This chandelier made of silverware hangs in the entry to Cosmo’s Tapas in the Nob Hill area. The owners made it themselves. It’s a great restaurant with wonderful food and a friendly staff, and the local artworks give it a welcoming vibe.
Category: Public Art
Downtown Fractal
The Fractal Foundation created this huge fractal mural which hangs on a parking garage downtown. The Fractal Foundation does a lot of cool art in Abq, especially with kids. They are unveiling 3 new student-created murals at the end of January. Check their web site at http://fractalfoundation.org for details.
Old Glory
Not strictly in ABQ, but close by. Found this on Highway 4, near San Ysidro.
Shoe Pole
This phone pole is in a neighborhood near downtown Abq. I saw a blurb about it in the paper a few years ago, and drove by recently to see if it was still there. As you can see, it is. I’m not sure what it means, but it’s awesome.
Cruising San Mateo I
A new year, a new camera, a new abq-strange post. This sculpture’s real name is “Cruising San Mateo I” but everybody in Albuquerque knows it as the Chevy On A Stick. It was quite controversial when it was installed in the early 1990s. Art has always been in the eye of the beholder and all the old arguments against funding public art came out on this one (and still surface every now and then). But now that the tiled ’54 Chevy has been there for almost 20 years, most people are quite used to it, and will at least concede that it makes the area unique. For me, I love it!
Big Red Arrow
This huge red arrow has marked the Indian Plaza shopping center for decades. The center was completely rebuilt a few years ago, but they kept the arrow since it had become almost a landmark. The mayor has been pushing to pass a sign ordinance in Abq to forbid commercial signs that are more than about 6 feet tall. Existing sign owners would have a few years to tear down their big old signs and replace them. As far as I know, they’re still arguing over the issue, but they did make it clear that the big red arrow at Indian School and Carlisle would get an exemption and be preserved.
CSI ABQ
This terrific public art piece is outside the Metropolitan Forensic Science Center. If you get there at the right time of day the thumb print throws a shadow on the building wall. I feel lame for posting this without getting a better picture, but it’s pretty cool even without that effect.
Spider Mural
Sorry … have been away for a while. I return with this photo of a spider mural painted on the back of a residential wall which faces an arroyo. There are several murals in this area, which seem to be tolerated, if not encouraged, by the area residents. Personally I think this is a great way to make those miles of bleak cinder-block walls more interesting.
Pet Shop Critter
There’s a pet shop on Eubank a little north of Lomas called Fins ‘n Critters. They have a couple of large, um, critters crawling on the outside of the building. This is one of them. If you get a chance to go inside, they have a cool saltwater tank. It’s about 8 feet tall and a lot of fun to watch.
Art Is OK … And Dangerous
On Carlisle, near the Cost Plus, there’s a sculpture garden. I believe the objects are made by someone associated with the Art Is OK framing shop located here. I’ll learn more about them before I post another picture of their art. They seem to rotate an endless supply of “heavy art” through the garden. Some of my favorites are the kinetic pieces. For now, enjoy this intriguing geometric form.
