Blue McRight created two artworks entitled Twist and Sprout for the Nobel Athletic Area and North University Community Branch Library. The artist, inspired by the natural terrain and uses for the site, created a meaningful sense of place by symbolically identifying the two main buildings, the library and recreation center, as the mind and the body respectively. Through the use of metaphoric imagery, the artist encourages the whole complex to be seen as representing the whole person. In addition to the thematic connection of the mind/library with the body/athletic area, the artist draws inspiration from the natural environment and the technology industry which neighbors the site.

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Magdalena Abakanowicz's “Walking Figures,” portrays 18 iron cast figures in suspended movement with one foot forward. The 18 representations were individually cast in Poland under direction of the artist. Abakanowicz differentiated each figure with unique elements to ensure no two figures are alike.

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“Engagement,” is a large-scale sculpture by noted artist Dennis Oppenheim. The work is intended to remind the viewer that marriage requires a balance between two people with different interests, tastes and backgrounds. “Engagement” represents the dichotomy of marriage, expressing the romantic and the melancholy.

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Sarah Lejeune collaborated with artist Angelo Camporaso to create a pair of colorful ceramic tile-mosaic installations which incorporate digital photographic images imprinted on the tiles in visual patterns evocative of the ocean and beach as well as the nearby amusement park. The installations are placed on the north and south walls of the comfort station and were inspired by the juxtaposition of Belmont Park and the ocean.

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ORCHID FOR PUBLIC ART & ONION FOR PUBLIC ART

Jury Comments: This project - nominated for both an Orchid and an Onion – caused a heated debate amongst the jurors.  They commended the artist, Neal Bociek, for his creativity, whimsy and his willingness to find an artful solution to concealing our urban “shiny metal boxes.” Landsailers is an exemplary exhibit of ten fanciful air, land and sea vehicles that create a coastal art trail which unifies several La Jolla and Pacific Beach neighborhoods.
However, for the Arts Commission, the jury has bestowed an Onion for misdirecting such great talent and artistry for the mundane purpose of hiding utility boxes.  Our thought is that Landsailers sculptures would be more appreciated if they were prominently displayed in a different manner. It’s sort of like tattooing a flower around a wart on your nose.

 

"Landsailers" is a temporary exhibit of ten sculptures throughout San Diego’s Pacific Beach and La Jolla neighborhoods. As part of the City of San Diego’s installation of water pollution management utilities, local artist Neal Bociek created ten “Landsailers,” whimsical assemblages of air, land and sea transportation vehicles. The sculptures are integrated into the beach environment and aesthetically and conceptually connect each utility box to its specific neighborhood location and to all the other utility boxes creating a coastal art trail that can be followed from La Jolla to Pacific Beach. The temporary exhibition of "Landsailers" will be on view for approximately five years.

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Replacing a former dilapidated Tower, the new Pacific Beach Lifeguard Tower affords a much-needed gathering plaza while serving as an iconic and functional gateway to the beach front. The Plaza, located between the new lifeguard tower and the comfort station, has brought an enjoyable stopping point along the long board walk boulevard in Pacific Beach. The whimsical and fancy-free sculpture “Pelican Brown” (donning a vest!) welcomes beachgoers into the plaza by engaging them in a dance with bronze pavers representing his tango path. You can tell who he is right when you get there- he’s usually posing for the paparazzi or for pictures with tourist and children. Embedded blue glass and seashells in concrete mimic the meeting of "surf and turf" in the ground plane, meanwhile boulder placement allows for organic seating for walkers, skate-borders and cyclists to enjoy throughout the day and night. All together this project not only provides the needed gather space in PB, but it offers a fun and quirky ode to San Diego’s nature and to the Pelican Brown.

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A 14-foot sculpture fashioned of hot glass and metal that uses the beauty of its creation to raise awareness about the degradation of our oceans. The sculpture depicts sea life under the thin veil of the ocean surface struggling to survive among pollution and debris. Artist James Stone shows his interpretation of fish trapped in ghost nets – nets cut lose by fisherman, left floating in the oceans, trapping fish never to be released. A distinctively beautiful piece of sculpture that makes an eloquent and relevant statement.

See attached jpegs for more info or visit www.stoneandglass.com or contact 858-485-7701.

The project was located this year on San Diego's Embarcadero as one of the Port of San Diego's Urban Trees. This highly successful public art program has a a juried selection of art that is only temporarily on display. Currently the piece is on loan to Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific. It would be a wonderful addition as a permanent artwork on our waterfront.

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A big misuse of public art. Sort of like drawing a flower around a wart on your nose. Same results.

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SDG&E transformers set off by chain link fencing at the foot of Broadway is the Port's latest high tech design concept. Designed by ??? It is a shame that the focal point of Broadway has chain link fencing surrounding transformers with orange barriers.

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These graphic woodblock prints depict the weathered faces of some of San Diego's homeless. Just as we notice the mural as we walk by, it reminds us to take note of the actual people sleeping on the street.

From the artist's website: They are people who are, to most of us, invisible. They are the homeless. These large prints are focused on capturing the incredible character that life on the streets has given these individuals. Nobility, beauty, strength, vulnerability… they are all there if we take the time to look. The next time you pass someone sleeping in the street, realize that as a child, this is probably not the life they had dreamed of leading. Each has a family, friends and a story of why they are in their present circumstance. By presenting these faces on a large scale, it forces us to confront them and the situation that so many like them find themselves in. Children who are without parents or role models are at the most risk of being on the streets as they live their lives.

This mural is located on 9th street at G on the east side of the Art Academy building.

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