Murals being made, part 58: Arizona Arts Live

What you knew as UA Presents, the University of Arizona's performing arts presenter, now has a new name: Arizona Arts Live. During the first part of November, 2020, Mel "Melo" Dominguez painted a mural on the south wall of the Wheels & More location on 12th Avenue just north of Irvington. These first two photos came from Facebook:

I stopped by on November 8 to say hi and snap more photos of the mural in progress. It's next to a popular Sonoran Hot Dog spot with a full parking lot:

On November 9th, I stopped by while they weren't painting (Mel/Melo prefers “they” and “them”):

On November 18th, the mural looked finished:

It's a fun combination of modern and ancient:

The Olmec were an early people who lived in what's now southern Mexico. And llanta is the Spanish word for tire — a nod to Wheels & More, which is hosting the mural.

Long-time contributor Mark Fleming stopped by the mural on December 27th. The mural had two finishing touches since my last visit — near the bottom left and bottom right corners:

Mark also took other close-ups:

Thanks much, Mark!

Let's travel this year! (Murals in Levoča, Slovakia)

I saw a billboard on Twitter that said “2020: The worst year ever.” I'm not sure about that, but it must have been one of the worst. For a travel fanatic like me, it was tough because I couldn't go (almost) anywhere. I've spent the holidays sorting through photos for a major update to my really old photography site, JerryPeek.com. I saw these photos of murals on a construction wall around the Church of St. James in Levoĉa, Slovakia, in 2003, I thought they might give you some inspiration too.

First, here's the top of the church — at the left side of this photo:

Now the wall:

Here's to a great 2021!

Bart Simpson pulls down Santa Homer's beard (Merry Christmas!)

When I searched online for merry christmas graffiti, this mural was in all of the first 10 or 20 results: To see the video by itself, here's a YouTube link: https://youtu.be/J-QEFlIp9uk. There are more photos of the mural on the Graffiti & Street Art blog page titled Merry Xmas by Homer & Bart Simpson!.

I asked Graffiti Life (who painted the mural) where it's located along Brick Lane — so I could give you a tour of the art-lined street on Google Street View. They told me that it's been painted over. (It was painted in 2013, I think.)

Want to see other Christmas murals? Here's a Google Search for christmas street art.

I hope you're having — or had — a peaceful Christmas (and that Santa made it out of your house alive!).

Endangered mural on Pima Street

As I was looking through the artists in this year's Open Studios Tour (from Arts Foundation for Tucson and Southern Arizona), I saw a mural in Jenna Tomasello's listing. I wrote to ask where the mural is, since the number on the mural is 5630 but the Tucson Acupuncture Co-op is at 204 East Fort Lowell. She wrote that it was on a former building of theirs on Pima Street, that they were going to have their handyman paint over the lettering but were planning to keep the sunset portion. When I stopped by on December 9th, the whole mural was there, but parts of “ACUPUNCTURE CO-OP” were partly covered by an “AVAILABLE” sign. So I asked Jenna if I could publish her photo from her OST web page. Here it is, followed by the new sign toward the right edge of the lettering:

(Yes, the right wall of the building isn't straight; it's like little stairsteps.)

She signed the mural at the lower right:

Thanks, Jenna, for the mural and for the photo!

Sanctuary

Photographed on Sept. 9, 2020.

By Ramjeet Kaur

 

 

 

 

 

Click on the photo for a larger and sharper image.

Wildcats Mask Together

The roll-up doors on the stadium have new murals. I saw them as I was driving by on November 14th:

Update (February 18, 2022): On Christmas Day 2021, there were UA football murals here.

"God Bless"

This mural of the Virgin Mary was found Nov. 11 on the south wall of the Beverage Barn.

Artist not known

 

Click on the photo for a larger and sharper image.

Jackie Daytona mural in Tucson, Arizonia

Next to Danny Martin's mural of Ted DeGrazia on the mural-covered building at the corner of Toole Avenue, 6th Avenue, and Alameda Street, Danny painted a new mural:

This is great fun. The character Laszlo (played by Matt Berry), who is actually a vampire, takes on the alias Jackie Daytona. If you don't know the series, you really should read Recap / What We Do In The Shadows Season 2 Episode 6 "On The Run" for the wild details. As that synopsis says, Jackie Daytona is an impressive, hyper-competent bar owner that everyone likes. He says "This is the way we talk in Tucson, Arizonia": (You can see that video fullscreen in What We Do in The Shadows - Jackie Daytona Moments. The Arizonia line is at the time 0:41.)

I stopped by 191 E. Toole for a beer :) on November 4th.

Quincie Douglas Center ten years later

At the corner of Kino Parkway and 36th Street is a recreation complex named for Quincie Bell Douglas:

I found her biography and a photo in The Douglas Archives. She was born in Oklahoma Indian Territory in 1905, moved to Tucson in 1933, and died in 1986. Also:

Quincie Douglas became active in the Model Cities program that brought neighborhood centers, sidewalks, street lights. and neighborhood food programs to the poorer sections of Tucson. Her major accomplishment in Tucson was the Low Income Free Transportation Service (LIFTS) program that is still in operation today.

You can see a LIFTS van in the mural above. The mural is outside the library entrance. This plaque is underneath:

I visited in 2010 when there wasn't as much art. If you'd like to jump back, click on Quincie Douglas Center.

Before I checked out the other art nearby, I looked out back to see if there was any there. I found the sign for the garden:

There are two benches outside the recreation center. The first one is along the walkway between the library and rec center entrance:

Here are closeups, left to right:

(As always, you can click on a photo for a slideshow of larger images.)

The other bench is near the entrance to the recreation center:

Again, from left to right:

There's another mural, dedicated to the Buffalo Soldiers, to the left of the rec center entrance (there were a couple of glare spots):

And the plaque underneath:

I visited on June 3rd.

Mural on a dead-end street

Toward the south end of the Barrio Viejo, on a broken part of 9th Avenue, is a mural that Jessica Gonzales painted earlier this year:

Thanks to David Aber for finding it and giving me exact directions. (The best way to find it yourself is by clicking on the address at the end of this blog entry to get a Google Map.) I snapped the photo on September 25th.

"Love Is Essential"

 North wall of 'Girls Estate Sales'.  Photographed on Sept. 11, 2020.

By Jen Schrantz, aka "The Aquarian Bee"

 

 

 

 

 

 

Center Section

Click on either photo for larger and sharper images.

Arroyo Chico Community Mural

The Arroyo Chico Community Mural (named "FLOW") was painted by Porter McDonald on a wall on the west side of the Mission Church's parking lot.  The parking lot is enclosed by a chain link fence that is only open during services.  The photos were taken on May 18 and Sept. 13, 2020.

Here is a link to Porter's comments about the mural: Arroyo Chico Stories

Panel that is outside the fence.

Panels inside the fence.

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