Tag: murals

We rise by lifting up!

Can your spirits be lifted by an old faded mural in a city alley?

Of course!

I spied a smiling sun and moon near the intersection of University Avenue and 46th Street in City Heights. The enduring message: WE RISE BY LIFTIN.

And I smiled, too!

UPDATE!

I received a comment by Amber M Jahn that provides information concerning this great mural:

You forgot the beauty painted on the alley side of building at 47th and University. The entire wall was first painted by Amber Jahn in about 2017 in which she writes the message “We Rise by Lifting Others” then 2 years ago half the wall was covered, erasing the word Others, and adding a noon to the existing sun…so now it says “we rise by Lifting”….I’d love to see a community day of free hot dogs and get a few local bands to play while the mural is updated, refurbishing the sunshine and adding the word Others to complete the project right. I personally funded the first mural, it would be cool if a lift could be procured for the tallest areas of the building since my 12 ft scaffold only reached 17 feet of the 21ft wall and has been left unfinished as a result. (I’m only 5’2” and did all the work alone one summer while living in a minivan on University Ave. It was a good way to keep my mind distracted from the crisis I was currently enduring. I like that I’ve received messages from local parents thanking me for giving their children something positive to look at on their way to and from school everyday. My pleasure!!

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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!

Three new murals are painted in City Heights!

More murals are being painted in City Heights!

This afternoon Carlos Quezada of Love City Heights showed me three great new murals and introduced me to one tropical fish store owner whose building is in the process of turning very colorful!

First up, we checked out a mural that was finished about a week and a half ago. It’s inspired by Lotería, and was painted by a picnic bench outside Filiberto’s Mexican Food at 3446 University Avenue. The youthful artist is Andrew Greyeyes. You can see his smiling photo and his other City Heights mural at Fruteria Disfrutalas here!

Next up, I took a photo of another new mural on the side of Sunset Kava. It’s titled Afro Garden and is by the artist Aicha Fofana. Find more of her work at @fofanaflowrs.

I love the super creative design. Very cool!

If the next mural (which is painted to the right of Afro Garden) seems familiar, I took a photo of it a while back, but it wasn’t quite finished. It’s by artist Mary Jhun. See what it looked like in early 2019 here.

Lastly, a big, super colorful mural is now being painted on two walls of the Tropical Fish Stop at 4647 University Avenue. Tropical birds and fish and a turtle greet people passing by, and entice everyone to come inside!

The artist is Imperial Beach-based Esmeralda Robles. You’ve seen some of her artwork already on Cool San Diego Sights. Click here and check out her dogs on the surfboard!

Carlos Quezada of Love City Heights told me this is the 27th mural his organization has helped bring to the community. Truly inspirational.

I was introduced to the friendly owner of Tropical Fish Stop and looked at all sorts of exotic fish and birds. The store has been open at this location for less than a year and they have plans for expansion! If you live in City Heights, or elsewhere in San Diego, drop on by and check it out!

UPDATE!

I took several photographs of the finished Tropical Fish Stop mural during a walk through City Heights in late October…

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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 better look at one very cool mural!

After my walk through Balboa Park today, I headed to City Heights where several new murals have been painted.

When I arrived at the corner of University Avenue and Swift Avenue, my searching eyes spied a very cool mural that I’d photographed a couple years ago. But this time a car wasn’t obscuring part of it!

I like this colorful mural so much I took advantage of the situation and got some good unobstructed photos.

The mural’s title is Journey Within Through the Sea of Soul, and it was painted by Celeste Byers and Aaron Glasson. It’s on the side of the Teros Gallery. The mural depicts the gallery owner riding a Chihuahua ship on a distant planet upstream into herself!

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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!

Photos of colorful street art in Encanto!

Check out this batch of great street art! I recently walked along Imperial Avenue, starting a few blocks west of the Encanto trolley station and ending a few blocks to the east. Many of the electrical boxes along either sidewalk were painted by very creative artists.

Some of this street art is years old, but it’s still lively and fun! I did adjust my photos a little to make faded colors more vivid.

If the abstract style in the above photo looks familiar, that’s because it’s by local artist Maxx Moses (formerly named Daniel Hopkins), whose work can be seen elsewhere on my blog. A friendly guy at The World Famous Imperial Barber Shop said the front of the building was painted with this fantastic artwork a couple years ago.

The nearby Encanto trolley station also has a huge, amazing mural that Maxx Moses helped to create. See it here! You can see even more cool work by this San Diego-based graffiti artist and muralist here and here.

Now my walk continues east along Imperial Avenue…

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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!

Neighborhood restaurant mural: Better is Possible.

The East Village restaurant Neighborhood closed for renovations earlier this year. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, they have yet to reopen.

I walked past their boarded-up windows this afternoon and saw a mural had been painted on them. After a little searching on the internet, I see that artists Joshua and Ezra Andrade created the artwork last month.

Positive messages in the mural, which includes images of fighting, a knife and brass knuckles, include Ego is not Your Amigo, Better is Possible, Regulate Impulses, and Hood Must be Born Again!

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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!

Art-filled walks in San Diego’s North County!

This year I’ve walked quite a bit in San Diego’s North County. Many of those journeys filled my eyes with wonderful art.

I’ve amassed so many photos over the years, I’ve decided to list the following links. They take you to blog posts concerning a variety of art-filled walks in North County. (No, there’s no listing for San Marcos or Rancho Bernardo. I’m sure there’s cool art in those places which I’ll discover in the future!)

Are you ready for some fun?

