The Sacred Heart of Tucson by Alexandra Gjurasic (@lexgjurasic).
February is coming up, which means it’s time to take a moment to appreciate the art around you!
Share photos of your favorite murals (and other art from your neighborhood) by using the hashtag #LocalArtLoves.
Mural by Chip Thomas (@jetsonorama) in Yuma, Arizona.
What’s Local Art Loves about?
Local Art Loves is an annual online celebration of art and artists from different corners of the globe. During the month of February, anyone can join in by using the hashtag #LocalArtLoves to share art they love from wherever they are.
Mural by Jet Martinez in Clarion Alley, San Francisco.
The purpose is to be more aware of the art around you and the artists in your community.
I was inspired by all the colorful walls around Tucson to make murals the focus for 2020. What mural(s) do you love seeing near where you live?
By Isaac Caruso in Tucson, AZ.
FAQs
How do I participate in Local Art Loves?
Take a photo of a mural, post it on Instagram with #LocalArtLoves, and boom! you’re part of this.
Only murals?
Nope! Murals are just a starting point. You can share any art from your neighborhood that you really like.
More ideas: sculptures in the park, paintings in your favorite cafe, street art, exhibitions at your local library, comics, chalk art, mixed media pieces at an art fair…
Yes! Please do! Every year, several artists participate and share their latest pieces or work in progress.
If there are other artists in your community whose work you admire, feel free to tag them and share some of their work too.
What counts as local? What if I’m traveling / not in my hometown this month?
“Local” is wherever you happen to be in the world. How broadly you define your neighborhood is up to you.
Greetings Tour mural, Tucson, AZ.
Can I share more than one piece?
Yes!
What if I’m not on Instagram?
You can also post (and hashtag) photos on Twitter and Facebook – make sure your post is set to public. Or contact me directly.
Mural by Bumble Bee Loves You in Yuma, AZ
Anything else I should know?
Please only share your own photos of the work.
Mention the artist if you know (or can find out) who it is.
Don’t take photos where it’s not allowed. If you’re not sure, ask the artist or venue. While you’re at it, find out their Instagram so you can tag them!
I’ll be re-posting #LocalArtLoves on social media throughout February and rounding up highlights here on the site at the end of the month.
You guys found — and made — some great art during Local Art Loves earlier this year!
As you may recall, Local Art Loves is about sharing the art you love from your community. (It can even be your own work!)
This time, there were submissions from across the United States that included oil paintings, digital illustrations, sculptures, and more. I’m featuring those artists here, as well as adding a couple Arizona artists I love.
City: Marblehead, Massachusetts Medium: Oil painting Shared by: Sarah Moore (a.k.a. “Saguaro Sally,” vintage sign enthusiast) Subject: Neon sign for Skip’s Snack Bar in Merrimac, MA
Cactus art by Lora Barnhiser. Photo from my house.
When she was in the process of moving her studio to prepare for the birth of her babies, she announced a flash sale, and I called dibs on these adorable little cacti!
Later, the artist shared a couple more of her vibrant paintings – 16 (or makin’ a way outta no way) and Kandi Dishe, Starman.
“16 (or makin’ a way outta no way)” by Beck Lane.
• 16 (or makin’ a way outta no way)
Medium: Oil and oil crayon on aerosol on two 60″ x 72″ canvas panels.
Notes:
The title of 16 (or makin’ a way outta no way) refers back to the first group of Africans brought to the U.S. to be enslaved. We don’t know the names of the individuals on that original ship. We just know that there would be eventually millions more, and they were the first 16.
Coincidentally, the painting took 16 months to complete and was inspired by the events of 2016.
The woman in the center of the painting was modeled after Providence artist, dancer, and model Melanie Moore.
“Kandi Dishe, Starman” by Beck Lane.
• Kandi Dishe, Starman
Medium: Oil on aerosol on two 48″ x 60″ canvases. Subject: Portrait of Worcester, MA drag artist Kandi Dishe. Where to find it:Chasen Galleries
Painting of Frida by Caitlyn Ann Thomas. Photo from my house.
City: Tempe, Arizona Medium: Watercolor Shared by: me Subject:Frida the Fish
Notes:
After hearing that our betta fish had passed, our friend Caitlyn asked for photos. A few weeks later, she surprised us with this beautiful watercolor portrait of Frida. It was such an incredibly kind gesture and a lovely way to remember a little fish with a big personality!
Caitlyn and her husband Alex also make films as CharismaJinx Productions.
City: Providence, Rhode Island Title:Apex Medium: Oil on canvas, 23.5″ x 40″ Shared by: Sarah Moore Where to find it: You can see the final painting of Apex on the artist’s site.
