On my way to the White Elephant Sale Sunday morning, I passed a place I’d been before… I recognized the corner, and yet it looked strikingly different. What before had been a bleak stretch of blank concrete, bordered by litter and feces strewn dead grass & weeds, had now become a lovely meandering ArtWalk.
Here are a handful of the artworks that span the block of Peterson Street between Ford and Chapman, just two blocks from the Oakland Museum’s White Elephant Warehouse, and equally close to the Institute of Mosaic Arts, which I wrote about when I first launched this blog in 2009 (IMA).
Ganesh Mural by Darwin Price
Tree Mosaic by Kim Larson & Saundra Warren
Handmade tiles in Saundra Warren's studio by Jingletown residents
I’m assuming the Mosaic Institute was instrumental in the production of these mosaic pieces. Wrong. This is why we should not assume. Duh. Thanks to Kim and Jill for setting me straight…
This entire project was organized by the Jingletown Arts and Biz Community, JABC, namely Jill McLennan and Cynthia Elliot, and sponsored by Pro Arts and the City of Oakland. The various artworks were created by a host of artists from the community, independent of IMA.
The tree mosaic above was created by Kim Larson and Saundra Warren (of In Saundra’s Garden…) I love the hand crafted tiles incorporated.
Oakland Riviera by Bill Silveira
Virgin of Guadalupe by Kim Larson
Jingletown by Jill McLennan
A Loving Tribute to Our Best Friends and Companions by Carlos Jahen
Seeing these recent installations got me even more excited about the class I’ll be taking at the Institute next month (Mosaic 101). I plan to blog about the specifics here… please stay tuned.
Kim Larson is also responsible for the Virgin Of Guadalupe mosaic below.
Auto Mosaic by Jen Rubenstein
Below you can see a hint of what this stretch used to look like… the photo features Lee Krasnow of Pacific Puzzle Works – I shot him in the summer of 2009 for a story in Oakland Magazine. His workshop is located just across the street. You can see the wall was nearly completely blank, and we both had to be on guard to avoid the numerous piles of poo.
Now the adjacent strip incorporates a waving walking path through tidy mulched landscape and a gorgeous custom laser-cut iron sign requests that visitors kindly pick up after their pets. I didn’t see one poop!
ps – The White Elephant Sale was a huge success… volunteers said Saturday was their busiest day, EVER. (Glad I went Sunday!) I bought 4 sweaters, 1 small bookcase, and a birdhouse that looks like someone’s abandoned woodshop project. I can’t wait to paint it and hang it in my yard…
pps – Friday Night’s Art Murmur was great and I’ll have more on this in the coming days…
ppss – Here’s one last mosaic that you see as you turn the corner onto Ford. This one is much older as I shot it back in 2009 (but never posted it).
Oaktown Art | Oakland Art, Public Art, Murals, Graffiti, Culture, Oakland 
Beautiful! That’s a way cool collection of murals and mosaics.
Glad you enjoyed it! This beautification project is being done by Jingletown Arts & Business Community. We have many IMA class projects in our neighborhood, but the murals on this wall are being created by local Jingletown artists. All murals have a Jingletown neighborhood theme.
Please contact: jillmclennan@sbcglobal.net one of the project coordinators, for more information.
Cynthia
http://www.jingletown.org
Hello and thanks for writing about our beautiful Jingletown art wall. I want to clear something up though. Even though IMA is a powerhouse there, not all the mosaics in that neighborhood are related to that school.
I personally did the Virgin Of Guadalupe mosaic, alone, and worked with Saundra Warren on the tree mosaic.
So please give credit where credit is due.
Thank you and thanks again for writing about this project.
Thanks for the info Kim… Jill McLennan wrote in with more information as well, which I will incorporate into the post. Sorry for the misattribution (why we should never ASSUME). Love what you guys have done!!
Thanks for posting this blurb about Jingletown Art Garden project. The project is organized by the Jingletown Arts and Biz Community, JABC, namely myself, Jill McLennan and Cynthia Elliot and sponsored by Pro Arts and the City of Oakland. The Mosaics and Murals are by artists from the community, independant of IMA. Continue to check out the site as we plant a native garden and complete the murals with school kids in the fall of 2011. Thanks for the shout out and for more info please contact me. -Jill
The Art wall my neighbors and friends have created is actually located on Peterson between Ford and Chapman. Not a big deal, just want to clarify. It is beautiful, and thank you for the post. Another round of sprucing up and path making are due very soon, Cynthia Elliot has been spearheading this effort. Cheers!
Thanks Michael… just updated. I’ll blame the lack of coffee in my household this morning! 😉
Oops…
I was once told that when you assume it can make an ass out of U & me!
I love the tree of life and the personalised, handcrafted tiles. If we can encourage the next generation to learn the art of any handcrafts, I’d be happy.
Art has such diversity and inspiration comes from all walks of life. So for those who are afraid of being ‘pidgeon holed’ into a category – don’t be afraid – go out there and explore with your hands and you will feel the joy of creation.
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