A comic art Mini Con will be coming to San Diego on August 24th, 2024. The free event will be held at Southern California Comics at 8280 Clairemont Mesa Blvd., #124, from 11 am to 5 pm.
Featured artists will be Jevin Loop, Kevin Tran, Phillip Quick, Action Figure God and Zander6comix. This morning at San Diego Comic-Con, Zander himself told me about this cool local comic event. We’ve met on a couple of occasions in the past while I’ve blogged about events around San Diego.
Come support great comic talent and have a fun time. Burgers and Fries will be on hand, too!
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If you’d like to view my coverage of Comic-Con so far, which includes hundreds of cool photographs, click here!
Today, May 6, was annual national Free Comic Book Day!
Southern California Comics in Kearny Mesa held a big event celebrating the day, and I dropped by to see what I might see. (And to pick up a big bag of free comic books! Later arrivals were allowed to grab 15 comics. I have some reading to do!)
In the parking lot outside the store a number of small vendors were selling all sorts of pop culture collectibles, and independent artists were showcasing their original creations.
I wandered a bit and spoke to some of the friendly artists.
One thing that was obvious is these people are driven by dreams and ambition and a relentless passion to create. As an author of short fiction, I can relate.
No matter what level of success any artist might achieve, it’s good to remember these words by Frida Kahlo: “I paint flowers so they will not die.”
Every artist has the ability to work that magic.
I really like the work of Ruben Rosas. He does illustration and digital art. See some of his stuff here.
I learned there’s a group of artists who call themselves the Comicbook Artists of San Diego. The two guys who greeted me were super friendly. According to their website: CASD was founded with the intention of building a local community of comicbook artists to foster artistic growth and to showcase their artwork. They want to put San Diego on the artistic map!
More cool artists! These smiling humans are two of the creators of Accidental Aliens, a local comic art studio! Check them out here. A description of their 2nd Shift Volume 1 includes: When evil incarnate tears through San Diego, four fledgling superheroes band together…
Oh, look! It’s Horrorgasm! I once saw an exhibition of their art at the Comic-Con Museum here.
It appears Ronald McDonald has traveled to Free Comic Book Day from a galaxy far, far away.
Great cosplay. And an earnest pitch to check out the 60 Pages 14 Creative Teams 1 Big Punk Rock Comic Kickstarter page here!
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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!
While driving through Kearny Mesa, have you glimpsed something mysterious above an Aero Drive street sign?
I saw this unique “Honorary Deegan and Stephen Lew Drive” sign last weekend. I was walking down a sidewalk through the Convoy District.
Pausing at the corner of Convoy Street and Aero Drive, I took this photograph.
When I got home, I found a press release from San Diego District 6 Councilmember Chris Cate.
I learned that the 7900 block of Aero Drive was dedicated last summer to two brothers who were members of the Asian American community. Both were “…incredibly active civically, culturally, and philanthropically…”
I also learned this is the very first street sign in San Diego written in both English and Chinese.
I don’t recall seeing the dedication event on the news, and indeed a search of Google News turns up nothing.
I’m glad I happened to see the sign. I learned a little about two people who were loved by many, and who contributed to the life of our city.
“San Diego is a better, more kind, and compassionate place because of Deegan and Stephen.”
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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’ve noticed lots of new street art has recently appeared along Convoy Street in Kearny Mesa. So late this afternoon I checked it out!
I began my walk at Clairemont Mesa Boulevard and headed south down Convoy, through the heart of the Convoy District, which is the home of many Asian businesses and eateries. My walk ended just north of Balboa Avenue, where I jumped onto a bus.
Look at the many newly painted electrical boxes!
Two months ago when I walked this way, these particular boxes weren’t decorated. It looks like many talented artists have been very busy!
Words on the other side of this painted box describe: Phayanaak a revered water serpent in Laos.STRONGER TOGETHERProtect our EldersHOPESUPPORT YOUR COMMUNITYAPOYA A TU COMUNIDADFeed the SOULGET JIGAE WITH ITGIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE PHOCHOOSE UNITYTied together with noodles
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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 photos for you to enjoy!
A very creative sculpture rises between government buildings at the County of San Diego Operations Center in Kearny Mesa. It’s titled Perhaps.
