City of Santa Monica Art Work


Our Pico Neighborhood 2005

East Los Streetscapers: Mural collective

2115 Pico Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 904045

This mural which is located in a youth and family center near a park is designed to reflect the spirit, dreams, and daily life of local residents who grew up near this park in Santa Monica. The mural is symbolic and it represents families, students, musicians, local teens and children as well as the Latino and diverse working class families of the neighborhood. This mural blends arts, academics, and outdoor community life all in one wall.


Whale of a Mural 1983

Ocean Park Blvd 4th Street, Santa Monica, CA 90405

Daniel Alonzo

This mural which runs along an underpass is an environmental awareness mural with a marine life theme. Because Santa Monica is near the beach this mural celebrates the animals native to Santa Monica Bay and is suppose to help remind people of ocean conservation.



Elastic Dragon 2017

Pico Blvd & 18th St, Santa Monica, CA 90405

BEVX

This art peace is a mural dedication to someone named T. J Norris who might have been someone deeply loved by he artist or he neighborhood. The mural reflects two dragons leaning into one another and the mural feels like a mythic memorial.  But not much information was gathered from who T. J Norris was or the artist.


Pico & Urban " Love Wave"

2625 Pico Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90405

Ruben Rojas

This mural wraps around a building and it represents the spirit of love and unity. It feels like a public message to everyone in the neighborhood and it makes a public statement of how neighborhoods should feel safe, connected and welcoming.

                                                    

1502 Lincoln Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90401

This mural doesn't have a tittle and I was unable to confirm the artist. But this mural is located on the driveway alley of an apartment complex. I thought this piece was really cool because the artist creates an illusion that the wall contains archways. The theme it gives is garden life with butterflies and picnic kinda of a peaceful and calm vibe. I believe this mural was meant for the residents of the apparent  building  to give them a home sanctuary theme.

Critical Analyis

A major pattern across Santa Monica's murals is the way in which ordinary and transitional spaces are transformed into sites of identity, memory and belonging. the murals are not random decoration they actively shape the public. The strongest pattern I saw was the representation of everyday community life rather than elite or history.However; I was not able to confirm who funds the mural for the city of Santa Monica.

Proposal

I chose the city of Santa Monica because it is. where I grew up and where my family is from. Because of that personal connection, it felt meaningful to walk through the city and really pay attention to the murals and artwork that are part of everyday life. Exploring the different pieces made me realize how much public art helps shape the feeling of a neighborhood, especially in places that people pass every day without always stopping to notice. It was interesting to find murals in different areas because each one reflected a different part of the city of Santa Monica. One thing I really liked is that murals appear in what seems like random but meaningful places. I thought that was really cool because it reflects the actual community. From observing the city I would recommend that future mural placement continues to focus on community based location. And also I think the city could improve by creating art selection guidelines that prioritize local history and resident voices like public feedback. But overall Santa Monica's approach of placing murals in everyday spaces like apartments, storefronts and neighborhood  streets is a great thing as it strengthens local identity and makes residents feel represented.






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