Monday, January 3, 2011

Monday mural: life in space

Here is another mural at the metal recycling yard in West Oakland featured in the post of the mermaid mural.  Also by Bode, Eya, Marley and Toad.  Note the recycling symbol on her helmet and her sad face as she contemplates the earth in her hand.  Oakland has a comprehensive residential recycling program that significantly reduces the amount of refuse that goes into the landfill.  But the dangerous runoff that ends up in the bay is an ongoing worry.  Metal recyclers have been cited for violations of excess runoff of aluminum, lead, zinc, copper, nickel, iron, oil and grease.  All of this also affects the health of those who live in the area.  Maybe that's why she looks so sad.  Even best intentions can have unhealthy consequences.

8 comments:

  1. Good one! Murals seem like an appropriate place to comment on what's happening.

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  2. I questioned before as to how interesting it was that murals were not vandalized by graffiti. Your reply focused on graffiti artists which I understand them not defacing an already existing piece of art. I was thinking primarily the gangbanger taggers with their cans of spray paint writing eligible words. There's a difference between the artist and the hoodlum. Any ideas?

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  3. hee hee...
    Another fine installment of Carolyn's Chronicles Of The There, There!

    «Louis» has missed this one, too... He's heading down Mandela today to see if he can find some of these treasures you've uncovered THERE.

    ;-D

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  4. As John Denver might have said upon seeing this mural, "Far OUT!" Nice post.

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  5. The style looks remarkably like some of the painting on the Mississippi flood wall but ours is hardly this serious. This graffiti is like a high-concept, public editorial cartoon.

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  6. Ebie just did a nice post on murals. «Louis» left a link to your blog in the comments at Ebie's post.

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  7. «Louis» left a link to your mermaid mural at Oeiras DP.

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  8. Hi Carolyn, thanks for Louis for giving this link to your mural post. I will also check out your link on the mermaid, because I have a mermaid too.

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