Jeff Maltby - Chinatown Murals 3

Above is a detail from Jeff Maltby's third Chinatown mural just a few steps away from the two previously posted. I like this detail because these kids just look so nice, especially the one on the right looking right out of the picture at us. Below we can see the whole mural - a tour de force trompe l'oeil.

Take few steps back to see this amazing mural in context. Some parts of it, like the sign for the restaurant on the upper right are actually real.

I think it's a tribute to this artist that although these paintings are right at street level and you can walk right up to them and touch them they (and the other Maltby murals) remain free of graffiti or other gratuitous damage and these are nine years old.

Another Maltby in Chinatown

Yesterday's Maltby mural was a group portrait. Today's, barely a hundred meters distant, is a striking trompe l'oeil that invites the passerby into 19th century Victoria.

Port Angeles Kalakala Mural

Port Angeles has several fine murals of the history of the city but the most extraordinary is the one pictured above. It was painted by Cory Ench in 1995 and depicts the Kalakala, a ferry that served many routes in the Puget Sound Area including the Port Angeles - Victoria route for some years. The Kalakala was launched in 1935 and its futuristic design made it world famous shortly thereafter. The Kalakala (a Chinook Jargon word meaning "Flying Bird") still exists and is being restored though I gather that the work is somewhat mired in controversy. You can read about the fascinating history of this extraordinary Art Deco ship and see some photographs and video on its website by clicking HERE.

New Maltby Trompe l'Oeil

I must first thank regular visitor and commenter here, Dean Lewis, for alerting me to a new work by local muralist, Jeff Maltby. I have featured some of his remarkable trompe l'oeil in the past where it is located in Chinatown. Above is one panel of a new Maltby triptych that graces the wall of the Siam Restaurant near the corner of Fort and Langley Streets in downtown Victoria. Below is a wider shot showing all three panels. Victoria is lucky to have an artist so talented and to have patrons intelligent and generous enough to sponsor such works and share them with the public. They are a delight to the eye and I can only hope that ever more of Victoria's walls will be so beautifully and interestingly decorated in future.

APW Painting & Renovating - More Trompe l'Oeil

It looks like APW Painting & Renovating is no more to be found at this address but they left behind an excellent bit of trompe l'oeil. Nice attention to detail can be seen in the upper arm in the blowup below. To fit with the indent in the wall surface the artist has constructed a small plywood upper arm to span the gap. This painting is by Milroy Wonderworks.

Maltby Trompe l'Oeil Mural

Victoria's Chinatown continues to offer some splendid street scenes. This one, a mural by Victoria artist, Jeff Maltby, is on Fisgard Street very near the Chinese Public School and the Lee's Benevolent Society Building, both of which are pictured in earlier posts on this blog. I love the way this mural is so beautifully integrated into its environment. It's actually on two walls, at right angles to each other and I have included a wider angle shot below that shows the mural in context.This mural is not only remarkable for its visual slight-of-hand but for its historical contribution to our appreciation of Chinatown and for its many charming details, one of which is below.

Urban trompe l'oeil

First, a tip of the hat to my fellow City Daily Photo Blogger from Willits, California, for drawing my attention to urban trompe l'oeil as public art through her post "Dog with Koi Pond." I suspect most cities have some instances of this style of art. The example above is on the front of a shop here in Victoria that sells mobility devices such as electric scooters and stair assists.