Finding Murals

How does the Tucson Murals Project find the murals in our Blog? This is the question posed by a U of A journalism student recently. To give you an idea, I’ve made a list of ten of my (Dave Aber) murals that were recently published in the blog. Often we find them by chance – especially if the mural is on a side street. Both Jerry Peek and myself like to simply wander around the city. Murals are easier to find if they are on a main north/south avenue or a main east/west street or boulevard. Also, some of the artists will contact Jerry Peek.  We also review the artists' web sites. The Arizona Daily Star will sometimes carry the story if a major mural is in progress. Schools are a great source of murals. I am amazed at the quality of art produced by our students. There are several artists that volunteer at the schools to mentor the students. We were also invited into nine schools of the Tucson Unified School District to photograph interior mosaics and murals made by students. And let's not forget the other photographers in Tucson who will often send us photos of their discoveries.

Publish
Date		Name and Location		How Found
04/27		San Juan		I knew about this mural but I don't
		1130 E Bilby Rd.		remember the source of my info.
				Sorry.
06/01		Barrio Ochoa		I had been taking photos near
		244 W 28th St.		S. 6th Ave. and E. 27th St. As I
				often do, I took the opportunity to
				drive around the neighborhood.
				I found two murals on W. 28th St.
06/08		Garden on Laguna II		Midtown is a great place to find
		202 W Laguna St.		art objects. Metal art, murals, etc.
				I was just driving around taking in
				the sights.
06/15		Tool Spot		I live near this location and had
		8609 E Golf Links Rd.		often seen this mural. I had to
				wait for a day when cars weren't
				blocking the view.
06/22		U at Park		Found both murals by chance on
		1725 N Park Ave.		different days. Hard to miss as
				both are on major avenues.
06/29		Smoke Shop		I had seen this new mural on
		5846 E Speedway Blvd.		previous occasions while driving
				on E. Speedway.
07/06		SW Family Resource Ctr.		This is a mural that I knew about
		6855 S Mark Rd.		in advance. I'm not positive but I
				think I saw a photo of it on Flickr.
07/13		Wildcat Country		On Feb 13, I was on N Campbell
		2642 N Campbell Ave.		Ave. headed to a neighborhood
				that had a high probability of
				mailbox art. I spotted this mural
				as I was flying by. I immediately
				turned around and took photos.
				I returned two weeks later on
				Feb. 27 and took photos with a
				wider angle lens.
07/20		Edge High School No. 11		Glimpsed possible artwork along
		2555 E 1st St.		a north/south alley while driving
				on E. Speedway. Turned around
				and checked it out. Fortunate to
				have my camera with me.
07/27		Los Vaqueros		Seen and photographed while
		2201 E River Rd.		having dinner at El Corral.

Los Vaqueros

Interior mural at the El Corral restaurant.  A popular cowboy steakhouse since 1939 when it was known as the El Corral Cafe.  Prime Rib is its specialty.  Try the ribs (they really do fall off the bone).

Photo taken on 04/01/2018 with my phone camera.

Click on the photo for a larger and sharper image.

Edge High School No. 11

Beginning in March of 2016 and continuing through May, Jerry Peek posted a series of 10 entries for murals and mosaics at Edge High School.  Since then, a new mural has been painted on an alley wall on the west side of the school.  I found it on Jan. 1, 2018.

1 of 3

2 of 3

3 of 3

Complete Mural

Click on any photo for a slideshow of larger and sharper images.

Wildcat Country

I photographed this mural by Mitch Chris (or is it Mitch & Chris?) on Feb. 27, 2018.  It's on the south wall of Plaza Liquors and Fine Wines at 2642 N. Campbell Ave.

Complete Mural

Close-up of right side

Close-up of left side

Click on any photo for a slide show of larger and sharper images.

