Santa Ana's Art Tells its Story

Story and photos
by Kathleen Walls

Santa Ana is home to over 200 murals and sculptures. William Henry Spurgeon founded Santa Ana and named it after the original Spanish land grant Santiago de Santana. The city was incorporated in 1886, so most of the historic buildings date to the 1910s and 1920s. Many have murals on them. Starting with the Chicano movement of the 1960s, artists began painting massive images that commemorate the city's colorful, multicultural heritage. There's an interactive map of murals and historic buildings.

Creator, Quetzalcoatl

Painted by Bud Herrera and Kimberly Duran, known as The Heavy Collective, this mural depicts Quetzalcoatl, worshiped by ancient Mesoamerican cultures like the Aztecs and Maya. Although Quetzalcoatl was not traditionally worshipped in California, it represents respect for the ancient people who lived here before the Spanish came and imposed their religion on the natives.

Chinelos Mural

Chinelos Mural by Moises Camacho shows figures of the Chinelos carnival tradition of Morelos, Mexico. That tradition originated in colonial times and was a way for natives to mock the colonial rule and to celebrate native cultures under cover of masquerades and disguises. In the painting, the landowner, priest, and devil appear as costumes on the left segment of Camacho's mural, dancing on the village streets with the blue Morelos mountains in the background.

Mana Mural Project

The colorful Mana Mural Project by David Kawika Pursley, Eric Keawakane, and Brian Fort represents early sacred religious symbols of the Hawaiian islands: Wind, Fire, and Earth. Spanish colonizers outlawed belief in the elements in the design. The painting honors the culture of the local displaced Islander community in California. David Pursley's quote says it all, "Existence is resistance. Excellence is resistance."

La Madre Naturaleza/Mother Nature

Another mural that combines Mother Nature and the Spanish Catholic beliefs is by the Santa Ana Community Artist's Coalition with lead artists Kimberly Duran and Elizabeth Cardenas and about 30 other artists. It depicts St. Anne blowing a kiss of life to the community of Santa Ana and also depicts community gardens, nature, and flowers. La Madre Naturaleza/Mother Nature was based on interviews with residents and visitors to downtown Santa Ana. These surveys were then gathered and incorporated into the design of the mural. Mother Nature reflects the ideas of over 200 people.

Cultura

Jonathan Martinez, who paints under the name "Art of Endangered" created Cultura which represents both Mexican culture and natural wildlife, with his eagle perched upon a tree branch against a vibrant pink and blue background and a starry sky.

Green Parrot of Santa Ana

Marina Aguilera's Green Parrot of Santa Ana reflects a love of nature and the urban legend of the Green Parrots. Stories differ whether the parrots seen all around Santa Ana are descended from birds that escaped a burning aviary or were smuggled in and escaped their captors.

The Tree That Held Us, Forever Now

Those parrots and nature are honored again in Alicia Rojas' The Tree That Held Us, Forever Now. It honors a national champion tree that once stood downtown and sheltered generations of wild green parrots. The tree is gone; the parrots displaced, but the mural honors their memory. It resonates with me, as a Florida resident as a warning of what can happen when building and subdivision replace wild lands.

Under the Santa Ana Sun

Stan Nuñez, known by his artist name "Saints" aka "Boombox Kid," and fellow artist Cale, bring us to more modern times with the mural Under the Santa Ana Sun. The upper part of the mural depicts a woman wearing a red hat haloed by a bright yellow sun, and near the bottom it depicts spray painters with spray cans and a vintage boombox.

4th Street Market Mural

4th Street Market Mural is by Jouvon Michael Kingsby, a veteran and self-taught artist who painted his first mural in Saddam Hussein's old bunker.

La Ofrenda

La Ofrenda, painted by Bud Herrera and Kimberly Duran, reminds us that death is part of life. It brings to mind the Mexican cultural holiday, Day of the Dead, that honors those who have passed on.

Architecture

Santora Building

The architecture, ranging from Art Deco to Spanish Revival, is art in itself. The gorgeous Santora Building is a masterpiece designed by architect Frank Lansdown that was dedicated on July 7, 1928 is in the California Churrigueresque style of Spanish Colonial Revival architecture. It's in The Artists' Village. The Santora is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Old Santa Ana City Hall

The Old Santa Ana City Hall is a three-story reinforced concrete Art Deco style three-story building on a marble base with a central four-story tower. It was designed by Southern California architect W. Horace Austin and funded by a public works grant during the Great Depression. It functioned as Santa Ana's city hall until 1973.

Old Orange County Courthouse

The Old Orange County Courthouse is Southern California's oldest court building. From its dedication in 1901, this granite and sandstone building has been witness to many of the events that shaped present-day Orange County. I visited the museum on the third floor and loved the old courtroom just as it was back a century ago.

Bowers Museum

Bowers Museum showcases Santa Ana and all California history and art as well as hosting traveling exhibitions like "Terracotta Warriors," which I was privileged to see. It's housed in a Spanish mission style building.

Grand Central Art Center

There's also the Grand Central Art Center, which is both a historic building and a art museum. It was originally built in 1922 as the central market for the Orange County region. Now, it's a public art museum with free admission and the center of a ten-square block area known as Artists Village.

Of course, there's so many more murals and much more to see and do in Santa Ana, I suggest you go see for yourself.

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