events – Page 56 – Cool San Diego Sights!

Art students find magic in everyday things.

The museum at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido now features an exhibit titled A Practical Guide to Modest Magic.

The premise for the exhibition is brilliant. Art students at colleges in the San Diego region are presented with instructions to find magic in everyday things.

What are some of these instructions? Create an artwork using alchemy or magic to correct a problem. Make a mural commemorating the best day of your life. Create an artwork to say “thank you” for something in your life for which you are grateful. Make a medal or a trophy for someone that you think deserves one. Think of the worst idea you can for an artwork and try to turn it into a good idea. Make a piece of art that attempts to be universally understood as if an alien from another planet would view it thousands of years in the future…

Following assigned instructions, students artistically transform familiar things, and the pieces that result can be very personal or surprising. Human creativity is akin to real magic!

When I visited the museum today I didn’t know what to expect. What you see in these photographs provides a taste of what I found.

A Practical Guide to Modest Magic continues for only one more week. It can be viewed in the museum at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido through August 17, 2024. Then–poof–a moment of rare magic ends.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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.

Very unusual outdoor art in San Ysidro!

Take a look at this interesting outdoor art installation in San Ysidro! It’s part of an exhibition titled MIRAGE: el orden de los factores y los riesgos de la ilusión.

The unusual tower-like structure stands in an open space next to San Ysidro’s Cultural Corridor, a short walk behind The Front Arte y Cultura community cultural center. It’s the same space where San Ysidro celebrates Día de los Muertos every year.

The Mexican born visual artist behind the exhibition is Marcos Ramírez Erre. The rest of his MIRAGE can be viewed inside The Front, which happened to be closed when I walked by last weekend.

What do the different levels of this peculiar “tower” represent? (I wouldn’t mind lounging near the top under those shades!)

As the web page describing the installation explains: the art explores the geopolitical and symbolic landscape of the Mexico-U.S. border, characterized by architectural, masculine, industrial, monumental, and anti-monumental elements.

It seems to me the open structure, with its ladders, huge cylinders and different platforms, would be a fine stage for an outdoor theatrical performance!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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.

Erecting the Exchange Pavilion in Balboa Park!

A large steel structure is now being erected near the center of San Diego’s beautiful Balboa Park! It’s the Exchange Pavilion, another initiative of World Design Capital 2024!

San Diego/Tijuana won the coveted title of World Design Capital for 2024. There have been many activities and activations related to this international honor, and the Exchange Pavilion is the newest of these.

The lightweight skeletal structure evident in my photographs is being built in the Plaza de Panama, in front of the San Diego Museum of Art. The pavilion is designed to bring people together, along with their diverse ideas and experiences. Interconnectedness and collaboration are appropriate themes for the first ever binational World Design Capital designation.

The Exchange Pavilion, when completed, will feature interactive digital displays, special lighting, and a space for lectures, performances, workshops and more. It was designed by HELEO in collaboration with Tijuana, Mexico based visual artist Daniel Ruanova.

This very unique installation will remain in Balboa Park all summer long. It will then be relocated to Tijuana in the fall. I was told it will be completed and will open this Saturday, August 10!

I suppose I’ll have to swing by this weekend to check it out!

UPDATE!

I walked through the Plaza de Panama on Friday afternoon and saw that construction of the pavilion is still underway. The narrow digital displays appear to be functioning.

I was told by someone at the site that the Exchange Pavilion will now open on Wednesday!

ANOTHER UPDATE!

I walked by again on Sunday. I learned the pavilion will now open next Saturday 17, 2024.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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.

Taking a San Diego trolley to Destination JOY!

Some trolley riders smiled. Others slept. Some unabashedly sang along. Others stared at the unexpected spectacle with suspicion or disbelief. We all were riding a San Diego trolley to Destination JOY!

A special event was held today in San Diego. Trolley passengers could experience bright smiles and joy at certain stations and, perhaps unexpectedly, while riding the Blue or Orange lines! Destination JOY was the name of this first time event, and I experienced a bit of it myself!

