6,000 Tucsonans in the 4th Avenue underpass

It's not the crowd for the 4th Avenue Street Fair or the hundreds of runners and walkers from Meet Me at Maynard's. It's the faces of Tucsonans that (eventually will) line the walls of the underpass on panels.


The right-hand photo shows the title tile. It's at the southwest end of the tunnel. (As always, you can click on it for a larger view.)

The Tucson Portrait Project took the photos, and the murals are appearing one by one. Want to find someone? Type their first name into the search box at tucsonportraitproject.com. Then choose a face from the group of images you get to see a larger version and the person's name, as well as which of the panels you'll find it on.

You can see some of the photographer's favorite portraits and the artist statement on the Conrad Wilde Gallery page about the project.

Rialto's short-time mural?

This mural on the Rialto Theatre greets people driving into downtown from the east. It's for the Sonic Youth concert on January 4th. After that, what will fill the space? (Check back with us... try the list of mural locations.)


At the other end of the wall is another mural that's been there longer -- and probably will stay longer, too.

Urban art on Herbert

You'll find this mural just south of 6th Street on Herbert Avenue (which is an alley a block west of Fourth Avenue).

First mural in "kindness corridor"

Last week, Philadelphia mosaic artist Isaiah Zagar led a team of volunteers to put up the first of a planned series of murals around the University of Arizona. The theme is kindness, and the murals should eventually stretch along University Blvd. and Fourth Avenue into downtown. The idea came from Ben's Bells founder Jeannette Maré-Packard. This first mural wraps around walls on the north side of a parking lot on Tyndall Avenue southeast of the corner with University:


A closer view:


Part of the mural are pieces of mirror. Stand close to see yourself and the scene behind you:

Moving murals

On December 7, I spotted the Arizona Daily Star article Tucson Oddity: Graffiti-covered boxcars, site now store parts for old trolleys. About ten years ago, the story said, Old Pueblo Trolley let winners of a graffiti art contest paint the boxcars. The cars -- stored in a fenced lot at 10 N. Park Avenue, are about to be re-painted to look like they did in the mid-1950s. I grabbed my camera and got out there around noon yesterday:


The lot's fence is high, topped with razor wire, and you can't see much through it. Luckily, the gate was open. I walked in, chatted with two men who came out of the building that opens onto the lot, and I walked right up next to the cars. Here are two views of the mural on the south side (the far side of the right-hand boxcar in the first photo above):


The back of the other boxcar was harder to see -- close to the fence and half in shade. Here's what I got:


This is one more view -- facing the inside (northwest) corner of the two boxcars in the first photo, looking through a dilapidated trolley:


Soon these murals will be part of Tucson history. (By the way, a good place I've found to read and discuss Tucson history is at Vanishing Tucson.)

Public Art at PCC East

The east campus of Pima Community College, 8181 E. Irvington Road, has public art around the grounds -- including modern sculpture along some of the central walks. Here are two murals.

Half-hidden mural

This tile mural at the William Clements Recreation Center, 8155 E. Poinciana Drive, was probably easier to see before the plants in front of it were as high as they are now.

Mystery murals

I call these "mystery murals" because I took a photo of them but didn't write where they were. I put a note on this blog, and mural-spotter extraordinare Warren V wrote back right away to tell me that they're on the east side of Stone, just north of Glenn. Thanks, Warren!

Tucson Mountains in Midtown

If you can't make it to the west side of town to see the Tucson Mountains close-up, try the southwest corner of E. Fort Lowell Road and N. Mountain Avenue. (This photo is from early morning on May 19, 2009.)

You can see this mural under construction in an entry from September 14, 2006.

Culture changes

Back in July, 2008, Warren V sent us a photo of Solar Culture Gallery at 31 E. Toole. Almost a year later, May 2009, that scene had changed. Here's a closeup of the new mural.

Arnold has company

Back in July of 2006, Randy snapped this photo of Arnold Schwarzenegger standing by himself on the back of the building at 1240 N. Stone Avenue.

This past May, as I was surveying all of the murals for the list of murals by location, I saw that the wall around Arnold was now filled with urban art:


(As always, you can click on the photo for a larger view. Use your browser's "back" button to come back here.)

