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ART IN OUR COMMUNITY

Watsonville Murals

https://watsonvillemurals.wixsite.com/archive/about

Website by Marisol Medina-Cadena
Podcast Producer, KQED’s Rightnowish
The website watsonvillemurals.wixsite strives to archive murals and give long overdue credit to the artists who have made Watsonville, CA a place of murals. The photos included on this website are not a complete record of every mural in Watsonville (as some have already been removed) and more recent ones have yet to be archived.
Watsonville, CA is often known for its rich agricultural production, especially for its strawberries. But beyond the fields, Watsonville is also a city with a strong commitment to public art and a legacy of social activism.
Notable highlights include: the United Farm Workers organizing in the early 1970s, the Cannery Strike between 1985-1987, the annual Peace & Unity March starting in 1994, and most recently— mutual aid organizing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Evidently, generations of Watsonville residents have been on the front lines and artists have memorialized these  organizing efforts in the form of murals.
Stories of resilience and community pride adorn many of the public schools, civic buildings, resource centers, and businesses throughout Watsonville. Moreover, many of these murals make visible the often invisible workers that cultivate the very fruit that this city is known for.
Ideally, this project is a launching pad for more documentation and celebration of Watsonville’s rich mural legacy. Feel free to use this as a resource in your classroom, art practice or what have you.

Movable Murals:  This inaugural project was developed for and was in celebration of Watsonville’s Sesquicentennial in 2018 and was a collaboration with Pajaro Valley Arts and the City of Watsonville, first funded by the Community Foundation of Santa Cruz. Movable Murals provides a venue for artists and community groups to showcase large-scale artwork in a public setting, visible to and enjoyed by all who pass through Watsonville. Check out the current murals at 250 Main Street, Watsonville.

February 2021: Moveable Murals

PVA and the City of Watsonville just completed the first phase of installation of our newest Moveable Murals: An Act of Love: Mask Wearing During the Pandemic, funded by the Pajaro Valley Community Health Trust, Cares Act grant. The first phase of the project includes a digital rendering of the piece Wear Together by Watsonville artist Erik Davison; and two photo collages designed by Karen Lemon, digitized by Hedwig Heerschop, of photographs submitted by: Genevieve Daly, Kimberly deLucia, Brianna Flores, Linda Martin, Karen Lemon, Marianne Nagel, Joey Ontiveros, and Graciela Vega. The second phase will include installation of four hand painted murals called Flying Together by Watsonville artist Jaime Sanchez that will be installed next month.

Wear Together by Erik Davison installed by City of Watsonville staff: Grant Adams, Miguel Navarrete, and Rex Rackley

2019 Murals were completed by Peter Bartzcak, Priscilla Martinez and Jaime Sánchez.

Jaime Sánchez – Birds Crossing

Priscilla Martinez – Strawberry Festival and Safety First: moved to the Watsonville Fairgrounds

Peter Bartczak

Peter Bartczak – Pedestrians Come First

2018 murals were completed by Bonnie Carver , Paul DeWorken, Judy Gittelsohn, and Taylor Reinhold. Taylor’s and Judy’s murals have moved on to a new location at Pajaro Valley Loaves and Fishes. Bonnie’s mural will be seen in the Watsonville Civic Plaza Building. For more photographs visit our Facebook page.

Taylor Reinhold and Daniel Fernandez

 

 

 

 

 

Read more about Taylor’s piece Primavera.

Photo Credit: Tarmo Hannula

Read more about Judy’s piece The Strawberry

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bonni Carver: Apple Time

Read more about Bonni: AppleTime

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Paul DeWorken: Sea Life Series