Sustainable transportation, climate change mitigation, health and well-being, and civic engagement were the central themes of the event, which was presented by Way Outside the Lines in partnership with many community organizations and the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The mood of the event was happy and optimistic–full of good vibes!

At the Iris Avenue Transit Center, both registered participants and ordinary transit users could listen to poetry readings about human love in a sometimes difficult world, see colorful artwork, listen to live music, and even learn how to beat the summer heat. The theme at this station was the Sound of Joy…

Anyone could walk up and try their hand at painting. This is local artist David Gomez, who also had a small gallery of his artwork on display.

Institute for Public Strategies was at the Iris Avenue Transit Center educating people about how to beat the summer heat.

These musicians weren’t playing when I happened by, but they gave me the thumbs up!

A group that signed up for the full 4 hour Destination JOY experience prepare to board a random Blue Line trolley. They and surprised passengers would be entertained by a musical trolley show!

At the E Street Transit Center in Chula Vista, the roving group would enjoy more outdoor activations. The theme here was Art of Motion. Anyone who happened to come by the trolley station could participate in yoga and other healthy activities.

Smiles from the Yoga Lab!

I then headed off on my own to check out the activations at the 24th Avenue Transit Center in National City. Expression of Color was the theme at this station, and much of what I saw, including more colorful artwork, concerned protecting our natural environment.

I learned that a new project called Mundo Gardens is planned for National City. The Interstate 805 ramps for 43rd Street will be coming down creating an open space for the community.

From the 24th Street Transit Center I rode a Blue Line trolley back into downtown San Diego, missing the final Orange Line activations at the Euclid Avenue Station & Jacobs Center.

I did find friendly folks from the Urban Collaborative Project inside UC San Diego Park & Market near the trolley station of the same name. They aim to make Southeast San Diego a more vibrant, informed, connected, and empowered community!

The following stone was painted by Elie Kennedy, who had a table nearby. Visit my blog post concerning her work spreading love in San Diego by clicking here!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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.

Destination JOY and the art of David Gomez!

Destination JOY was a wonderful, very unique event held today in San Diego. San Diego Trolley riders could enjoy diverse entertainment and activations while on the trolley or at select stations!

The event included music, art, poetry readings and more at the Iris Avenue Transit Center. Inside a dark trailer, a makeshift art gallery presented The Goldie Collection by local artist David Gomez (@the_art_of_controversy).

Check out some photographs of his shining mixed media artwork. As a sign explained: The paintings in this collection tell a story of innocence lost, betrayal, hope and a friendship that spans generations… While the story and images might appear a bit exotic, the themes are universally human. Cool art, right?

David was also painting outdoors for the Destination JOY trolley event. I’ll be blogging about this fun San Diego event in my next post!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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.

Cool photo memories from August 2019.

Summer in San Diego is moving along. August has arrived!

As usual, a new month means it’s time to revisit blog posts from five years ago. During August 2019, Cool San Diego Sights featured some very unique and amazing stuff.

My photographs from back then include an epic mural depicting San Diego that few people see, an exhibition of very weird architecture inspired by UFOs, and jaw-dropping sand sculptures created by world-class artists!

Here come eight links to past blog posts that you might explore.

Click the following links to view photographs from five years ago:

Student posters celebrate Freedom of Speech.

Mural at Civita celebrates San Diego!

Great writing, reading celebrated at TwainFest!

Architecture inspired by nature . . . and UFOs!

Readers, writers gather for Festival of Books!

Cool new mural at 7-Eleven in City Heights!

Photos of 2019 Labor Day Stickball Tournament!

Amazing art at U.S. Sand Sculpting Challenge!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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.

Old Globe engages San Diego with Henry 6 Project.

Walk into The Old Globe theatre complex in Balboa Park and you’ll observe the sculpture of a golden crown. You’ll also pass rows of festive banners and signs. Their colorful graphics tell the story of The Old Globe’s special Henry 6 Project.