Perhaps you’d enjoy some fun photos of Perhaps!
The sculpture was created by award-winning London-based artist Zadok Ben-David in 2012. The giant human form, made of hand plasma cut Corten steel, is composed of tiny joined figures in countless different poses.
So many potential activities in life. The complex story of every life is written by moment to moment choices.
Hmm. Perhaps…
If you’re wondering about the white fenced area near the metal legs of Perhaps, according to a sign it will be a small County of San Diego demonstration garden.
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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 photos for you to enjoy!
This morning I swung through Kearny Mesa again to see how the new Yu Darvish mural in the Convoy District is progressing.
I was excited to find it nearly completed, and I met the muralists, too!
Signe Ditona and Paul Jimenez, the artists of Ground Floor Murals, have painted several awesome Padres baseball murals around San Diego already. And both are super nice!
Check out these photos of their latest Padres mural featuring star pitcher Yu Darvish. It’s on Convoy Street, just south of Engineer Road.
(If you’d like to see an early stage of the mural, you can revisit my blog post from several days ago here.)
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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 photos for you to enjoy!
Yesterday I walked along many blocks of Convoy Street in Kearny Mesa. I was on a mission to check out the new Yu Darvish mural that is being painted this week. See those photos here!
As I walked through the heart of the Convoy District, I saw a few bits of “street art” that I photographed.
The Convoy District describes itself “as the commercial and cultural heart for San Diego’s 450,000+ member Asian & Pacific Islander communities.” It is one of several areas in San Diego that has attracted a sizable Asian population.
There are numerous eateries in the strip malls that line Convoy Street. Restaurants offer Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Chinese, and Thai food, not to mention Hawaiian, Italian and lots of Mexican.
I remember frequenting an all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet back in the 80’s when I was quite a bit younger and could devour multiple platefuls!
It was wonderful to see bits of art along Convoy, but there is definitely room for much more!
Welcome to ConvoyA very colorful rooster with a beer on the side of Cross Street Chicken and Beer. At this restaurant Korean Fried Chicken meets Classic Southern Cooking. Mural by @espanagarcia_art.A newly painted electrical box on Convoy Street. I believe this might be the result of a recent Utility Box Mural Program that partners the Asian Business Association San Diego, Convoy District, SDG&E, and Cox. It was the only decorated box I happened to see.I passed these two lions that stand on the grass in front of Jasmine Express. It appears they used to be located elsewhere. If you know anything about them, leave a comment!
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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 photos for you to enjoy!
A new mural of San Diego Padres’ pitcher Yu Darvish is being painted this week in Kearny Mesa!
After work I headed to the wall just south of Convoy Street and Engineer Road to see what progress has been made.
Paul Jimenez and Signe Ditona of Ground Floor Murals weren’t present at the time, but it was cool to see how they planned the mural’s basic shape using fun little shapes, smileys, squiggles and whatnot. Only Yu’s head is materializing so far!
I’ll try to swing by again in the next few days, and if I do I’ll update this post with more photographs!
UPDATE!
I checked out the mural several day later and found it nearly finished. I posted those cool photographs here!
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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 photos for you to enjoy!
A colorful, truly stunning mosaic greets visitors arriving at the North Island Credit Union building in Kearny Mesa!
The large circular mosaic in the entrance plaza was created in 2008 and is titled Icons of San Diego. It was designed by artist Wick Alexander and installed using the LithoMosaic process.
The artwork pays tribute to iconic sights in San Diego, including the Coronado Bay Bridge, Balboa Park’s California Tower, the Santa Fe Depot and the Hotel del Coronado. Kids make a sandcastle on the beach, a surfer rides a wave, and hot air balloons float overhead!
If you’d like to read about the making of this very fine public art, click here!
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 photos for you to enjoy!
I love this fun street art on Aero Drive. You can find it right next to the Serra Mesa-Kearny Mesa Branch Library parking lot. Painted on an electrical box is what will happen when you read a book. Your imagination will take flight!
If the library is closed and books are unavailable, your mind can take flight in a different way. Simply turn north and watch as small airplanes take off and land at nearby Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport (which is more commonly known as Montgomery Field.)
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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 photos for you to enjoy!
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