Update (September 20, 2022): Here's an aerial photo that BG Boyd Photography took on June 26, 2022:

Southwest Family Resource Center

The Tucson Unified School District has five of these centers and..."Each Family Resource Center is equipped to help families learn about important District policies and procedures, including those concerning enrollment options, the availability of transportation, Advanced Learning Experiences, student discipline policies and procedures, curricular and student support services, and educational options for ELL children."  "Our five centers offer resources such as clothing banks, classes, bilingual services and more."

My note - ELL refers to English Language Learners.

Finally (drum roll please) here are the murals:

Click on either photo for a slideshow of larger and sharper images.

Head Hunters Smoke Shop

I arrived early on Jan. 1, 2018 before the shop opened so that there would be no cars obstructing the view.  Instead, there were several police cars, the area was blocked by yellow tape, and there were evidence tags scattered around the parking lot.  I found out later that a woman had been shot at around 5 a.m.  Her injuries were not considered life threatening.  I was never able to find any further information.

I returned later in the day to get this photo:

Click for a larger and sharper image.

U at Park

These two murals may bring back memories of your college days.  The "U at Park" Apartments has two locations with the same name.  One is at N. Park Ave. and E. Lester St. (formerly Casa España).  The other is at N. Euclid Ave. and E. Elm St. (formerly Casa Royale).

Park Avenue Location

Mural by Michael Schwartz

"Set Your Goals Higher"

Euclid Avenue Location

  Mural by Michael Schwartz assisted by Valeria Hutchings

It's Not All Study (don't tell my parents)

Click on either photo for larger and sharper images.

Tool Spot

West wall of the Tool Spot, LLC. on Jan 1, 2018.

Now Hiring

Click on the photo for a larger and sharper image.

Aug. 1, 2018 - The Tool Spot is no longer hiring.  The mural has been painted over.

Garden on Laguna II

The mural that Jerry Peek posted on Jan. 29, 2012 has been replaced.  See Garden on Laguna
The new mural is on the east wall of the former Ernie's Market.  The building is apparently now empty and unused.
In any case, here it is:

The address is 202 W. Laguna St., but the mural is viewed from N. Castro Ave.
The artist(s) are unknown.  Click on the photo for a larger and sharper image.

Barrio Ochoa

Residence at 244 W. 28th St., City of South Tucson, AZ in Barrio Ochoa.

West Wall Along S. 9th Ave.

The Hands of God

South Wall Along W. 28th St.

Noah's Ark

Photos were taken on Jan. 1, 2018.  Click on either photo for enlarged and sharpened images.

Kickin' It!

The Ann Kathryn Schmidt Kickin’ It Clubhouse is for Tucson youth soccer. It's near Dodge Blvd. at Brandi Fenton Memorial Park. (You can see photos of the rest of the park in our article Brandi Fenton Memorial Park.) There's a nice sign. Near the other end of the building, next to the entrance are, of course :) murals:

I found info on two web pages: FC Tucson Youth Soccer Club and the AKS Kickin' It Clubhouse Facebook page.

The mural with a border of soccer balls is signed Artwork by Gail T. Roberts Studio at the bottom right. The photos are from June 3, 2017.

P.S. For some reason, the official address of the park is on River Road (it's at the bottom of this page), and Google Maps will show you the middle of the park if you click on that address. But the park actually stretches from the southwest corner of Alvernon and Dodge, and the clubhouse is near that corner.

New "augmented-reality" mural on 191 E. Toole

Here's one of the most intriguing mural ideas I've seen. It’s in the Arizona Daily Star article Tucson's first 'augmented reality' mural used to encourage young people to vote. The article begins:

The Citizens Clean Elections Commission is making a push to sign up millennials to vote ahead of the November elections with the help from a special mural that was placed on a downtown Tucson building popular with young people.

The commission is betting young adults will want to take videos of themselves in front of the “augmented reality” mural that — when viewed through a smartphone — adds animated colorful wings to their bodies while birds fly around them. Once using the app, the commission hopes users will then take a few minutes to follow a link on their smartphones that registers them to vote.

