President-themed Electrical Boxes: a America 250 Recognition

As part of the America 250th Anniversary celebration, electrical boxes along several Riverside streets or elementary schools named for American presidents have been wrapped with vinyl covering depicting the American flag.  On one side there is also a short tribute and a picture of selected American presidents.  Below are photos of some of the boxes with their locations. The designers of the art covering the boxes are unknown.  

In front of Madison Elementary School (3635 Madison St, Riverside, CA)

In front of Jefferson Elementary School (4285 Jefferson St, Riverside, CA)

At the intersection of Monroe Street and California Street (8698 California Ave, Riverside, CA)

At the intersection of Roosevelt Street and Magnolia Ave. (9574 Magnolia Ave, Riverside, CA)

#America250 #America250celebration #PresidentMadison #PresidentJefferson #PresidentMonroe #PresidentRoosevelt

 

Arlington Business District Electrical Boxes

Several electrical boxes along Magnolia Ave. in the Arlington Village area of Riverside have been covered with vinyl wraps emphasizing the history of the area and the Arlington Business District. The boxes are along Magnolia Ave. north of Van Buren Blvd. For example, there is one at the intersection of Magnolia Ave. and Douglas Ave (9194 Magnolia Ave, Riverside, CA).  Another one is at the intersection of Magnolia Ave. and Jackson St. (9111 Magnolia Ave, Riverside, CA). Photos of the boxes are shown below.  The designer and artists are unknown.  

#ArlingtonBusinessDistrict #CityofRiverside #ArlingtonRiverside

Arlington Village Bus Stop Art

The Arlington Village bus stop on Magnolia near Jackson Street (9229 Magnolia Ave., Riverside CA) has an attractive picture depicting part of an old orange crate label. A picture of the complete Monte Vista Brand label can be seen in the Los Angeles Public Library digital collection.  The designer of the bus stop is unknown as is the artist who designed the orange crate label.  

#ArlingtonVillage #ArlingtonVillageBusinessDistrict #OrangeCrateLabel #RiversideArt

The Refreshed "The Grandessa Azteca" Mural at Villegas Park

The north-facing mural on the handball court and adjacent to the pickleball court in Villegas Park (3091 Esperanza St., Riverside) has recently been re-painted with more color and additional detail.  The murals are signed Jimbo Sloe Alfred Jasmine Freddy 26.  Jim "Jimbo" Gutierrez (@jimbogutierreztattoos) led the effort assisted by Sloe  (@sloe_motions), Alfred Zaragoza (@maddtatterz) and possibly others. The mural is entitled, "The Grandessa Azteca" and is based on a tragic ancient Aztec love story. It was originally painted in 1980, restored in 2018, and more recently 2026. 

#RiversideArt #AztecLegends #CityofRiverside #VillegasPark #CasaBlanca

De Anza Theater History on Electrical Box

The history of the De Anza Theater with lots of photos is described on a nearby electrical box (4225 Market St, Riverside, CA).  The building now houses Clark's Nutrition, a Natural Foods Market. It joins a number of similar historical descriptions on other boxes downtown.  The designer and author are unknown.  

#DeAnzaTheater #RiversideHistory #CityofRiverside

Memorial to American Indian Veterans Completed

The Memorial to American Indian Veterans has now been completed and the sculpture entitled The Gift made by sculptor A. Thomas Schomberg has been installed at the Riverside National Cemetery (22495 Van Buren Boulevard, Riverside). The statue of a dignified native American wrapped in a Continental flag holding a Jefferson Medal - a token of peace and friendship between the US Government and the Indian tribes is now located at a prominent area near the Veterans Memorial Amphitheater.  More information about the statue and memorial can be found here and a series of videos about it can be found through the Schomberg studio website.  A previous post with photos of the statue before the repainting can be found here and here.  

#RiversideNationalCemetery #AmericanIndianVeteransMemorial 

Alleyway Mural of Boy Amidst Archeological Wonders in the Heavens

The southern-most mural along the alleyway just off of Loma Vista Street near Ottawa Ave. in the Eastside area of Riverside (1948 Loma Vista Street) was painted by Alfred Zaragoza @maddtatter. It has images of a Mayan calendar, an Egyptian sphinx, and an eclipse of the sun over pyramids, and a boy gazing at a raincross-emblazoned tablet computer.  

#EastsideArtHouse #RiversideMurals #InlandEmpireArtists 

250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence Mural

A new mural commemorating the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence has recently been painted on the building that holds the Brickwood bar (3653 Main St, Riverside, CA 92501). It features the saying e pluribus unum, out of many, one. The mural is unsigned but I believe that it was painted by Juan Navarro @luvmonsterz.  

