Very close to one of our favorite restaurants, Cibo, 603 N. 5th Avenue, in the heart of the Downtown arts district, is this dynamic mural of the Rat Pack, Marilyn, Jack, Alice Cooper, and more. The buildings in this area are old houses; some are residences, some are businesses. The mural is a few houses north of Cibo on 5th Avenue, facing north. The gate was locked so I couldn’t get in but I was able to capture most of the mural in these shots.
I was surprised and pleased to see the artist’s name because Greg Bucher is the same person who painted the mural on the side of a Mexican restaurant, El Pacifico, that I wrote about a few weeks ago on my own blog.
El Pacifico is at 3311 N. 16th Street.
It’s definitely colorful here in Phoenix.
I have a feeling that Bucher has more public murals and, if I keep looking, I’m sure to come across some more of his excellent artwork.
The “Strictly Business Happy Hour” is scheduled for the first friday of every month. If you own or you are affiliated with a start-up, small, medium and/or large business in Arizona, don’t miss this event! The GPBCC welcomes members of ALL races.
On Friday, June 25th, at 7 p.m., a photography exhibition featuring images created in Jacmel, Haiti, three months after the earthquake by professional photographer and humanitarian Rodney Rascona, will be on exhibit at the historic Icehouse, 429 W. Jackson St., in Downtown Phoenix.
If you haven’t been recently, I encourage you to check out the Dorrance Planetarium at 
The only tough part? Choosing your favorites. To give you a brief taste, here’s a quick look at a few events that grabbed my own interest; be sure to check out the entire program 
Score! My only regret is that I wasn’t in the picture but no big whoop. Anyway, Kathy was super nice as I yelled out how much I love her and her show and how I follow her on Facebook and Twitter and then she mentioned something about a racy twitpic. The rest is a blur.
Calaveras
Friday, August 27th, 2010I love Day of the Dead art, the calaveras (skulls) associated with the primarily Mexican holiday, Dia de los Muertos. Some people (usually non-Mexicans) find it creepy, depressing, or just strange but, like the holiday, that is not the intention. The holiday occurs on Nov. 2, in conjunction with the Catholic observances of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day (Nov. 1 and 2). It is a day to remember friends and family who have died but it is a time of celebration, where partying is common.
Because of Phoenix’s large Mexican-American population, celebrations of this holiday are common and, more and more, so are displays of the art, year-round. The above mural is in the Downtown arts district at 1105 Grand Avenue. It is by Lalo Cota, a Phoenix artist born in Mexico.
Several blocks away, on Roosevelt Row, is this new mural, on the side of Carly’s Bistro at 128 E. Roosevelt Street. Lalo painted this one with his collaborators, Pablo Luna and Thomas Marcus (aka Breeze).
These are such fun murals. About two blocks down the street, in the alley between eye lounge (419 E. Roosevelt Street) and Modified Arts (407 East Roosevelt Street), there are more Lalo Cota murals.
The sun was shining so brightly during this late afternoon that there is a glow on the mural but maybe that is appropriate.
There is another Lalo Cota mural around the corner at Conspire (901 N. 5th Street) but it was extremely hot that afternoon so I decided to leave it for another day…and another post. Check these murals out next time you’re in the area and get a little of that Day of the Dead feeling.
Tags: downtown, downtown phoenix, Grand Avenue, Lalo Cota, Murals, phoenix, phoenix art, Roosevelt Row
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