Tag Archives: Murals

Saturday’s Critters – Art on the River

In early December I was on Tulsa’s RiverParks trails working on an art themed Geocaching Adventure Lab. I posted about it earlier and saved the critter themed art for this post.

Wolves are always a good subject.

I’m thinking this is a great blue heron. These murals were not part of the cache project but they are also beautiful and animal themed.

I believe this also is a great blue heron.

And this sculpture. I see lots of great blue herons while out on the trail. They are beautiful animals but they make the most awful squawk as a vocalization.

And right near the sculpture is a real life great blue heron.

And an American White Pelican. I see them sporadically. They are kind of touchy about people. I’ve learned I’ve had to sneak up on them.

Geese are everywhere, all year long on the RiverParks, and the whole town for that matter.

So yep, I completed the cache and got the coordinates for a nearby physical cache, and found it, so yep a good time.

If you want more information about geocaching check geocaching.com.

I’m linking with Saturday’s Critters.

New Zink Lake Overlook Murals

On my little kayaking adventure a few weeks ago on Tulsa’s revamped Zink Lake I passed what is known as the Zink Lake Overlook and I saw this mural facing the lake. I had seen some painters working on it but I didn’t know if they were just doing graffiti or what. Nope, no graffiti, they had been commissioned by the River Parks to paint murals. Eleven different artists involved. How cool is that?

I don’t have any before photos. When I first got my drone I flew it there just to play around. As you can see above it was a dingy neglected place with all sorts of nooks and crannies that are hidden from view. I think you know what I mean I say that public places that have nooks and crannies hidden from view is not really a good thing.

I did like the bollards they used to define the water’s edge. Makes it look like some sort of riverboat infrastructure. They were handy for daring kids or high (on drugs or alchol) adults to jump from one to another. Well all that changed.

https://www.fox23.com/news/new-zink-lake-overlook-murals-are-now-open-for-the-public-to-enjoy/article_91dd4eb2-7d44-11ef-8681-a7f76a037af5.html

I stopped there and checked it out. It is a sea of color now and paints have been sealed to protect from the elements and make for easier cleanup in case of tagging. Oh boy I hope that taggers spare this place.

The nooks and crannies are still there along with a huge surface to paint.

The bollards are gone and now we have better fencing to prevent falls and mishaps.

I just love all the colors.

In one of the nooks and crannies somebody sleeping. No way you can keep it all out.

It is a lot more inviting public space now.

Right around the corner to the left was where the guy was sleeping. I left him alone.

I’m linking with My Corner of the World

Geese, a Turtle, and Other Critters

A wedge of Geese at Tulsa’s Woodward Park. (I just love the various collective nouns for the different kinds of birds.)

Also at Woodward Park, an equestrian sculpture, “Appeal to the Great Spirit.” It used to be at high school in Tulsa that got torn down. Fortunately it was saved. The original was by Cyrus Dallin in 1909 and is on display at the Boston Museum of Fine Art.

A bison mural I found while working an Adventure Lab Geocache.

And I was in a creek bottom in south Tulsa replacing a geocache that went missing when this guy showed up to see what was going on. Usually I see snakes in this area, never any venomous snakes just rat snakes but no snakes today. I would rather see turtles.

I’m linking with Eileen’s Saturday’s Critters. Go check it out!!

America’s Muralist back in Oklahoma

I drove up the freeway from Tulsa to the little town of Collinsville, Oklahoma to check out a mural painted last summer by a friend of the family, Raine Clotfelter, of Branson, Missouri. He was commissioned by a business owner who had bought a new building for his establishment and wanted something to make it special.

It’s special alright, 140 feet long and 20 feet tall of special, showing a lot of Oklahoma features under a beautiful sky and a huge United States Flag. It was too big to put it all in one photograph, even with my drone so I made a short video further down this post.

Raine does this thing all over the country. You want a mural painted he’ll come and do it for you. He goes by the moniker America’s Muralist and he is very accomplished artist. Check the link for examples of his work and his clients. He has done work for Walt Disney Productions, Columbia Pictures, and others.

He grew up in the small town of Antlers, Oklahoma and you can tell his small-town values are still with him. He likes to do work in small towns to help enliven them. He has certainly done that in Collinsville.

This link is to a local television story about Raine and his mural. This link is to a newspaper article about the project.

Check his website Americas Muralist. See if there is one of his mural near you.

I am linking with Our World Tuesday. Come join the fun!!

Day of the Dead – 2018

_DSC0326 — Skulls and skeletons are significant symbols of both the dead and the living. Underneath we are all skeletons.

Heather and I ventured to Living Arts of Tulsa Friday evening for their Day of the Dead event.

National Geographic has some information on the Day of the Dead. First off it is not a Mexican version of Halloween.

_DSC0328 — I loved this Star Trek themed Day of the Dead mural.

They claim that it originated thousands of years ago when the Aztecs and other ancient cultures. They believed that death was on the same continuum as life and that their ancestors should be honored.

_DSC0330 — This mural is for those of us who love our pets. They just do not live very long.

Over time the ancient traditions merged with Christian beliefs and now the Day of the Dead occurs November 1 and 2, All Souls Day and All Saints Day.

A big part of the Day are the ofrenda’s or altars to the dead that can be installed in homes or graveyards.

They are meant to honor the dead and make them part of the holiday. Photos and other rembrances are displayed and favorite food and drink is offered.

The Ofrendas at Living Arts are for real. They are built by people for their loved ones.

They are really powerful and they speak to me of the power of family, love, tradition, remembrance and mourning.

I am linking with Our World Tuesday

Foto Friday Fun – Dia de Los Muertos Edition

This is a mural at Living Arts Space in Tulsa. It is part of the their “Day of the Dead” activities every year. You can read more about Dia De Los Muertos by following the link.

They change the murals ever year and I love them despite the morbid subject matter. You can’t tell the scale of the murals by looking at them but they are huge. Here is one from last year.