Two cool murals in a Chula Vista alley.

Here’s one last blog post from my long walk in Chula Vista yesterday.

As I wandered down the alley directly west of Third Avenue, I discovered two very cool murals.

The first is north of Davidson Street. There’s a signature, but I’m not sure who the artist is. Leave a comment if you know…

The second mural is south of Davidson Street and is by artist Michelle Ruby, aka Mr. B Baby. You might recognize her artwork. It contains fun, colorful characters that often populate her murals…

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More fun murals along Commercial Street!

Commercial Street east of downtown San Diego is an excellent place to spot colorful murals and other fun public art!

Perhaps you’ve already seen the giant robot, the trashy whale, and the fence full of comic book characters.

Yesterday I rode the Orange Line trolley into the Logan Heights neighborhood on a mission. I wanted to photograph more murals on Commercial Street between the 25th Street and 32nd Street trolley stations.

The first mural, which you can see below, depicts famous jazz singer Billie Holiday. This artwork was painted a couple years ago by the Southeast Art Team (@southeastartteam) on their Oya Art Gallery and Boutique building, a bit west of 28th Street.

The next series of murals can be found between 31st and 32nd Street. Read the photo captions…

This cool shoe mural was painted very recently at SD Custom Footwear by @colorsoner713

Colorful bird mural painted in late 2022 by @espy_dpt_znc

Mural painted late 2022 depicting piñata character Chucho and roses by SoCal artist Michelle Ruby (@MrBBaby).

Finally, at the intersection of Commercial Street and 32nd Street, a mural is now being painted on what appears to be a new home for San Diego beer company Little Miss Brewing…

(Spider-Man, Cyclops, Wolverine and other Marvel comic book characters were on this building a few years back.)

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More street art on Beyer Boulevard!

Enjoy four great examples of street art in San Ysidro!

I saw these the other day while walking along Beyer Boulevard, near its intersection with Alaquinas Drive/West Park Avenue.

(You can find these about a block east of this fun street art.)

Colorful mural painted on side of 7-Eleven on Beyer Boulevard, not far from a trolley station.

No al Racismo! No to Racism! By @Yvette_Roman

Large agricultural mural on the side of La Bodeguita Food Store.

Cat street art under a starry, starry night. By @d_barron26 in 2022.

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A dreamy, surreal mural in Oceanside!

This dreamy, surreal mural was painted in 2017 at Pappy’s Market in Oceanside. Visible from the corner of Surfrider Way and Cleveland Street, the artwork, spilling its weirdness, spirituality and symbolism, decorates the south side of the building.

The artist is Elna (@eln4), who is half of the Brothers of Light duo.

The two artists’ distinctive murals have been painted internationally, but primarily in Israel, where they grew up.

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Baking pizza wings in Chula Vista!

What could possibly be better than pizza and wings? Pizza wings!

The painting of new murals is underway in Chula Vista! One, near the corner of Third Avenue and G Street, promotes La Bella Pizza. It depicts an angelic statue with pizza wings. I took a photo a couple weeks ago and then another a few days ago, so you can see the mural’s tasty progress!

The artists call themselves Arte Atolondrada (@arteatolondrada). I’ve learned another much larger mural will soon be painted nearby, on the east side of La Bella Cafe and Games. This fun project is being undertaken with help from a Create Chula Vista Art Grant.

Downtown Chula Vista continues to grow more colorful and dynamic!

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Preview of Animation Academy at Comic-Con Museum!

The Animation Academy – from Pencils to Pixels officially opens tomorrow at the Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park!

Members of the Comic-Con Museum got a preview of the incredible new exhibition today!

Who doesn’t love animated features and cartoons? We all have our favorites, right? Well, chances are some of your best-loved television shows and movies pop up in this delightful exhibition.

The Animation Academy, as its name suggests, is both educational and interactive. Every sort of technology that has produced animation is explored, from early magic lanterns and spinning thaumatropes and phenakistoscopes(!), to state-of-the-art non-photorealistic rendering and 3D printing.

Not only will you learn about the rich history of animation, and the artists and studios who’ve added to the popular culture, but there are several opportunities for visitors to create their own animated masterpieces!

Among the numerous displays are realistic recreations of work stations, puppets and miniature sets that demonstrate what it’s like to be a stop motion animator.

Fans of Gumby and Looney Tunes, in particular, will be excited to find themselves immersed in well done, interactive displays.

Do you love Bugs Bunny and his friends? You’ll have a chance to view all sorts of original sketches, drawings and animation cells. You’ll even see the typewriter used by legendary Chuck Jones. (Did you know Chuck Jones was inspired by Mark Twain? I didn’t!)

The exhibition encourages curiosity and creativity. Kids will surely enjoy it. Adults with imagination and a sense of fun absolutely will, too!

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A secret, magic bench in Balboa Park!

There’s a secret bench in Balboa Park that works magic. Very few visitors to the park ever see it.

Sit on this bench, look down, and suddenly before your feet colorful stars, planets and creatures appear!

This magic bench is in an out-of-the-way corner of Balboa Park, just north of Spanish Village Art Center, at the east edge of the small parking lot. In the above photo you can see the green grass of the nearby Balboa Park Miniature Railroad.

Should you sit on this magic bench, what might you see?

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A short story about planting a tree.

Looking up through the leaves of the live oak trees at blue sky and clouds.

Have you ever planted a tree and realized it will probably outlive you?

That thought occurred to me a couple days ago as I helped to plant a few young oak trees in Balboa Park.

Yesterday, as I sat gazing out at San Diego Bay, I recalled how the larger oak trees in the grove had seemed so very . . . old. How they were bent and cast dark, spidery shadows. And a bittersweet story came to me.

It’s titled Dale’s Tree. There aren’t many words. I published it here.

Passion, stories, and love of life in art.

True art flows from an artist’s passion to create.

That passion is now being celebrated at the Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park. The exhibition is called This is Our Story.

The artists in this exhibition were not professionally trained. Their works used to be called folk art. Today’s experts call it vernacular art. It is art by ordinary people.

The art of This is Our Story has personality. It is unashamed, happy, in no way conceited. It comes from personal experience, imagination, and hands that love to be moving. It is art that loves to be alive.

You won’t find a Rembrandt in this exhibition. But you will enjoy glimpses of many unique stories.

This is Our Story concludes on February 26, 2023.

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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 Twitter!

Kimonos reimagined by Mesa College students!

Human creativity is limitless. That was apparent today when I stepped into the Inamori Pavilion at the Japanese Friendship Garden.

An exhibition in the pavilion is titled The Kimono Reimagined. Reimagined, indeed! The extent to which the traditional Japanese kimono can be transformed by fashion students into something completely new might surprise you!

Students from the San Diego Mesa College Fashion Program teamed up with the Visions Museum of Textile Arts in Liberty Station to create this brilliant clothing. They used upcycled kimonos and accessory garments that had been donated to Mesa College.

I don’t claim to know much about fashion, but my eyes beheld all this rampant creativity with wonder!

You can admire these inspired works of art at the Japanese Friendship Garden in Balboa Park through February 24, 2023.

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 Twitter!