Click the following links to see cool murals, street art, sculptures . . . and one world-famous installation by a major international artist that is tucked away in a place few visit. What am I talking about? I’m afraid you’ll have to do a little exploring! (Hint: it’s magical.)

The following links include hundreds of photos!

Carlsbad

Cool street art throughout Carlsbad Village!

Faces painted with words of confusion, revelation.

Del Mar

Del Mar’s sculpted Journey and A River of Time.

Amazing mosaic wall at the Del Mar Library!

Breeders’ Cup horses race on a Del Mar street!

An amazing Sunset Seat on the cliffs of Del Mar.

Encinitas

Photos of cool Sea Walls mural in Encinitas.

Cool pics from a wonderful walk around Encinitas.

Fun tile mosaic art on Encinitas sidewalk!

The miracle of the Surfing Madonna.

Amazing walk from Swami’s to the Cardiff Kook.

Escondido

Happy art and the Escondido Students’ Tile Mural.

Colorful art in Escondido celebrates nature!

Unusual public art at Escondido Transit Center.

Beautiful public art near Escondido City Hall.

Public art in Escondido: two female bronzes.

Carving stone and the Blue Granite Shift.

Star Streams at the Center for the Arts.

Niki de Saint Phalle’s Grande Step Totem.

Photos of Queen Califia’s Magical Circle!

The gigantic bronze leaves of Kit Carson Park.

Leucadia

Murals in Leucadia along Coast Highway 101.

A colorful walk through nerdy, artsy Leucadia.

Oceanside

Sculptures near the Oceanside train underpass.

Flying pigs and other cool Oceanside murals!

The cool Cruisin’ carhop mural at 101 Cafe!

Poway

The Pioneers sculpture at Old Poway Park.

Photos of Tony Gwynn statue at Lake Poway.

Solana Beach

A walk down Solana Beach’s Coastal Rail Trail.

Sea life mosaics at Solana Beach bus station!

Cool mural overlooks Solana Beach train tracks!

Cool art and history in Solana Beach.

Sea-themed mosaics at Fletcher Cove and Overlook Park.

Vista

Amazing sculptures around downtown Vista!

Wild Horses run through Vista Village!

Murals in and around Alley Art Man Way!

Letters Home: A fallen soldier and a memorial.

Love Locks many hearts together, forever.

Stained glass panels beautify Paseo Santa Fe!

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This blog now features thousands of photos around San Diego! Are you curious? There’s lots of cool stuff to check out!

Here’s the Cool San Diego Sights main page, where you can read the most current blog posts.  If you’re using a phone or small mobile device, click those three parallel lines up at the top–that opens up my website’s sidebar, where you’ll see the most popular posts, a search box, and more!

To enjoy future posts, you can also “like” Cool San Diego Sights on Facebook or follow me on Twitter.

The Working Waterfront mural in National City.

Cyclists following the Bayshore Bikeway head north on Marina Way past a mural on a building at the National City Marine Terminal.
Cyclists following the Bayshore Bikeway head north on Marina Way past a mural on a building at the National City Marine Terminal.

Earlier this year a mural titled The Working Waterfront was painted on the east side of a Pasha Group National Distribution Center building at the National City Marine Terminal.

The creator is internationally known artist DAAS. The new mural, which celebrates those who work unloading imported new cars at the nearby terminal, workers at San Diego’s shipyards, and others employed on the waterfront, was commissioned by the Port of San Diego. The large mural is visible to the west as you drive on Interstate 5.

I took photos last weekend during my walk in National City. I first spotted the mural as I headed up Paradise Trail, which follows Marina Way. The Bayshore Bikeway also heads this way, giving passing bicyclists a great view of this very colorful artwork!

The Working Waterfront, by muralist DAAS, in National City, California.
The Working Waterfront, by muralist DAAS, in National City, California.

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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!

Flying pigs and other cool Oceanside murals!

I spotted a bunch of street art during a recent walk down South Coast Highway, from Mission Avenue to Wisconsin Avenue. I already shared photos of the Cafe 101 mural in my previous blog post. The following photos are of the other cool murals I encountered.

I did my best to capture as much of the artwork near the roof of Skoolyard Records as possible. The long Oceanside mural is on the side of Flying Pig Pub and Kitchen.

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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!

The cool Cruisin’ carhop mural at 101 Cafe!

If you love cool cars and nostalgia you’ll like this mural. It’s painted on the south side of 101 Cafe in Oceanside. The mural depicts a carhop outside wearing roller skates. She’s serving food to customers in a woodie, hot rod and several other classic cars.

101 Cafe dates back to 1928. The original twenty seat diner was built on US Highway 101, the main road back then from Los Angeles to San Diego.

The small restaurant has gone through many changes over the years. At one time it was a drive-in. It’s now a diner specializing in breakfast, and features 1950’s decor–including this great mural!

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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!

You can help restore murals around San Diego!

Do you love art? Do you love San Diego’s unique history and culture? Do you want to beautify our city?

Your help is needed!

As you might have read in my previous blog post, local artists have formed a team that intends to restore many of San Diego’s neighborhood murals. Over time street murals can become faded, peeled, dirty or defaced, and need a little love to restore them to their full glory.

The growing Southeast Art Team, led by a super optimistic, smiling Kim Phillips-Pea, has plans to restore various murals in different San Diego communities. But, of course, buying paint and other supplies requires funds. That is where you come in!

You can help to restore beautiful murals around San Diego by visiting the Mural Restoration Project San Diego’s special GoFundMe page here.

Perhaps, like me, you don’t have much skill with a paintbrush, but you can provide a helping hand to mural-restoring artists who do!

Click here!