This is one of a batch of photos I just found. I'll post more when I get a chance...

Park along Park to see...

...this mural along a parking lot south of 375 Park Avenue. It's not easy to find: Google Maps shows both the city street and the expressway called Park Avenue. If you're driving, head along the Park Avenue Expressway and turn into the buildings just north of the Basket Bridge. Or, if you're on a bicycle, look east from the north end of the Basket Bridge -- which is where I took this photo. (Remember that you can click on any photo for a larger view.)

Parking by an ocean...

...with a fanciful underwater (?) forest of saguaro and fish, or the sign of the now-closed Grande Tortilla Factory, or a train's smoke billowing a sea monster into the sky... it's all on the wall along the parking lot just west of the Tucson Museum of Art, along Paseo Redondo, east of Granada.

You can't miss this mural...

...though somehow we haven't put it onto this blog yet. It's on the east side of the entrance to Hotel Arizona, just at the place where Broadway and Congress merge

Seniors shine at Freedom Inn

Weekdays between 8:30 AM and 3 PM, you can walk in the entrance to the Freedom Inn at Ventana Canyon, 5660 N. Kolb, check in at the front desk, walk down the hall, and be taken away to New York, China, Egypt, and more. (San Francisco is coming soon.)

This is thanks to staff member Pam Stafford and, especially, the residents and their memories of the places they've been. (Many of the people who live at Freedom Inn are world travelers, Pam told me.)

Keeling neighborhood shines along Glenn

Glenn, just west of 1st Avenue is filled with public art. The photo above is part of a wraparound mural at the corner of York Place. (Yes, someone defaced that face in the foreground. Sad, isn't it, that some taggers have so little pride in their neighborhoods?) Just above the curb at the corners of the next two blocks west -- Los Altos and Hopi -- are small murals like this one:



As if the murals weren't enough, the island in the middle of Glenn is lined with colorful posts.

Thanks, Keeling neighborhood, for brightening a bit of Glenn!

While in Baghdad...

Until the Tucson Murals Project receives more photos, I'll just shoot murals wherever I happen to see them. I snapped these photos of two murals at Camp Victory in Baghdad, Iraq earlier this week. They are located just outside of a chow hall.

For more about my adventures in Iraq, visit my "Have News, Will Travel" blog.

Many more murals, no more time...

With Randy away in Iraq, I've been trying to pick up the slack this month... riding my bicycle around Tucson early in the morning, checking out murals that were already on this blog and finding new ones. I hope these new murals will keep you mural-lovers busy for a while! (While you're out exploring, please grab your camera and send photos of other murals you find to Randy.)

This scene after sunset, on the wall of 668 S. Main (at 18th St.), seemed like a good way to end a month's worth of murals.

Four photos at Five Points

Just west of Five Points on 18th Street is this block-long urban art. I took it in four (digital) photos and put them together with the filmstrip tool in GIMP, the powerful free image editor. (As always on this blog, you can click on the image to get a bigger view.)

More on Meyer

This mural, at 600 S. Meyer, was painted earlier this year (2009).

Marvelous Meyer

There are several murals along this street in the Barrio Viejo. (You can find others in the list of murals.) This one's at 555 S. Meyer.

Carrillo School

This mural takes a bit of hunting to find -- unless you're at Carrillo School, that is. I caught this view across the street from 428 S. Samaniego.

Twelfth Street revisited

After reading Randy's story and photos of artist Cliff Brown painting murals, you might be surprised to know that there are even more murals here at 346 E. 12th! The first one you'll probably spot is this wraparound mosaic.

Thanks, Roadrunner Hostel, for giving Tucson visitors such an artistic welcome.

Spider mural

Though a spider isn't the only feature of this mural on 5th at Congress, it looks amazingly realistic in this photo, wouldn't you say? (As always, you can click on the photo for a larger view.)

Mural brightens motonony

Strip malls aren't always charming. But this one brightens its part of Broadway with colorful cactus. (The address is 1221 E. Broadway.)

Sunset at sunrise

Early summer mornings are a great time to go mural-hunting: the streets are quiet, the air is cool, and there's no one behind you honking as you slow down to gawk. (Even better, go on your bicycle!)

