Pat It and Prick It and Mark It

Ugly mural, no?

No?

Someone thought so, and now Altadena's Patticakes Dessert Company is having to defend itself--albeit with a legion of fans to support it.

Patticakes is a good place to buy baked goods for an event, as well as nice little spot to have a cup of coffee and a piece of cake. Perfectly innocent. Yet the art on the exterior wall is apparently in violation of a county code.

Seriously.

Yep.

That's what I thought, too.

Is this art or is it advertising? The discussion on Altadena Patch got some saliva glands going; if the complainers ever get caught they might just get baked in a pie.

I once had a brick wall for a fence. I speak from experience when I suggest the following: if the County paints over this mural, the County--or whoever lodged the complaint--gets to take on the cost and responsibility of painting over the graffiti that will appear on this wall--guaranteed--at least three times a week.

You don't have to be from Altadena to stop by Patticakes at 1900 N. Allen Avenue and sign the petition to keep the mural. (I did, and I bought a chocolate tartlet thingy while I was there just, you know, to show 'em I mean what I say.) I wanted to get a picture of the mural without cars parked in front of it, but every time one car left another two arrived and I didn't have all day. Apparently the County's done Patticakes a favor, at least in the short term: right now, business is sweet.

Update:
The mural stays.

See
Altadenablog
Pasadena Weekly

Enchanted Evening

One evening last spring in Altadena, I took this photo looking through a storefront window. It was the first Altadena Arts Coalition Open House on May 15th (the second one was September 5th). I took so many other pictures that night I never got around to posting this one.

Lately we've been having lovely evenings for strolling and looking in storefront windows. I think I've finally found the right time for posting this.

I'm not frilly. I rarely wear bows or fluffy things. But this graceful dress, the strange light and the night invited my girlhood imagination to awaken and think of princesses.

The Gallery at the End of Lake Avenue

It's Altadena week here on the old blog. For such a teeny corner of the LA sprawl, I found a lot to do in one Friday night.

McGinty's Gallery at the End of the World is a revelation. I'm tempted to use words like "funky," "whimsical," "charming" or "laid-back," but oh, blah blah blah blah. McGinty's is all of these things and none of these things. It is completely itself: welcoming, lush, open and cozy at the same time. And that's just the space.
Even the gallery greeter is an absolute individual.

Some of the art you'll love, some you might even hate. That's the nature of art. The art will change depending on who's showing what when. I hope they update the website soon so we can see what's coming up, but just go. The gallery's full of great stuff right now.

I get the impression that owner Ben McGinty is a busy guy. But although he was running the show during the Altadena Arts Coalition Open House, he took time to welcome everyone who wandered through with their mouths hanging open just as I did. I believe the people in the top photo are writing on the furniture. (Tip: art is everywhere. Be sure to look up.)

Fotoboy Ibarionex says Ben is the "self-proclaimed mayor of Altadena." Altadena is in an unincorporated area of Los Angeles county and doesn't have an official city government of its own. But if Altadena did have a government and Ben ran for mayor, he'd probably have a shot at the job.

Creative Muscle

Altadena Junction looks like a small theater, which it is. But it's more than just a theater. It was entirely appropriate that the Altadena Junction celebrated the Arts Coalition Open House with Alex Schaefer painting twenty-minute portraits, because from what I can tell the place is all about art, whatever form it takes.

I say "from what I can tell" because I don't know much about it yet. But I know proprietor Lance Anderson brings world-class storytelling to Altadena. (I quizzed him Friday night and now I've had a chance to Google him.) He's also bringing in a photography exhibit, teaching workshops and performing his one-person play.

Another cool thing about the Junction is the Healing Arts aspect. Dr. M. (Dr. Marisol Martinez) offers a variety of services including chiropractic. And yoga! I hear the classes are great.

Click on Alex Schaefer's link to see the final painting from the session above. It's the one on the middle right (obviously). Middle left is Altadena photographer and teacher Ibarionex Perello. If you want to study some great shots, study his blog. When I ran into Ibarionex at the Altadena Junction it didn't surprise me. It's a place for creative people. It has that energy.

I can't wait to see what else Lance Anderson is going to do.

Crouching Photographer, Little Dragons

Now that Zen Monday is past we can get back to Altadena! I have a few more pictures to post of last Friday night's Altadena Arts Coalition Open House.

The Two Dragons Martial Arts Studio is just north of Webster's at 2490 N. Lake Avenue. I found some little dragons performing amazing feats on the sidewalk. It was hot out, and because they worked so hard for the camera it's only fair that they get two photos.

Besides the Little Dragons program, the Two Dragons studio has Tai Chi classes for all ages, plus Kenpo, weapons training and Chaun-Shu. (There are so many confusing links on Google for Chaun-Shu I'm going to let you choose your own.)

The Little Dragons martial arts program "is a fun and educational program with a detailed curriculum that focuses on improving listening and motor skills as well as confidence and enthusiasm." These kids had all that going on.

Altadena Party Night

Altadena did indeed have a party last night. I did indeed go. I did (indeed) have such a good time that I'm too tired to stay up and write about it right now. I have lot of pictures I want to show you and I will indeed do so in the coming days.

I have loved Altadena since John and I discovered it in 2001 (it had been there a long time, but we hadn't bothered to look). Last night I discovered things about Altadena that had been there all along, but I hadn't bothered to notice before. I discovered new things to be excited about, too.

I'll tell you more about it when I get some rest, but I imagine by then the other bloggers will have beat me to the punch. That's all right. As long as you know about it it's fine with me. Don't miss out on all the fun like I did all this time. There's too much good stuff in Altadena. Indeed, you must bother to look.

Bill Westphal's lovely pics are on Tim Rutt's Altadenablog today.