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Niki
de Saint Phalle, a well-respected artist, is best known
for her large-scale sculptures.
Originally
from France, de Saint Phalle [pronounced Sahn Fall], relocated
to La Jolla in 1994, where she and her work were embraced
by the city. She has sculptures displayed in downtown,
by the bay, in the Escondido Performing Arts Center, and
in Balboa Park. In fact, the inaugural exhibit at the
new Mingei Annex in Escondido is devoted to Ms. de Saint
Phalle.
In
Balboa Park, we were struck by the beautiful, bold colors,
whimsical subjects, and that the art is designed to be
touched and even climbed upon. [below]
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Niki
De Saint Phalle passed away last year, and the piece of
art she was working on is a sculpture garden.
'Queen
Califia's Magical Circle,' located 35 miles north of San
Diego in Escondido, is tucked away in an out of the way
location in Kit Carson Park. Dedicated to the supposed namesake
of the state of California, it is a large art piece that
has to be seen to be experienced.
So on
the way home we decided to check it out.
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We found
Kit Carson Park easily enough, but once there, saw no evidence
of the sculpture garden. Then, in the distance, through
the brown-green chaparral, a burst of color.
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[roll
your mouse over the image below]
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And
as we made our way around...
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...the
spectacular entrance is revealed.
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This
is Niki De Saint Phalle's only sculpture garden in the United
States. It really is quite a sight, and very inspiring.
So inspiring, we used a self-timer to create this year's
Christmas card. [below]
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An exciting
end to a rather ordinary Thanksgiving holiday. We all felt
a bit sluggish, and couldn't seem to get kick started during
our trip to San Diego.
But
we are thankful. We have our health, our families, and we
are very thankful to be able to take off and experience
new places and things. Heck, not all of our trips and adventures
are slam-dunks. But that's what makes the process fun --
that feeling that, while traveling together as a family,
there just might be a Queen Califia's Magical Circle around
the next corner.
Here's
to finding more new adventures in 2004.
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