Today I went on a super long, absolutely amazing walk. (Lots of blog posts are on the way!)
Look what I stumbled upon as I headed homeward through Golden Hill. Nicholas Danger, one of San Diego’s most prolific street artists and muralists, was painting a cool new mural on a patch of front lawn!
If you recognize his style, that might be because many photographs of his street art have appeared on my blog over the years. One of his recent murals that I photographed was created for Vespa Motorsports, which you can see here!
You can also see a photo of him painting a mural in North Park during the 23rd Annual San Diego County Credit Union Festival of Arts here!
Nicholas Danger is the name that Nicholas McPherson goes by, and how he signs his artwork. I met him only briefly this afternoon, but he was a really nice guy and let me take a photo of his latest creation.
If you want to learn more about his art, check out his website 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!
Because I live nearby on Cortez Hill, I frequently see the colorful mural in the above photograph. It was painted last year at one end of the rooftop of the old, now vacant San Diego Superior Court Family Court Building. (Years ago the Family Court moved to another downtown location.)
For a while last year, during a larger than average influx of refugees, the unused building was turned into a temporary shelter for asylum-seeking families. At the time I often saw kids playing outdoors on the roof, to one side of the parking area.
One day the mural appeared. Some cheerful color to brighten the lives of children, who were experiencing a very stressful moment in their lives through no fault of their own.
…
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!
During my afternoon walk through East Village I had to do a double take. Had I stepped into a galaxy far, far away?
Across the wide Space 4 Art parking lot I spotted Yoda!
I took the above photo from a distant sidewalk, then greatly enlarged the image and sharpened it. Hopefully you can see how cool this mural appears in person!
Yoda is spray painted on a nondescript building whose other sides are home to a variety of murals. Check out an awesome Mechanical Shark here, and other works of super creative street art 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!
This morning I headed from downtown to Barrio Logan, as you might have read in my previous blog post. As I walked along National Avenue and crossed Sigsbee Street, I happened to turn my eyes toward a nearby alley.
And look what I spotted painted on a long fence! Check out this very colorful mural!
I believe the mural, which appears to depict a dream full of symbolism, was recently created by Jessica Petrikowski, a Chicana artist in San Diego.
…
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!
People bicycle past huge colorful murals painted along the Bayshore Bikeway in Chula Vista.
In 2019, some of the largest, most impressive outdoor murals in San Diego were completed in Chula Vista along a stretch of the Bayshore Bikeway. Very few people see them–only those who ride or walk down a segment of the bike path west of L Street.
The bold, very colorful murals, representing different art styles throughout history, were painted by eleven talented artists. Check out these photos, then hop onto your bicycle to experience the amazing wall for yourself!
This public art was the result of the Chula Vista Art Through History Outdoor Art Gallery project, organized by the City of Chula Vista. The variety of styles portrayed celebrates the diversity that thrives in this South Bay community.
A row of bold murals that represent different art styles through history.Art has the power to transform, to illuminate, to educate, inspire and motivate!In Full Color, by Allison Bamcat. Classical Greek and Roman art.Wally, by Chloe Becky. Expressionism.The Warrior, by Guillermo “Memuco” Munro. Arte Mexicano.Crying Girl, by Daryl Shawn1. Pop Art.Michelle Guerrero. Primitive Art.
Niz. Art Nouveau.Us Watching You, Watching Us, Watching You, by Jhelen Ramirez and George Shaffer. Post-Impressionism.In Bloom, by Andy Rios. Graffiti.Self-Actualized, by Sergio Daniel Robleto. Feminist art movement.Carve Your Path, by Sergio Daniel Robleto. Social Realism.Picasso, by Michelle Guerrero. Cubism.
…
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 learned yesterday during a Pacific Beach mural walk that there are exciting plans to restore San Diego’s most iconic downtown mural!
Artist Kathleen King, co-creator of the America’s Finest City mural in 1989, informed our group that the historic mural’s restoration will be done in conjunction with SANDAG’s San Diego Forward “5 Big Moves” initiative.
As I understand it, the America’s Finest City mural will be a centerpiece for the planned Fifth Avenue trolley station Mobility Hub!
Very cool!
The iconic America’s Finest City mural in downtown San Diego.
…
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!
One of many great works of art a group learns about during a guided mural walk in Pacific Beach.