#DowntownRiverside #DeclarationofIndependence #250thAnniversary

Renovated Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial on the Main Street pedestrian mall in downtown Riverside (3900 Main St.) has recently been renovated. The statue is largely unchanged but the surrounding walkway and seating are new.  There are also some plaques with quotes from Dr. King and some recognizing key organizations involved with the memorial.  Close-ups of the statue and a view of the old memorial can be found here.  The artists involved in designing and creating the new memorial are not known.  

#MLK #MartinLutherKingJr #DowntownRiverside

Poly High History on Electrical Box

An electrical box near the entrance to the Poly High parking lot has been decorated with photos and text describing the history of the high school.  The designer and artist responsible are unknown.  

#PolyHighSchool #RUSD #RiversideHistory 

Casa Blanca Elementary School Entrance Mural

A new mural featuring prominent aspects of the history of the Casa Blanca area has been painted at the entrance to the Casa Blanca Elementary School (7351 Lincoln Ave., Riverside, CA) school yard.  The orange growing history of the area, the murals on Lincoln Ave., the palm trees, the local KPRO radio station and a Raincross-bearing pavilion are shown. The mural is unsigned but based on an Instagram post, I believe that the mural was painted by local muralist Mano Mirande @_mano_man.   

#CasaBlanca #citrusindustry #Riversidehistory #LincolnAvenue #KPRO

Oak Tree Display Recognizing the Historical Role of Native Americans in Southern California

A new art display recognizing the oak trees sacred to Southern California's Native American tribes has recently been installed in the Student Success Center at UC Riverside (900 University Ave, Riverside, CA).  The display was made from oak trees that were felled for the construction of the building.  The art display has been the focus of a recent Inside UCR News article and contains several elements.  One is a map made from oak planks with acrylic panels that illustrates the historic territory of Native American tribes in Southern California. There is also a large screen display which shows a short video providing background on the display and Native American contributions. Also as described in the article, along the top of the display is UCR’s Native American Land Acknowledgement, in which the campus recognizes its responsibility to the Cahuilla, Tongva, Luiseño, and Serrano peoples as the original and current caretakers of the land, water, and air.  Along the bottom is an apology to the oak trees that once stood there, promising that UCR will “continue to remember and honor the oak trees through the beauty they provide in this art installation.” The display was a joint effort of multiple groups within and outside of UCR. Joaquin Torango, a coordinator with Native American Student Programs, sketched out the idea for the map display, and Chagrin Valley Custom Furniture, an Ohio-based company that specializes in handcrafted furniture constructed the display. The company’s creative director, Sky Ironhorse, also worked with UCR on the display.  

#UCRiverside #NativeAmerican #Indigenouspeoples #oak #SouthernCalifornia #InlandEmpireArt

Selected Oranges from the 2006 Giant Orange Artventure

In 2006, the Art Alliance of the Riverside Art Museum held a Giant Orange Artventure to raise money for the museum.  Thirty-two large oranges were sponsored and displayed at various locations in downtown Riverside.  As can be seen elsewhere on this blog, eight of the original oranges can still be found throughout Riverside. Below are photos of oranges that are no longer displayed that I took when the oranges were on public display in 2006.  I am including them on this blog to keep an online historical record of these works of art.  

"Under the Citrus Sun" by Greg & Cathy Maxwell

Another view of "Under the Citrus Sun" by by Greg & Cathy Maxwell

“Orange Glow” by Joanna Mersereau

“Mother Nature & Sustainability” by Carolyn Ward Billington

Another view of “Mother Nature & Sustainability” by Carolyn Ward Billington

"Reflections" by Daniel Foster

"Juicy Scoop" by The Press-Enterprise Artists (Arnel S. Cadatal, Peggy Statti, Don Daniels and Susan Newman)

“The Awakening Muse” by Leslie A. Brown

Another view of “The Awakening Muse” by Leslie A. Brown

“La Naranja” by Lorien Suarez

“Bearing Fruit” by Greg Adamson

Another view of “Bearing Fruit” by Greg Adamson

“The Great Crate” by Helen Bell

A tribute to UCR Citrus History on one of the oranges.  I believe that this is a section of the "The Long and Rinding Road" by Michael J. Elderman

#RiversideArtAlliance, #RiversideArtMuseum, #orangeart, #InlandEmpireartists, #Riversideartists #InlandEmpireArt #RAM