Week 91: The Arts District

Week 91: September 22nd-28th, 2024

Okay, I know I talk about Liberty Station a lot, so it seems like there wouldn't be something new there for me, BUT this week, there was! My wonderful mom came down to visit San Diego for the week, and for one of our activities, I took her to the Arts District at Liberty Station to explore. We wandered a bit and stumbled upon the Visions Museum of Textile Art.

A few signs stating "Free Admission!" invited us into the museum's small gift shop where we were greeted by a kind woman wearing a "Volunteer" badge.  Apparently, we were at the tail end of San Diego Design week (September 19-25, 2024). The nice volunteer welcomed us in and explained how the current exhibits were all work done by women near the U.S. and Mexico border.

Despite it only being a few rooms, it was echoey and quiet in the textile museum. There were some really interesting textile pieces on display, and my mom and I enjoyed looking at the craftsmanship and creativity of each one.

Work by Irma Sofia Poeter

The "A Dress" exhibit by Irma Sofia Poeter covered cultural, social, and political situations that affect our present lives.

Work by Olga Cecelia Sanchez

The "Vagary" exhibit by Olga Cecelia Sanchez highlighted fashion and cultural exchange.

The museum was small, but mighty, just like many female artists, and I appreciated each exhibit and display. I was reminded about how many different forms of art we have at our fingertips. As we made our way out of the textile museum, I noticed an interesting wall with a sign saying "Share your thoughts about immigration, tolerance, and what it means to be an American on our free speech wall."

There are some interesting

I assume most students in San Diego County take field trips to Liberty Station at least once before graduating high school, so some of the silly answers may come from kids just messing around. I did find a couple interesting answers.

• "This country was founded and built on the backs of slaves and immigrants"

• "Free Palestine"

• "Freedom is the wound closest to the sun"

• "People over profits"

There were some other posters in the hallway from some other organizations because the Vision Museum of Textile Art shares a building with a few other museums. Most notably, the building also houses the San Diego Watercolor Society. This would have definitely been a huge hit for my watercolor-fanatic mom, but unfortunately, our timing was off. It was closed for show preparation. All we could do was peer in the windows and get glimpses of incredible works of art inside. It was fun to see my mom, who used to be laser-focused on her environmental law work, get excited about her newfound hobbies in retirement. I love that her previous hard work and dedication to an incredible career now allows her the freedom to explore painting and art in different forms. If anyone deserves the break, its her!

I'm glad my love for Liberty Station does not mean I have exhausted all explorable corners of it. I enjoyed looking around the artists' studios in different barracks and "Ooh-ing" and "Aah-ing" at some really incredible artwork with my mom. If I could, I'd get her a studio space just like the ones at Liberty Station so she could really have the space to follow her new passion.

As a bonus: my mom also had the great idea to go to the Birch Aquarium where we took this cute "Us-sie" (a selfie of us, duh!) as my mom calls them.

A cloudy-ish day in La Jolla

It is always fun to explore San Diego, especially with my mom, because even though I've been here for 7 years, there is always Something New to experience.

See you next week!