The Henry 6 Project has engaged the people of San Diego with groundbreaking community outreach. Not only can the public enjoy a new adaptation of Shakespeare’s several Henry VI plays, but as one of the graphics explains: The Globe’s radically inclusive vision opened every step of the creative process to the citizens of San Diego, weaving them into the fabric of the production not only with performance opportunities, but also through innovative, direct collaborations on nearly all elements of the production design.

Last week I photographed some of these signs and banners. Read the photo captions to learn a little more about the Henry 6 Project. Better yet, head over to beautiful Balboa Park and see all of this for yourself!

The world premiere of Henry 6 at The Old Globe is a two-part adaptation of Henry VI, titled One: Flowers and France and Two: Riot and Reckoning.

To read about this unique production on The Old Globe’s website, click here!

Director Barry Edelstein’s adaptation, Henry 6, is made by, with, and for the community of San Diego.

The Old Globe’s Reflecting Shakespeare program works with individuals who are incarcerated, formerly incarcerated, or justice-involved, and provides a vehicle for healthy interaction, reflection, creativity, and personal growth…

Community workshops explore scenic design. Other workshops and activities concern sound, lighting and costume design and music. Nearly 200 individuals were filmed for crowd scenes projected in the production of Henry 6.

38 plays over 89 years. With this summer’s production of Henry 6, The Old Globe completes the Shakespeare canon…and (has) joined a small and select list of American companies to have achieved this feat…

The Globe For All Shakespeare tour was designed for on-the-road performances to be enjoyed by audiences throughout San Diego County and in Tijuana. Performed free of charge in non-theatrical venues…these productions give audiences an intimate and compelling professional theatrical experience.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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.

Photos of Sunday morning outside Comic-Con!

It’s the final day of Comic-Con 2024 in San Diego. As usual, I went for a morning walk with my camera in hand.

In the early morning few people were about. I imagine many fans were sleeping in after yesterday’s super exciting Hall H reveals by Marvel, the Crunchyroll concert at The Shell, and other late night San Diego Comic-Con parties.

By mid-morning a crowd was growing in the Gaslamp Quarter and outside the San Diego Convention Center. While two offsites had disappeared overnight (the Bathroom Battlestation and MrBeast Lab), lines for the activations behind the convention center near the bay (FX, Voodoo Ranger, Adult Swim, Hulu, Abbott Elementary, and Dragon Ball) were already long.

Sunday is a day when many local San Diegans come out to enjoy the free offsite activations. I saw lots of families with kids!

Walking down Fifth Avenue early Sunday morning I saw this!

Police bomb-sniffer dogs were getting underway. Thank you for keeping everyone safe!

A fun photo near the FX offsite early in the morning.

Banners remain for the two Crunchyroll concerts at The Shell.

Additional colorful One Piece graphics remain at the San Diego Symphony’s outside venue, The Shell.

No super long Hall H line winding through Embarcadero Marina Park South on Sunday.

A Comic-Con view on Sunday morning from Embarcadero Marina Park South.

The Dragon Ball line on Sunday morning was long. They give out good swag.

Back in the Gaslamp. Wolverine and Deadpool got their masks confused!

You can see how the crowd was growing during the course of Sunday morning.

Romans in togas greet fans passing the Those About to Die chariot racing offsite in Gaslamp Square. A line was growing here, too.

Setting up a sign by the SpongeBob squirting activation.

A hot dog with mustard and no ketchup. Promotion of Universal Basic Guys on FOX.

Shortly after ten o’clock the Petco Park Interactive Zone was already quite busy!

Once more I’m behind the San Diego Convention Center. Comic-Con International chalk art!

Pirates busy signing in visitors along the Adult Swim line.

Having fun on the big carnival swing ride at the A.V.A. FEST of Abbott Elementary.

LANFest, through gaming, raises money for charitable causes. See their website here. They have 18 chapters in 3 countries!

Stilt walkers greet fans to A.V.A. FEST during Comic-Con 2024.

Captain Hook cosplay near the FX offsite. Its line was very long by late morning!

