Colorful art on a downtown San Diego street.

Colorful art on a downtown San Diego street.
Colorful art on a downtown San Diego street.

You can find this colorful artwork on the side of a building on Tenth Avenue as you enter downtown San Diego from Highway 163.

Looks to me like the artist has inserted architectural elements from the California missions into a Mediterranean scene.

Looking down the sidewalk where the mural is located.
Looking down the sidewalk where the mural is located.

Colorful street art in Mission Valley.

colorful dog breeds painted on utility box

Check out these two photos of utility boxes I spotted while walking to work today in Mission Valley.  They sit side-by-side a bit north of the San Diego River on a corner of Camino del Este.

The first box is painted in an amusing fashion with all sorts of dog breeds.  Looks like the artist was definitely a lover of canines!

beautiful flowers decorate a utility box

This second box is super colorful.  I’ve observed that flowers are often central elements in street art.  Perhaps people crave a bit of natural beauty in the concrete jungle.

Super colorful street art in San Diego.

super cool street art in san diego

Check out this cool photo! I captured some more dazzling street art in downtown San Diego, just west of the trolley tracks on Park Boulevard. I like the glassy shine of the eyes and the abundance of color. These fantastic characters seem to have emerged from a little girl’s dream. The right portion was painted by muralist Gloria Muriel, the Bunny Kitty character on the left is by Dave Persue.

A look at the cool mural looking north.
A look at the cool mural looking north.
Mural is on the wall of the hART Lounge.
Mural is on the wall of the hART Lounge.

A crabby waiter serves a surf monkey!

surf monkey in hillcrest is served by a crab

A boring old utility box in Hillcrest was transformed by an inspired artist into a colorful canvas. This fun example of urban art depicts a meditating monkey sitting by the surf, with white clouds and a volcano in the background. He’s being served a beverage by a crab!

Mermaid embraces dolphin on the sidewalk!

mermaid embraces dolphin on coronado island

Check out this very cool art on an electrical transformer! I discovered it near a bus stop, directly across Orange Avenue from Coronado island’s famous Hotel Del Coronado. Other utility boxes on the sidewalk closeby were painted in similar fashion. In addition to dolphins and a sexy mermaid, I saw some colorful coral and a sea turtle!

Yellow fish swims through an underwater scene.
Yellow fish swims through an underwater scene.
Turtle head peeks around Coronado utility box.
Turtle head peeks around Coronado utility box.

Cool street art in downtown San Diego.

cool street art in downtown san diego

This colorful street art dazzles the eye on a downtown parking lot wall. It contains elements from many different cultures. You can find the cool art on the west side of Ninth Avenue just south of C Street.

I took a closer, more complete pic about half a year later. The bold black graffiti has obliterated part of the old artwork.

Street mural has been altered months later with graffiti.
Street mural has been altered months later with graffiti.

Three more pics! The fence around the parking lot was open one morning, so I could walk up close to the mural!

Close look at very cool mural on 9th Avenue.
Close look at very cool mural on 9th Avenue.
Beautiful spray painted face behind some fencing.
Beautiful spray painted face behind some fencing.
A great face on a striking example of street art in San Diego.
A great face in a striking example of street art in San Diego.

Boring object transformed by inspiration.

transformer transformed into cacti

During my walk through Old Town I spotted this electrical transformer in a patch of cacti. It was artfully painted to fit right in!

I love how a little imagination can change a dull, boring object into an inspired piece that fits into greater beauty. Very cool!

Utility box in Old Town painted with cacti.
Ugly transformer in Old Town transformed into cacti.

Mother and child mural on Little Italy building.

IMG_5105z

Here’s a warm, colorful mural on a building in Little Italy. It depicts a mother and child.

I saw this artwork while strolling down the sidewalk. Thought you might enjoy it!

A closer examination of the mother and child tile mural in Little Italy.
A closer, higher contrast look at the mother and child tile mural in Little Italy.

Freakishly gigantic flowers in San Diego!

freakishly gigantic flowers in city

Flowers that are several feet across are growing in downtown San Diego’s Little Italy neighborhood. They’ve grown out of an artist’s paintbrush and onto a wall!

Check out another photo from the amazing, colorful mural I recently walked past and enjoyed. It’s a shame this public art is set back a bit from First Avenue and not immediately obvious to those driving past. To experience it best, you have to pull into a gas station’s parking lot.

This dolphin is swimming right next to those flowers!
This dolphin is swimming right next to those flowers!

Colorful fish survive out of water!

colorful fish survive out of water

Here are more photographs of that cool mural from the previous blog post. There’s a whole school of colorful fish in full view beside that gas station!

More exotic fish on a parking lot wall.
More brightly painted fish on a parking lot wall.
The nearby gas station must be underwater.
The nearby gas station must be underwater!
A bright orange fish swims through the city.
A bright orange fish swims through downtown San Diego.