Somehow this mural -- on the west side of the Roses & More building, Tucson Blvd. at Broadway -- seems to me like a sunset view. The sun was rising as I snapped this photo.

AccessTucson

Even if you're driving by in a car, you can't miss this mural on the west side of the AccessTucson building, 124 E. Broadway. (You might want to stop by, though, to take a closer look.)

Chicago re-(re-)visited

Thanks to the Chicago Music Store, 130 E. Congress, for adding so much art to downtown! The building is wrapped in murals. This is in the alley on the south side -- next to another mural that keeps changing as time goes on. (To see earlier versions, click on all of the entries for 130 E. Congress in the mural listing.)

Giant plants (or tiny buildings)

One of the things I like most about painting is that artists can shift perspective and make, say, a barrel cactus as big as a building. Here's an example: the wall around a patio on the south side of the Armory Park Senior Citizens' Recreation Center. It's on the northwest corner of 13th Street & 5th Avenue.

Grand entrance

Two murals decorate the two-story north entrance to Safford Elementary School. I took this shot from outside the fence at the corner of 13th Street and 5th Avenue. (The entrance is about a block away, so bring your binoculars or a zoom lens -- or ask the school office for permission to get closer.)

La Pilita Museum

Next to the El Tiradito shrine is the La Pilita Museum at 420 South Main.

Country in the city

This countryside scene runs the whole length of the south side of the Tucson Yoga building at 12th Street and 4th Avenue. (As with all of the other photos in this blog, you can click for a bigger view.)

Bright on Broadway

On Broadway at 5th Avenue, this colorful mural is on the outside of the Childrens Black + White Photography Gallery.

Big Brothers Big Sisters

This mural is on the Toole Avenue side of the Big Brothers Big Sisters Angel Youth Center -- at the corner with Alameda.

Bikes and murals

BICAS (Bicycle Inter Community Action & Salvage) is a non-profit bicycle recycling and education center, where you can get bicycle parts, work on bikes, take classes on art (and bicycle repair), and more. Like a lot of the downtown warehouse district these days, things at BICAS aren't at all certain.
For now, at least, their walls are decorated with murals -- like this one on the alley named Ash, just north of 6th Street.

Murals past and present

The murals reported here, less than a year ago, at 300 N. 4th and 400 N. 4th, are both gone. Times change, and so do murals...

There's another bright spot on the block, though: wall-filling murals on both sides of the outdoor stage (which doesn't have an address, but it's around 320 N. 4th). Here's the south side:
and a part of the one on the north:

Arte para y por los estudiantes

Was your school playground lined with murals? It was if you went to Davis Bilingual Learning Center, 500 W. St. Mary's (at Granada). This artistic school is one of the many bright spots you'll find around this arty corner of Tucson, nestled against the east side of I-10. (Check the mural table to find more of them.) Thanks to the students, mentors, the Barrio Anita Association's mural restoration program, and a mural grant from the City of Tucson.

Though the gates were open and no one was around during the early morning time I was there, you might want to check with the school office (520/225-1400) before you come on your own tour.

Train, trolley, and a three-eyed alien

Next to the tracks, along one end of the Toole Parking Lot (177 E. Toole) is this wild mural that includes a bunch of Tucson landmarks, a guy (?) with a paint roller over the courthouse dome, a saguaro, a locomotive, an archway with candles beyond, and much more. I'll let you find the alien yourself, but here's a hint: look for the paper airplane.

A treat along Toole

Even with the refurbished railroad depot to spruce up the area, let's face it: Toole Avenue isn't exactly gorgeous. But, along with other murals in the neighborhood, this mural-fronted building, La Frontera ("The Border"), spruces up one side of the street. It's at the corner of Council & Toole.

You can find art (almost) anywhere

Humble murals are okay here! (Right, Randy??) And these murals -- at the northwest corner of the bridge across the Silvercroft Wash, near 1700 West Speedway -- have some creative tricks. Those raindrops under the cloud on the left side, for instance, cover what look to me like plugged holes in the concrete.
I do most of my mural-hunting on a bicycle. That makes it easier to spot art in places that aren't so obvious (and is a fun way to get some exercise, too).

