culture, the poetics of living, the original people of this land, and art created for Casa Familiar’s annual ABRAZO Award.
I stopped by today to enjoy this important exhibition. The artwork is not only quite good, but it stems from each local artist’s personal experience, and is emotionally stirring. The image of a heart enters much of the art.
I was amazed and happy to learn some of the fine pieces were created by individuals that Casa Familiar has assisted!
Abrazo Award 2015, by David Flores, watercolor on Arches paper.Bodies, by Andrea Echeverri, high temperature glaze ceramic.Untitled, 2004, by Paulino Marquez, oil painting.Mi Abuelita, mi nietecita, 2015, by Arturo Rodriguez Torija, photo print.Triptych, 2014, by Jamex and Einar De La Torre, photo transfer on metal.Hotel Nelson, 2024, by Paola “Panca” Villaseñor, acrylic on wood.
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San Diego band 8 Track Highway filled Balboa Park’s Spreckels Organ Pavilion with classic 70s and 80s rock ‘n roll music this evening, and the concert was free! Do you know about the concert series Twilight in the Park?
During the summer, Tuesday through Thursday, a wide variety of musical performers entertain all comers for free up on the stage of the historic Spreckels Organ Pavilion. Concerts last one hour, from 6:30 to 7:30 pm.
It’s the 45th anniversary of Twilight in the Park. Can you believe it? They’re providing 28 concerts this year–right through the end of August.
Offerings include everything from Jazz to Blues to Zydeco to Classic Country to Musicals to Oldies to Funk, to songs by the Beatles, the Pretenders, Santana and much more! You can see the upcoming schedule (and perhaps help them out with a donation) by clicking here.
This year Twilight in the Park is partnering with Save Starlight, the organization working to revitalize the Starlight Bowl amphitheater in Balboa Park. Their mission is to repurpose San Diego’s abandoned historic Starlight Bowl, restoring and modernizing the facility under community collaboration into an inclusive and innovative interaction of arts, culture, and education for all.
With the help of the San Diego community, Save Starlight has been making progress toward their goal.
I’ve supported the organization over the years. I have great memories of the Starlight Bowl from my youth.
One way you can help revive the Starlight Bowl is by becoming a Legacy Donor. Among other perks, you’ll get a personalized star on the Walk of Fame and a commemorative plaque on the Donor Wall! And you’ll help bring one of San Diego’s most iconic outdoor venues back to life!
To learn more about Save Starlight and many different opportunities, visit their website here!
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San Diego’s amazing cultural hub, Balboa Park, is the ideal location for a time capsule. Years ago I photographed one such time capsule in the House of Hospitality’s courtyard. Find that photo here.
Another time capsule was placed in Balboa Park in 2015. Why 2015? That was Balboa Park’s centennial!
This particular 24-inch stainless steel time capsule was buried near the Old Globe, in the Craig Noel Garden. (The shady garden under the California Tower has comfortable benches for relaxation–a place I often visit.)
You might ask: When people open the Centennial Time Capsule in 2115, what will they find? This article explains. Artifacts include a letter from President Obama, cultural artifacts, and documents from eleven Balboa Park institutions.
Will Balboa Park be much different almost a century from now? Changes large and small are certainly coming. Hopefully the park remains just as magical and beautiful.
A plaque tops the buried capsule. It reads:
This Centennial Time Capsule is presented to the citizens of San Diego, to be unearthed during the 2115 Bicentennial of our beloved Balboa Park. Contents include artifacts depicting our lives, times and culture. May it see light at a time of peace, joy and celebration.
Patrons of the Prado is committed to raising funds to benefit eleven arts and science institutions on the Prado in Balboa Park, and for programs that provide educational access for San Diego school children to the world-class treasures of Balboa Park, inspiring cultural fluency for future generations.
Patrons of the Prado
November 16, 2015
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Everyone is invited to enjoy a free festival this Saturday in City Heights. Love City Heights Day will take place at Pop-up Winona, at 4951 El Cajon Boulevard.
There will be live music, live painting, food, community vendors and fun for the whole family!
Come by between 2 and 9 pm. Check out the above flyer for all the info.
On the Eighth Floor of the Central Library in downtown San Diego, the public can contribute to the Juneteenth Art Project!
A large tabletop covered with paper welcomes creative people. Everyone is encouraged to sketch or draw positive images or messages inspired by Juneteenth, which is coming up later this month.
Ish Galvan is a cool dude I met during the Vista Strawberry Festival. He and Vince Vargas are the creators behind Triple OG Comics. He was showing everybody the Tamale Guy comic book they’ve published.
As I understood it, Ish is a writer who loves to mash up different concepts in his work, from mythology to metaphysics to science fiction to neo-noir. The story of the multi-issue Tamale Guy is described as: A tamale vendor escapes his violent past to begin a peaceful life. However, an ex-cartel killer with Aztec powers seeks revenge.
Ish explained that he’s bridging both nerd and Chicano lowrider culture. At first glance the two cultures might seem very different, but in fact they have things in common. Consider the graphics painted on many lowrider cars. It’s the sort of art you’d find in a comic, graphic novel, or at Comic-Con for that matter. Some deep in the lowrider culture have confided to Ish they secretly collect comic books, too!
That these two artists are cultural trailblazers is pretty awesome!
Good luck guys!
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That’s not a tipi. It’s a lavvu! It’s the portable dwelling used by the nomadic indigenous Sámi people when following herds of reindeer in the Arctic north!
Why was it set up in Balboa Park today? It was a part of the House of Norway’s cultural lawn program at the International Cottages.
As a nearby sign explained, a lavvu is similar to a Native American tipi but less vertical and more stable for the high winds of Sápmi (formerly known as Lapland), a region mostly north of the Arctic Circle. The foundation of a lavvu is built into permafrost for warmth and stability.
The House of Norway had numerous interesting displays and activities for their lawn program this year. I had never heard of a lavvu, so it particularly intrigued me!
The flag of Sápmi was being draped on the lavvu when I took my final photograph.
The elements of the flag are symbolic. This article explains the historical meaning of its design and colors.
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