I'll try to figure out a way to take a photo of someone there and update this blog entry to show it. There's a photo in the story, though… and more photos if you search Twitter or Instagram for the hashtag #18in2018. That hashtag will show similar murals around Arizona — especially, of course, in the Phoenix area.

Update (January 11, 2019): Today's blog entry shows the mural and examples of how it works.

Arizona Palms updated

Just south of last week's article Still High & Dream Smoke & Flower Shop is Arizona Palms Tinting Company. Seven years ago, it had a very different mural. When I was next door, I noticed the AZ Palms’ mural on the front of the building. Then I went around to the narrow driveway on the south side (which I couldn't photograph straight-on because the driveway was so narrow):

The front still had the same clock at the top as it did seven years ago, but this time it wasn't working. I took the photos on June 23, 2017.

Update (January 19, 2021): There are closeups in today's entry Arizona Palms Tinting, closer.

Mural-covered smoke and flower shop

I never thought I'd see a store that sells both tobacco and flowers. Still, Still High Dream Smoke & Flower Shop is just that. It's covered with murals and artistic signs (at least, it was when I took these photos on June 23, 2017).

Here are the front of the store and the side of the building along the parking lot:

Update (January 22, 2021): There's a new mural behind the parking lot. We also have close-ups of the murals shown here: Still High Dreams, closer

KVOA story on Joe Pagac's latest mural

KVOA "News 4 Tucson" TV posted a video yesterday of an interview with Joe Pagac about his new mural at Euclid & 1st. (My guess is that, if you're driving south on 1st, this is the place where it curves and becomes Euclid.) Here's the story:

Euclid mural brightens drive

By the way, one of the anchors called this Tucson's biggest mural. I haven't seen it yet, but, from the looks of the video, I think that Joe's mural on Stone just north of 6th Street may be bigger. (To see that mural being painted, have a look at our April 10, 2017 entry Murals being made, part 46a: Tucson's biggest — then follow along to the other pages. Or start at the end: Murals being made, part 46c: Tucson's biggest.

By the way, Google Maps doesn't seem to be able to find the exact address. It's so near Euclid & 1st that it probably doesn't matter. But David Aber pointed out that the exact address is 2136 North Euclid Avenue (click there to see it on Mapquest).

Eat at Frank's!

Frank's Restaurant (also known as Francisco's after 4 PM) serves up huge meals until 2 PM every day. Out back — on the wall west of the restaurant — you'll find a long, humble mural with "Eat at Frank's" inside three hearts:

The mural is as quirky and fun as the restaurant(s). I snapped the photos on June 3, 2017.

Maybe a mural, part 81: manhole covers?!

I think of a mural as being on a wall. (Not always. I posted a photo of a mural on the street in Dunbar/Spring.) This Arizona Daily Star article from April 26th is about Tucson sculptor Jason Butler putting art on manhole covers in the city of South Tucson:

Tucson project uses kids' vision to decorate 55 manhole covers on streets

Amazing.

San Juan

The full name is the San Juan Bautista Lutheran Church.  I found this mural on Jan. 24, 2018.  It's on the west end of a small building behind the main church.

Click for a larger and sharper image.

Tucson Weekly article: Visions of Johanna

Here's a story about Tucson muralist Johanna Martinez: Visions of Johanna: Tucson muralist preserves history's lines.

We have some photos of her murals (almost certainly not all of them) on the blog:

• More on Meyer (May 31, 2009)
• Greetings from Barrio Santa Rosa (January 26, 2015)
• Murals being made, part 29a (first of a series — from July 06, 2015 — about her Buffet Bar mural
• The Talking Mural (Murals being made, part 47a)

I'm hoping to add more of her murals. I'll add links here. If you don't follow this blog regularly, please check back.

Mural tours (and more) of Benson and Bisbee

As Tucson gets Toasty, it might be time to head for the hills! The Arizona Daily Star has a couple of articles that should help:

• A look at the amazing murals in Benson: This article also lists some indoor art, restaurants, and places to stay.
• Bisbee Murals