You can't see it during the day...

...because the painted garage doors here are open then! I snapped this photo early in the morning while Netto's Auto Clinic was closed. It's at 513 W. Ajo Way.

Art inside and out

The Arts & Culture Partnership, at 35th & South Park, has spaces for artists inside and art for you outside. It's part of a street full of art -- starting 11 blocks north at 24th & Park.

Angels on Park

Billy Sanchez, the artist who did the murals at 30th and S. Park, has been busy down here! He painted more murals for kids at Little Angels Day Care, which is a few blocks farther south at 34th & Park.

Smokin' on South Park

The front of the MVP Smoke Lounge at 2010-B South Park (just south of 30th St.) is covered by this larger-than-life mural that pretty much says it all.

South from 24th St. on Park...

Head south on Park Avenue to 24th Street. On the west side of the street you'll see pillars that introduce what's ahead of you. The pillars tell some mid-20th-century Tucson history that I'd never heard: the African-American community of South Park Avenue, South Park Political Club, free movies under the stars at Mirasol Park, and a lot more.

Up ahead are tile-decorated bridges, bus stops, and benches to rest on. They continue, here and there, until you get to 36th and Park. (You might want to bicycle or catch a bus, by the way, because this'll all zoom by if you're in a car.) While you're in the neighborhood, check out other murals nearby.

Ironic, isn't it?

This 1997 mural, titled "Don't Waste the Scenic Santa Ritas", is on Queen Avenue south of 3rd Street. When I stopped by a few days ago, the mural and the credits to the Tucson Arts Brigade were partly covered by barbed wire and old junk.

Electrifying art ("artifying" electricity?)

One block in the Dunbar Spring neighborhood is filled with a power substation. The view is nicer than it would be, though, thanks to the green fence around it and the art on the corners. Here's the corner of 4th Street at 11th Avenue:

Just add water. (Murals provided.)

The artwork here isn't exactly murals... it's actually tile. But this unused plot -- which looks to me like it was a community garden at one time -- is in the same neighborhood with other murals, and it's worth a look! (The gate was locked when I was there.) It's at the corner of Anita and Williams.

Coming soon...

The I-10 widening project has added a lot of art along the freeway -- and around it, too. Here's the scene from the west end of Williams Street, for instance.


The far right side of this mural (behind the "Road Closed" sign) shows the front of the Anita St. Market, which has two murals of its own! (Too bad you can't see those murals in this mural...)

Murals in (on) store

These two murals are on the side of the Anita St. Market, on Lord St. at the corner with Anita St. Though it's just a block away from I-10, there's a real neighborhood feeling here.

While you're here, check out other murals in the neighborhood, too; there are a lot!

Land (and a mural) for sale

Want a scenic view every time you pull into your parking lot? Just make a deal with the Arizona Department of Transportation for this lot at the southwest corner of 6th St. & Main. It comes complete with a piece of what looks to me like Monument Valley, with lush plants in front and an eagle above... even a window in the middle where you can peer into the building.

This is the former Art's BBQ that Randy wrote about just six months ago. I didn't realize until I started making the new table of mural locations. It might help you, too, if you want to go mural hunting.

A fun (but not smart) place to skip class

Who, me? I'd never suggest truancy to you students at Tucson Magnet High School. (Besides, this long series of portraits and other tile works is on the wall just south of the school -- along 8th Street, just west of Euclid -- where you'd be easy to spot.) So, come with your classmates when school's out!

The rest of us can visit anytime -- maybe on a walk with the dog, or a stroll with your friends -- to enjoy all the variety that stretches along a lot of the block.

On my honor, I will try...

A ribbon with that pledge stretches the whole length of this Girl Scout mural on their building near the southeast corner of Broadway & Columbus. If you were, or are, a Girl Scout, the symbols that line the bottom of the mural will probably mean a lot more to you than they do to me! But I recognized people in the news, and names of events, that run along the top of the wall. There are lots of happy Scouts, too. Just try to come early in the morning before the sun bakes this west-facing wall -- and before cars fill the parking spaces that line the mural's bottom edge.

