Queen Califia's Magic Circle.

It's funny what you can find if you only know where to look. There is an immense sculpture installation in the middle of a park in Escondido called Queen Califia's Magic Circle by "new realist" Niki de Saint Phalle. The installation is the only one of four major installations around the world and alludes to so many of the various cultures and traditions and mythologies represented in California. I first visited with my friend Nancy and the wonderful Molly Dog (see above). It was a bright sunny day and the circle was packed with folks attending an international mosaic convention. Really a sense of celebration there that day. As we left, the conventioners were making a circle around the center sculpture and in unison yelled "Thank you Niki!!" Pretty neat.



I returned a week later and brought my friend and fellow Pimpernel peep, Victor. There were far fewer people (almost no one besides us) and the sun wasn't shining quite as brightly. So it gave possibly a better chance to explore all the colors and textures. I'm convinced that you could look around here a hundred times and find something new each time.



I highly recommend a visit if you're in the area. It's only about 40 miles north of San Diego... and on the route to the San Diego Wild Animal Park if you happen to be headed there. Hey! I think I know what my next little adventure will be!


Take care, all! Best wishes in all that comes next. Peace & love.

Art and auditions and taxes... oh my.

Now I've been down here in Escondido going with the flow, doing my show, doodling my squiggles. For some reason, this week things have amped up a couple notches. In addition to Pimpernel and my weekly sketch work, a few illustration projects stepped off the back burner and my many irons in the fire have necessitated driving north on both my days off. First off, I headed home Friday to happily meet up with friends associated with Music Theatre of Wichita. I'll be heading out to Kansas again this summer which I'm thrilled about, and it was nice to see friend Wayne Bryan who was in town for auditions. And, you know, sometimes the schedule just jumps on you from all directions... I'm happy to be going to an audition tomorrow in Vista, but I also have my tax appointment in North Hollywood tomorrow afternoon. So, after working hard this week on my audition material AND my tax prep, I will be driving all over creation tomorrow. A coaching down here at 10am, then up to NoHo, then back down to Vista by 7. Whew! I must get my rest and eat my Wheaties tomorrow morn.


Here's my weekly sketch over at Squigs Knows His Lines. I'm a huge fan of Stephen Sondheim's work. His smart and innovative music and lyrics have provided fans of musical theatre with bliss for so many years. One of my most prized possessions is a Hirschfeld lithograph of Sondheim which hangs over my desk at home, so the pressure inherent in tackling a sketch of Mr. Sondheim (albeit mostly self-imposed) is not taken lightly. This is the first time I've made the attempt. Anyway... my inspiration for this piece was two-fold: First, the wealth of photos available online shows him from the potential of his youth to his current positioned as elder statesman of the American musical theatre. I've caricatured four images of Mr. Sondheim. Second, it is my understanding that one of Mr. Sondheim's favorite songs from his own canon is "Someone In A Tree" from Pacific Overtures. So I've arranged the images in a nod to the four characters in the song, and the titular "tree" is made up of musical notes and snippets of lyrics. I'm basically happy with the results, although I'm sure I'll take another crack someday.

Well, I think I'm going to call it for the evening. I have a couple things to do before I catch a few winks. Take care, all! Peace and love.