The concrete visionary Frank Antone Martin (1889-1961) found his place as a pattern maker for Hughs Aircraft during the height of the A-Bomb scare. As an ode to peace and brotherhood Antonio started building a giant concrete Jesus on his Inglewood driveway. Antonio’s first choice, the Grand Canyon, took a pass on it. Forest Lawn [...]
Archive for December, 2009
Parables in Concrete: Desert Christ Park
December 30, 2009
Wonders in Concrete
December 24, 2009
all links provide past/present park images and addresses (please visit)
Laguna de San Gabriel Playground was the site of my seventh birthday party and the concrete opus of 70 year old Mexican born Benjamin Dominguez 1894-74; Concrete visionary and graduate of Uof M La Academia de Artes Plasticas. This particular “Folly”, located within Vincent Lugo Park [...]
Desert Folly
December 20, 2009
“The English word ‘fool’ is derived from ‘folies,’ a mid-1600s Portuguese dance where one twirls until dizzy and loses control of all senses”
Frank Escher
Lucy: patented by James V. Lafferty, Margate New Jersey 1881
In the year 1513 Pope Leo X, on the occasion of his coronation was presented with a “white elephant.” The pachyderm became the [...]
Trespass Tuesday: Where “Getting One Over” is Part of the Appeal
December 15, 2009
Don’t have ten million to purchase this Marston, Van Pelt and Maybury manse? Find a yearly visit to the Pasadena Show Case House not your cup of tea? (and what is it with those inferior/interior designers and their stitched together, room by room, horror show?) I’ll tell you what…(abandoned to a soft market); this semi-feral, secret garden [...]
Our Most Wondrous V.I.P Tour: Secret (Garden) R.V. Ranch
December 10, 2009
Mr V and I are special, at least that’s what our remedial grade school teachers told us. Should we then be surprised that people jump at the opportunity to amuse us? I think not. At the Silver Bullet R.V. ranch we were given a grand tour of the grounds. When we returned to our truck we [...]
Feral Tuesday: Where getting it Cheap is Part of the Esthetic #54
December 8, 2009
This is a sampling from a neighborhood of evacuated trailer homes gone feral. I welcome one and all to cross over the “No Admittance” chain. You too can become a trespasser just like me
I’ve decided to treat the “trailerhood” as a kind of twisted Advent Calendar. Join me by selecting EACH of the presented photographs and opening [...]
Feral, Fenced and Fortified
December 5, 2009
Possession isn’t nine-tenths of the law. It’s nine-tenths of the problem.
John Lenon
Rose Valley Work Camp; compound vacated
Feral Homestead and Mine; abandoned
Bikes, Babes and Beer Land; compound closed until further notice
Traveling on the edge of the Sespe wilderness (map) in my search for the “Feral” was both beautiful and troublesome. Every side road seemed to be [...]