Now I’m heading back over the Harbor Drive pedestrian bridge. Less cosplay on Sunday, but still some good ones!

Waiting a long time for a free slushy isn’t my cup of tea.

I’m afraid I missed the Dexter activation. I’m going to steer my feet toward home.

I have some cold water at home. Thanks anyway!

A decent crowd in the Gaslamp Quarter just before noon. It’s Sunday at Comic-Con 2024.

Powdered Toast Man cosplay from The Ren & Stimpy Show. Makes me wonder about lunch: What’s in my refrigerator?

I hope you enjoyed my photographic coverage of Comic-Con 2024. I think I’ll call it quits. My aging legs are tired!

It’s time to transition my blog back to its more normal self. I’ll be publishing a variety of posts concerning San Diego: unique events and festivals, museum exhibits, historic places, nature walks, street art–the usual Cool San Diego Sights stuff. I’m never entirely sure where I’ll walk next. Or what I might discover by sheer chance!

I do know I have photographs concerning Balboa Park coming up in the next couple days. So if you live in San Diego, or simply love the city, stay tuned!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

If you’d like to view all of my coverage concerning San Diego Comic-Con, including hundreds of cool photographs, click here!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things in San Diego, 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.

Fun cosplays seen at Comic-Con in San Diego!

Gimli, Gandalf the White and Legolas cosplay.

Hundreds of super creative cosplays could be seen all around San Diego on Saturday during Comic-Con 2024!

Enjoy another collection of fun cosplay photos taken as I wandered here and there outside Comic-Con in the San Diego summer sunshine.

There’s one more day to go. Hopefully offsite lines are shorter this Sunday–there are still a few activations that I haven’t visited!

Too much fun!

If you want to see even more, click here to view 150 cosplay photos taken during past San Diego Comic-Cons!

Zebra Batman cosplay! First time I’ve seen this!

Deadpool cosplay. Very popular at SDCC 2024.

Borderlands Psycho cosplay. Also popular in 2024.

Super cool Alien cosplay at San Diego Comic-Con!

Peely from Fortnite cosplay. Very appealing!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

If you’d like to view my coverage of Comic-Con so far, which includes hundreds of cool photographs, click here!

Another wild and crazy Saturday at Comic-Con!

Huge crowds–crowds so humungous and dense that a body can barely move! Sudden celebrity sightings! Amazing cosplay absolutely everywhere! Uninhibited creativity run amok! It must be another Saturday at San Diego Comic-Con!

Comic-Con 2024 has come roaring back after several difficult years due to COVID and a writers strike. This year it seems like nothing had happened at all. Practically everyone loves Comic-Con and San Diego is fortunate to host such a wildly popular and simply wonderful international event.

As someone who traveled to San Diego from out-of-state told me (after asking for directions to the convention center): this is nerd heaven!

Yes, I had to walk outside Comic-Con a couple times today, to experience the wild and crazy atmosphere. I took some photos of what I happened to run across, including one very famous actress out in the crowd!

Enjoy!

Wall to wall humanity behind the San Diego Convention Center.

Here comes Emilia Clarke off the IMDb Boat, leading actress in Game of Thrones!

Ranch dressing cosplay. You don’t see this every day.

Yes, if you don’t like crowds, this might not be for you!

Looks like the chef has emerged from Tacos El Gordo.

I can’t recognize about half the cosplays, sadly. Perhaps you can help me with this one.

A typical sight in the Gaslamp on the Saturday of Comic-Con.

Those MTS workers at the trolley station have a front row seat to the Comic-Con craziness!

Cosplay of Lucifer Morningstar from Hazbin Hotel.

Oh, nooo! A mutant-seeking Sentinel has arrived. All those Wolverines now in San Diego better watch their back!

Phew! Doctor Strange has sent the Sentinel away using powerful magic.

These crazed Psycho guys have been hanging around Comic-Con all week. Someone should send them back to the Borderlands.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

If you’d like to view my coverage of Comic-Con so far, which includes hundreds of cool photographs, click here!

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