Today I was lucky to go on a really cool guided mural walk in Pacific Beach! The tour was led by Leslie Dufour of beautifulPB, which is a volunteer organization formed by PB residents and businesses who are working to create a sustainably beautiful Pacific Beach. You can learn more about beautifulPB by visiting their website here.
During the walk, I learned that the folks of beautifulPB have a PB Murals program, and they’re looking to add even more public art to their already colorful community.
The murals we saw today were all fantastic, and there were many that I hadn’t seen during my various Pacific Beach walks over the years. We even got to meet one the artists, Kathleen King. She painted an iconic PB mural that you will see in my upcoming photographs, plus the landmark America’s Finest City mural in downtown San Diego!
Today’s amazing tour began in a small courtyard area behind Randall’s Sandals on Garnet Avenue, where we learned from Leslie Dufour about the history of murals, particularly their early 20th century renaissance in Mexico led by artists Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros. That movement continues to influence muralists today.
After the fascinating presentation our group embarked on a looping walk of perhaps a mile or less. Future walks featuring additional murals are planned!
Thank you to Yerba Mate Bar & Empanadas, where we paused to enjoy some vegan treats that were really delicious! They intend to turn their outdoor courtyard space into a Pacific Beach arts center. Very cool!
Okay, let’s see some photos! Read the captions!
Our group heads through the beautifully painted walkway of Randall’s Sandals, where the long mural opens up for all to see.We learn about the history of murals beside the work of muralist Jared Blake Lazar.Mural by @MatthewMillington depicts a very colorful Quetzalcoatl, the feathered serpent diety of ancient Mesoamerican people.A mermaid mural by @LovePaperPaint (Katie Gaines) is inspired by the traditional La Sirena image in Mexican Lotería.This female superhero mural was painted by artist MDMN (John Moody) during a past San Diego Comic-Con.Our group meets prolific artist Kathleen King, whose 1988 mural was painted from a 1943 photo of Garnet Avenue, looking west toward Crystal Pier.Nearby plaque explains this mural depicts the corner of Cass Street and Garnet Avenue as it was in 1943.The historic brick building in this iconic PB mural still stands on the street corner.And here is that building!John Lennon with a daisy in his eye. A cool mural on the side of Five Guys that was painted in 2006 by Steve Gorrow, Creative Director of Insight Clothing.Left side of fantastic shark mural at Even Keel Tattoo, by artists Nate Banuelos and Kyle Walker.Right side of the same mural, which contains romantic, sea-themed elements.Learning about one of Pacific Beach’s many beautiful, creative murals during a guided walk!
…
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.
Today I took two short walks in the South Bay. One of my modest adventures was near the Imperial Beach Pier.
I noticed that on Seacoast Drive, across from the pier, Bibbey’s gift shop now has two very cool murals, one painted on the south wall and one on the north. Both are super creative and contain all sorts of abstract characters, including kooky surfers, a mermaid, and what appear to be faceless underwater ball players!
That mural with elements from pop culture that I blogged about almost six years ago here seems to be long gone. Only the shark remains at the building’s southwest corner–an updated and rather fierce version!
UPDATE!
About a year later I walked past Bibbey’s again and took more photos…
…
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 recently noticed a new spray painted mural in University Heights on the south wall of Park Boulevard Liquor and Deli. It has replaced another mural which I posted several years ago here.
The artists for this very cool street art appear to be: HASLER, SHARK, BRAVE and T-BONE.
…
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!
Last weekend I enjoyed an easy walk up and down Main Street through downtown El Cajon.
I started at the El Cajon landmark sign, where I read some historical information concerning Amaziah Lord Knox, founder of Knox’s Corners, later the City of El Cajon.
I then headed east to the corner of Main Street and Magnolia Avenue, where old photos provided by the El Cajon Historical Society adorn the vacant Salvation Army Thrift Store building. I believe the photo murals were put up for the El Cajon Centennial, which was in 2012.
I continued walking east to Prescott Promenade, where I checked out the handsome old Rotary Club of El Cajon clock and some fun street art. I saw many different banners hung from lamp posts that celebrate El Cajon. Some banners depicted the Cajon Speedway, the Mother Goose Parade, and seven-time NASCAR champ Jimmie Johnson, who grew up in El Cajon.
I crossed Main Street, checked out a beautiful fountain and artificial stream near the El Cajon Civic Center, then turned west and walked past a variety of small shops and colorful eateries.
(The second photo below I took during a later walk. I’ve inserted it so you can more easily read the history of Amaziah Lord Knox.)
…
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!
Cool San Diego Sights! 