archiTEXTUREal
homage to downtown los angeles
the many textures of frank gehry’s disney hall and environs…
textural treasures revealed…
Los Angeles Love: Mariachi Plaza
Los Angeles Love: Mariachi Plaza
A new discovery! The historic Mariachi Plaza, in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles.
The Kiosk.
The Mariachi PlazaMetro Station
The incredible independent “lending library”, “Libros Schmibros“, labor of literacy love.
Another reason to love LA…
Magical Santa Monica
Magical Santa Monica
An ode to the joys of being a flâneur in Santa Monica, and the whimsical treasures revealed while engaging in Flânerie .
Kettle’s on…
the open roof of this patio on 34th and Pearl streets…
Quite a sight seen from the street.
A closer view reveals trees getting into the act. What a collection!
Details of a beautiful painted door on the west side of one of the shady North South Streets south of Wilshire…14th?
The textures created by weathering make it all the more entrancing.
Nearby….on 14th or 15th Street just south of Montana Avenue…a magical realm of flamingos and butterflies.
Right next door paper lanterns hang like daytime moons, amongst the brilliant purple blooms of the seasonally ubiquitous Jacaranda tree.
Crushed cans form a mosaic surface on the walls of an apartment building (or condos?) on a north south street, south of Wilshire.
Someone, or some…spent a lot of time on this. Let’s hear it for recycling…an aesthetic coup for environmentally conscious Santa Monica.
LITE details. A touchingly tactile transformation.
Well wishes from the Yarn Bombers…brightening up a chain link fence protecting what looks to be an empty lot.
We hope YOU are well, too. Come and enjoy the whimsical beauties of art, nature and creativity abounding in Santa Monica. If you didn’t feel well before you visit, you are certain to feel better afterwards.
Surface-ing in Santa Monica
Surface-ing in Santa Monica
Right here in Santa Monica there is a house completely covered in mosaic…every surface touched.
The patio table top allows for dining on mosaic, while gazing upon mosaic.
A tree of life is flanked by trees of nature.
Aquatic life swims across the wall…
allowing a close-up view.
A doorway to the surely magical intrigues.
Not too far away, also in Santa Monica, is different sort of embellishment: a wall encrusted with crushed cans.
In the display case on that wall, folded paper cranes fly.
Around the corner is
an entire wall of apartments surfaced with crushed cans.
People live here.
With all the accoutrements.
They barbeque here.
Lite transformed into art.
What other surface music is played visually here in Santa Monica?
One must stroll without a goal…play the flâneur...
Expect the unexpected….
And reap the delight.
Mockups and Murals
Mockups and Murals
What is a mural?
Related to the French word “mur”, meaning “wall”, the term “mural” is derived from the Latin mūrālis, which means “of a wall”, derived from the Latin mūrus, or…you guessed it, WALL!
Not surprisingly, the most literal meaning of the word “mural” is a painting on a wall. However, the term has expanded to encompass a wide range of both interior and exterior applications to the built environment and a variety of architectural surfaces
Murals can be painted on panels or canvas, and then affixed to a wall, fence, ceiling, floor, room divider, or roof! They can be graphical, patterned, or design-oriented in nature, or depict intricate scenes so real that we might find ourselves stooping to pick up what we thought was a feather on the floor, only to find that our hand brushes against its painted surface…
But, how does the artist get from the concept, or idea for a mural, of whatever sort, to the finished, often very large image you might enjoy in your living room, local restaurant, non-profit organization, mall, or neighbor’s fence?
Well, through the mockup process, namely, creation of a to scale, model, version, or prototype of the intended mural. It is a great way to present ideas for approval, and catch potential aesthetic, functional or structural problems before they become actual ones! Please see below a gallery of assorted mockups, and the murals they spawned. From canvas to walls, to doors to exterior fences seen through a second story window, murals can happen anywhere their makers can wield a brush, adhere a tile, (shh, bad for the environment) press a spray can button. The following images give a sense of scale from mockup to mural, and the various environments murals can exist in. Future posts will explore this subject in greater depth, so hold on to your ladder (or scaffold), and enjoy the ride!
Mockup for “The Land of Oshun”
“The Land of Oshun”, Turk and Taylor Street, San Francisco
Sketches and mockup for “The Donor Tree”
“The Donor Tree”, Planning for Elders in the Central City, San Francisco
Mockup for “Window Mural”
“Window Mural” seen through kitchen window
“Window Mural” seen from below, San Francisco
Mockup of “Garden Mural”, seen with full-scale mural in process
“Garden Mural”, patio level, San Francisco
Mockup for “Life Journey”, seen with full-scale mural in process
“Life Journey”, living room wall, Burlingame, CA
Mockup for “Obi-Cat”
Lower part of “Obi-Cat” on door
“Obi-Cat” on music room door, Palo Alto, CA
Stay tuned for more on murals….
What intriguing murals have YOU seen, or created recently??
If you feel so moved, please share them with us here.
We love to hear from you.
Remember, we are all mocking up this thing called Life, together.
Artissima - Blog of ArtiFactory Studio 