Thursday, December 30, 2010
A classic car by Luis Mena
(Update, March 24, 2011: There's another car wash mural at Watch while you wash.)
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Maybe a mural, part 12
Of course, what's graffiti to one person might be art to another. I thought of this as I read a couple of recent newspaper articles about tagging in Tucson. (Here's the one from Tucson Weekly.) What if someone reports a piece of "urban art" as graffiti? I'd guess the company that cleans Tucson walls, Graffiti Protective Coatings, has experience with that.
Maybe a mural, part 11
You'll find another one farther along the street at the corner of Seneca & Chrysler.
Maybe a mural, part 10
Maybe a mural, part 9
What do you think about this wall and mailbox at 4364 E. 4th Street?
Monday, December 20, 2010
Mural map!
I've mentioned the table of murals several times. It helps me keep track of which murals had been posted and when. But it's gotten big, as well. What we really needed was a map with all of the murals pinpointed. This fall, Melodi King took on that project for her mapping class at Pima Community College. (It was her idea, by the way.) She's has put a tremendous amount of work into the project, and it's finally ready to announce... just in time for your holiday mural-hunting.
The map comes in two sizes: small (for your phone or a netbook computer) and large. From the map, you can click on any of the mural locations. A pop-up window will appear with a photo of the mural, details about it, and a link you can click to read the blog entry about it. There's also a page of suggestions for using the map.
Though her class is over, Melo and I will keep working on the map design. The map software is being developed, and it sometimes doesn't work quite the way you might expect. The design of the map pages is also very basic at this point. Please send your comments!
To go to the map pages and the table of murals, click on "Map and table of Tucson murals" under "Favorite links" in the right column of this blog.
Good fences make good neighbors...
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Underwater on First Avenue
I've driven by a few times; there are always cars in the parking lot, blocking part of the view. Luckily, though, I've met the artist, Alexandria Winslow. She sent me close-up photos, including these:
Her website, BackporchStudio.net, shows more of her art.
Sunday, December 12, 2010
¡Mariscos Chihuahua!
Warren's photo was of 999 N. Swan. In the past couple of months, I've snapped photos of the other Tucson locations:
356 E. Grant, on a cloudy October day... check out the bench with a big shell backdrop. | |
Part of the south wall at 1009 N Grande | |
2902 E 22nd, at dusk, with the west side illuminated | |
At 435 W Irvington, the walls are all white — except for this door. I wonder if there used to be more? |
Update (July 30, 2011) I replaced the photo of the Grande store with a better one. (You can still see the original photo if you'd like to.)
Update (July 23, 2015): The 22nd Street location has a new sign next to the mural.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Friday, December 10, 2010
May in December
Here's the Fathead Shop at 513 N. Fourth Avenue:
Thursday, December 09, 2010
(Solar) Culture changes (again)
Monday, December 06, 2010
A cut above
Three years ago, Erik S. emailed Randy photos of the mural as it was before — on the west side of what was then Menlo Park Video. Now the building is a barber shop named Money Cutz, and the mural is freshly painted. The article quoted Eddie Urias telling the story of growing up in his neighborhood, Menlo Park, how the mural was a bright spot between two liquor stores at that corner: Grande and Congress. This year, as the shop owner, he wanted to restore the image of the Virgen de Guadalupe. What a great story!
I mentioned the article to Melo King. She told me that she'd caught a photo of the mural as it was being repainted, on October 21 of this year:
Fast-forward to this afternoon, December 6, when I drove by to see the mural. The shop was closed, so I got this view without any cars:
If you're on the west side of town, if you're passing by on Interstate 10, or if you're downtown (just on the other side of I-10) — well, or wherever you are — stop by to see this beacon of hope in the neighborhood. And if you need a barber, come inside to meet the owner and thank him for what he's done — definitely a cut above.
Update (August 7, 2011): Here's a photo of the back side of the store.
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
Adios para siempre...
Farewell to an Icon
Sunday, December 19, 3:00 - 5:00 pmJoin us for Mexican hot chocolate and pastries as we bid a fond farewell to the mural Nuestro futuro/Nuestras raices humana and honor artist David Tineo's contribution to this iconic work of art. The mural will be de-installed in January.
Bring your mementos and memories to this despedida and share your stories about the mural with the artist. Filmmaker Angela Soto will be documenting the event and de-installation of the mural.
There are more details, and mural history, on the museum's press release (a PDF file). Here are parts of it:
I'll hope to see you there on the 19th.Unveiled in 1992 as part of CARA Chicano Art: Resistance and Affirmation, a temporary exhibition celebrating the Chicano art movement that traveled nationally, the mural was created by applying paint directly to untreated plywood. Originally intended as a short term installation, the long term exposure to Tucson’s weather has made it unstable and a public safety risk. “The mural was commissioned by the Museum and made with the intention of having it on display for a few months,” says Ann Seirferle-Valencia, Curator of Latin American Art, “although we have tried to stabilize it over the years, the plywood has warped to the point that it is separating from the frame. It is with David Tineo’s blessing, and in the best interest of the art and safety of our visitors, that we have decided to take it down.”
“It has fulfilled its purpose more than I could have expected,” says David Tineo, “It’s a piece of history and has been embedded in many hearts. I see this as a transition from public display back into the community.” The mural will be cut into sections and framed by Galeria Mistica, Tineo’s gallery representative and the home of much of his work. Once framed, the sections will be offered for sale to benefit the students at the Museum School for the Visual Arts. “The most important thing to me is that it benefit the kids at the school,” states Tineo.
(Update: Several Arizona Daily Star articles say that Antonio Pazos worked on the mural too. There's more information in the East Valley Tribune story Tucson mural, artist battle ravages of time.)
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Mary's street
The second mural also looks like something Mary painted, doesn't it? Some day I'll head back to the neighborhood to see if I can get the story. (If you know, please tell me...)
Update (December 24, 2012): Thanks to the comment that Mary's daughter Crystal left recently (see below), we've got the story of the bottom mural. The top mural of a woman with paintbrushes must be Mary herself! I've also posted more details today.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Studio 220, Got All Your Marbles?
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you mural lovers!
Update (August 4, 2013): Mark Fleming just sent another photo of this same mural. It seems to be in good shape (which quite a few murals aren't these days: many are being trashed by taggers... sigh). I'm guessing that its position above the store's window helps protect it.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Farewell, Print Well
Monday, November 15, 2010
Exceptional elementary
The walls are covered with desert scenes of critters making music:
Monday, November 08, 2010
Down under (Speedway)
The second is over Highland, between Mountain and Cherry:
Update: As always, you can click on an image for a larger view. Use your browser's "Back" button to return. And you might want to try that on the last photo above. On February 16, 2011, while I was waiting for a bus at the stop next to the mural, I spotted some UFOs that weren't on Melo's original picture. Did the original muralist add them, or was it a clever tagger? I snapped the photo below...
Update (January 21, 2016): For more-detailed photos of the Olive mural more than five years later, see today's entry Over Olive again.