Wall-busting mural

Norhing bashful about this guy! He's smashing through the front wall of Bashful Bandit, 3686 E. Speedway.

No Murals in Iraq

New Mission Won't Affect Murals Project

Your Photos Still Needed

Hello Everyone,

     I'm currently working as a civilian journalist with the United States Marine Corps in Iraq.  This doesn't affect the Tucson Murals Project, but may slow it down a bit.  That's where you come in.  You can always e-mail me pictures of your favorite Tucson Murals at randygarsee@gmail.com.

    Meanwhile, history is unfolding in Iraq.  If you would like to keep up with those events, visit my personal blog which now has a new mission.

    Thanks for your continued support!

     Sincerely yours,

     Randy Garsee

Rides in the Sun

Just Mural Cruisin'

Tucson Murals contributer Warren V. says this mural is "on the south side of a garage at 433 N. Santa Rita, just a little south of 6th Street by the U of A campus."

Mural Montage: A Tucson Favorite

While Truckin' Around.....

If you ever drive around the area of the University of Arizona, 

you'll eventually come across this mural.  

It's located at the southeast corner of

4th Avenue & Sixth Street.

Photos Courtesy of Davis Dominguez Gallery

These Murals Tank!

What Was Oro Valley Thinking?

I have often admired Oro Valley's public art efforts.  I even produced a video of public art in Oro Valley, which you can find on my YouTube Channel.   This latest attempt, however, tanks.

Oro Valley has a beautiful new shopping area called the Oro Valley Marketplace.  Smack dab in the middle of this strip mall in the desert are two water tanks.  Someone decided, "Hey, water tanks are unsightly.  Let's paint a mural on them.  Better yet, make them look like massive Giant Saguaros."

As I discovered, the great idea of painting the tanks was mutilated by someone else's idea to surround the tanks with an 8-foot-tall stucco fence.  Drivers can only see the tops of the tanks!  Why not some type of fence so visitors can see the art work from top to bottom?  What a waste to spend all of that tax money for well-painted tanks and then hide most of the work.  

I got the best shots I could get and cropped the cactus flower for better effect.  I even stood on the concrete pillar of a light pole to get shots of the tanks without the wall in front of them.   But if you drive through the Oro Valley Marketplace, I'm sure you'll have the same thought I did:  

"Paint a mural and hide it?  No 'tank' you!  Randy Garsee

Faded Pussy Cats

Faded Mural

In the Ash & Toole Street area

Contributed by Davis Dominguez Gallery

Mural Rialto

Outside the Rialto Theatre

Contributed by Davis Dominguez Gallery

That's Chicago... Again.

Spoon Me!

Warren V writes, "The mural has changed on the back of the

Chicago Music Store downtown [Tucson] since the May 9th 

[2008] photo posting.  Here is a shot of the new one."

Arizona's Artist: Maynard Dixon

A short documentary on the late artist 

Maynard Dixon

hosted by Dr. Mark Sublette, owner of Medicine Man Gallery

in Tucson, AZ and Santa Fe, NM.

To see this video produced by 

Randy Garsee, 

hit play below:

For the Veterans on Veterans' Day

This patriotic mural is on the wall at 

Miller's Surplus in Tucson at 406 N. 6th Ave.

Remember to honor your military veterans today.

Here's the link to the location.

Photo Courtesy of Davis Dominguez Gallery in Tucson.

Putting the Art in Art's BBQ

If you've ever doubted good barbecue is an artform,

then this mural should put your artistic tastebuds to rest.

Bon Appetit!

You can find it here on our highlighted map link.

Photo Courtesy of Davis Dominguez Gallery in Tucson:

New Mural Friends

Hello, Fellow Tucson Mural Enthusiasts,

          Just wanted to let you know that Mike Dominguez of the Davis Dominguez Gallery in Tucson (and with the help of Tom Rossi) recently profiled some of the murals from the Tucson Murals Project at a presentation Mike gave at Tohono Chul Park.

In exchange, Mike Dominguez sent me a CD of wonderful Tucson murals to add to the Project.

So, far the next few days and weeks, 

I'll post Mike's contributions.  

I hope you enjoy them.  

I know I will.