Art Fist Collective

Last month, Art Fist’s own Enrique Limón wrote a piece for San Diego CityBeat on a middle-aged father of two who inspired by the urban art of Mark Jenkins, decided to turn ho-hum stop sign in his Clairemont hood into veritable yarn-bombed objets d′art.

Sadly, we have learned today that city officials have given him an ultimatum: either remove the stop sign flowers in 10 days, or they will be destroyed.

Please voice your concerns in keeping what little bit of cool the city of Clairemont has, and try to save this unique collection—100 strong, by emailing councilmember District 6 Lorie Zapf at: loriezapf@sandiego.gov

Our gift to you: details of our upcoming Mother’s Day-themed art show have arrived! Click here for more.

Open Call

So you wanna be part of Art Fist Collective’s next group show?  We’re looking for talented, out of the box San Diego artists to present ideas for a Mother’s Day-themed exhibit.

Inspiration can be anything from your own mom, Mother Nature, Mother Goose, you name it.  Email pitches (along with a link to your work) to: artfistcollective@gmail.com

Deadline for idea submissions is Friday, April 13^th| Deadline for finished works is Tuesday, May 8^th

So…you wanna be a part of an Art Fist show?

Unique open call to artists:

We’ve been very fortunate with the positive response that our upcoming “My Little Art Show” benefit art event is getting, that we’re sharing the love.

Want to be part of it? Up for grabs is this stunning Pinkie Pie Stylyng Pony. She’s flirty, pink, and standing at 8” there ain’t nothing Little about her.

What artistic process would you subject her to if given a chance? Send a short pitch to artfistcollective@gmail.com

Winner will be selected today (Wednesday) at 3:00PM. Artist must be able to pick up Pony today at Visual Art Supply (3524 Adams Avenue) during normal business hours; and drop it off at the same location Friday, March 23rd at 4:00PM

Good luck!

Art Fist Collective proudly presents: My Little Art Show, a benefit to help the Save Our Heritage Organisation’s efforts to save downtown’s Caliente racetrack mural showcasing original My Little Pony art by:

Bret Barrett, Sean Brannan, Zac Buddenberg, Randy Conner, Mauricio Couturier, Bd Dombrowsky, Jason Gould, Sarah Holbach, Pamela Jaeger, Heather Johnson, Kittyton, Bobbi Koller, Colin Mangold, Chris Martino, Gary McIntire, Monty Montgomery, Miguel Ortiz, Requiem, Mark Richmond, Brandon Roth, Pablo Stanley, Jona Téllez-Girón, Toygami, Eren Verdiguel & Eric Wixon.

Show will feature both authentic My Little Ponies (including some rare collector pieces) and bootleg ponies known as “fakies.” Sales will help SOHO pay for an independent historic report to determine the mural’s historic significance.

Friday, March 23rd at Quality Social | Facebook event here.

Deeming it nothing more than just an old advertisement, the City of San Diego recently approved a proposal to paint over the vintage Caliente racetrack mural located on the western wall of the historic California Theater.   

As KPBS reports, this proposal was done with absolute disregard of the “45 year review,” wherein anything that is 45 years or older should be submitted for review for its historic significance.

Now, the 40x80-feet faded beauty is in danger of being painted over with an advertisement for Newcastle Brown Ale beer if nothing is done.  

“The existing Caliente sign has no association with the historic California Theater and does not itself have historical significance,” KPBS quotes Cathy Winterrowd—Principal Planner City of San Diego’s Historical Resources Board as saying.

Raise your voice and let Ms. Winterrowd  and everyone involved in this irregular decision that being the last public remnant of Tijuana’s legendary Agua Caliente racetrack—the brainchild of illustrious San Diegan John S. Alessio of “Mr. A’s” fame, this work of public art is forever tied to the history of San Diego, Tijuana’s sister city since 1993.

A haven for Hollywood starlets and the international elite, the Agua Caliente racetrack was the signature of class during the Prohibition era. Its legend supersedes that of the Del Mar Racetrack, and even Las Vegas, and was the catalyst for an economic boom on both sides of the border during its heyday.

As its Wikipedia page lists, it set the bar for industry firsts such as starting gates, the use of safety helmets and “pick six” wagering. Both Phar Lap and Seabiscuit ran and won the Agua Caliente Handicap, which for a time was the richest in North America.

This vintage mural should in fact be deemed historic and the brash decision to have it forever erased should be put on hold while they submit it through the proper avenues to be considered as a place of historic significance; one that should be respected and preserved for future generations to appreciate and admire.

The Save Our Heritage Organisation and Art Fist Collective urge you to click here to sign the online petition to save this iconic piece of public art.