Author Archive
July 3, 2016 by tomdalzell
Art and Dogs: BADRAP in Oakland
Donna Reynolds and Tim Racer live in the unknown-to-me, stunningly beautiful hills of Oakland east out Golf Links Road. On the basis of their view of hills and trees, or on the basis of the existence of local mountain lion, this is pretty close to country living. In this home they make art. They […]
June 26, 2016 by tomdalzell
Urban Ore – Quirky Treasure – DIY Quirk
Urban Ore is a gold mine of quirk. Its purpose is printed on every receipt – To End the Age of Waste. It started in 1980, recovering and trading resources from the City of Berkeley’s landfill. A scavenger with a mission! It has grown, evolved, and moved. Reuse! Recyle! I associate Urban Ore with co-founder […]
June 18, 2016 by tomdalzell
The Murals of Stefen
Stefen, who has been Stefen since 1974, has been painting murals since 1974. He is s prolific muralist and he is the founder of the New Berkeley Mural Movement. That Movement doesn’t exist as a formal entity and there is no such thing as a Founder of a notional Movement that doesn’t actually exist, but […]
June 18, 2016 by tomdalzell
Berkeley Murals Before Stefen
Berkeley was not without murals before Stefen took brush to the Dutch Boy wall in January 1974, but the murals we had were conventional, mainstream, highbrow art. One of the oldest murals in Berkeley is rarely seen. It is found at the Berkeley Piano Club, 2724-2726 Haste. The club is what it sounds like, and is […]
June 18, 2016 by tomdalzell
Winnemucca
He who in 1974 became Stefen grew up in Winnemucca, Nevada. Most of what I know about Winnemucca comes from Gabby. Of course! Winnemucca boasted of its paved streets. Whenever Gabby goes to Winnemucca, which is at least once a year, he stops at the Buckaroo Hame of Fame. “Buckaroo” is an Anglo corruption […]
June 18, 2016 by tomdalzell
Gabby Drives Back to California: August 1970
I have posted before about Gabby saying goodbye to Young Emily in Clark Park, West Philadelphia, in August 1970. Here I continue from Gabby’s journal, describing his drive across the country, stopping briefly in Winnemucca. And – then – it was just the Ford and me and a half-dozen boxed mini Tastykake apple pies and […]
June 11, 2016 by tomdalzell
The Murals of Kingman Hall
What happened was: I was working on a new and improved post on painted doors. I had an iPhone photo of the door at Kingman Co-op, 1730 La Loma. I wanted a good photo. We walked up to Kingman. There was a toad mural that I hadn’t seen. Cool mural! But, the door was […]
June 4, 2016 by tomdalzell
Vine Street UFO & Oh So Much More
A few years ago, a UFO landed on Vine Street between Walnut and Oxford. The alien passenger stepped from the vehicle. It has been suggested that the landing was calculated taking into account the location of the original Peet’s a hundred feet away. Or, another version: Kyle Milligan, an Oakland artist, made the saucer and gifted it […]
June 3, 2016 by tomdalzell
Field Trips!
My friend and I decided that while the core mission of Quirky Berkeley is stuff in Berkeley, an occasional field trip is a good thing. On holidays, I will post photographs from a notional quirky field trip. So far – just California plus one Nevada. Usually but not always easy driving distance. This is […]
May 30, 2016 by tomdalzell