Green Thumb and Green Thumb Too by Gary Lee Price. Photo: Susan Willis
Green Thumb [girl with pigtails, foreground of photo]
Green Thumb Too [boy, partly obscured in photo]
Medium: Bronze sculptures with planters Shared by: Susan Willis Where to find them: In front of Chasen Galleries in Carytown, an artsy neighborhood around Cary Street in Richmond, Virginia.
City: Haverhill, Massachusetts Title:Liquors Medium: Acrylic on panel, 18″ x 14″, framed Shared by: Sarah Moore Subject: Street outside ChrisPy’s Liquors + Lottery in Beverly, MA. Where to find it:Available for purchase. Contact the artist for more information.
Notes:
Debbie Shirley describes her painting style as “contemporary realism meets roadside retro.”
City: Ocala, Florida Medium: digital sketches Shared by: artist
Wayne Smith participated in Local Art Loves by creating new digital sketches almost daily! His varied subjects included Rocky Mountain wildlife, a series of funny “advanced yoga” poses, portraits, and dessert.
Swedish princess cake by Wayne Smith.
• Swedish princess cake
Delightful-looking prinsesstårta (Swedish princess cake) on a gold tray.
• Killdeer sketch/study
A killdeer bird the artist photographed at Mammoth Hot Springs in Yellowstone National Park.
Goat yoga sketch by Wayne Smith
• Goat yoga
A meditation on why pets aren’t helpful for yoga poses.
The next Local Art Loves will be February 2020, and I’d love to see art shared from across the globe!
You can participate anytime by posting photos of art you find in your community (or create) using the hashtag #LocalArtLoves.
If fire engine red screams Valentine’s Day, blush whispers it sweetly.
It’s a romantic yet subtle shade, as lovely on walls as it is on flowers. Although it’s a more traditional choice for this holiday than last year’s black and white, they look fabulous together. Blush is also great with deep blues or teal-y greens.
Like the illustrations, destinations, and DIYs in this post, blush doesn’t even have to be about Valentine’s Day at all.
A 10-foot tall skeleton in a sombrero leaned over to ask if I knew what time it was.
Which is not that weird when you’re at a Día de los Muertos celebration with skeletons everywhere – on banners, as sculptures, painted on kids’ faces, and for sale on tote bags.
So, of course, there would be a skeleton with stilts, a full beard, and no watch.
When you think about it, the lack of a timepiece may be the least surprising part. Schedules are probably pretty irrelevant in the realm of the dead.
Phillip, Quijote, and I had showed up near the end of Mesa Arts Center’s festival. We started at the custom car show and worked our way toward an oversized Frida Kahlo skull made from tissue paper flowers, stopping to listen to a band on the way.
We visited the community altar, which was decorated with photos, candles, art, and flowers in memory of departed loved ones.
On a second stage, Mariachi Pasion, an all-woman mariachi band, began playing.
When Quijote got restless, we moved on to check out the arts and crafts vendors. There were handcrafted decorations, jewelry, papel picado banners, and small ceramics that looked like ones we had seen in Peru.
Now it was 4:30 – half an hour before it was all scheduled to be over – and the party showed no signs of stopping.
In fact, it was still so crowded that our stilt-walking friend had trouble getting through. The bands played on, vendors continued to serve up churros and hot dogs and tamales and paletas, and there was still a line to get into the craft-making area.
As we walked away, the celebration continued behind us – everyone enjoying the moment, like time was irrelevant.
The building had been a high school for African American students from 1926 to 1953, which I didn’t even know about until we stumbled across it. I guess I had assumed that, since the Phoenix population didn’t really start booming until the ’60s, maybe we had just skipped the whole segregation thing. Unfortunately, that’s not the case.
However, Arizona did desegregate its schools a year before Brown v. Board of Education mandated it nationally. The Carver High School closed, and the students were integrated into other high schools.
In 1986, four Carver alumnae formed Phoenix Monarchs Alumni Association, an organization to preserve the building and turn it into a museum and cultural center. They were eventually able to purchase it, and it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.
The George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center is now open with a mission to honor African and African American heritage, arts, and culture.
The Phoenix Monarchs Alumni Association continues to raise funds to upgrade the space and offer additional programs and exhibits.
In front of the museum is a statue of its namesake, scientist George Washington Carver, holding one of the peanut plants he was famous for studying.
We explored the first floor and saw artwork like paintings, sculptures, and a quilt made by students who had gone to school there.
There was a room with vintage typewriters and sewing machines.
Another one had what looked like African artifacts and traditional craft, like masks, drums, and beaded gourd instruments, as well as contemporary paintings, and a violin.
Outside of Art Detour week, I think a volunteer guide is usually there to provide context and answer questions, because a lot of the items weren’t labeled. The museum had a work-in-progress feel, as funds are still being raised to improve the building and exhibition space. It will be exciting to see it transform!
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