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"Sonoma" by Maxfield Bala, Petaluma: Maxfield Bala fell in love with drawing and all things art when he was a middle school student doodling in the corners of his notebooks. As a Petaluma local, he never thought he would have an opportunity to bring his small drawings to life in a big way. Today, Bala is one of a handful of North Bay artists sought out by local art committees and city planning departments to design and paint larger-than-life public art installations. 2557 Petaluma Blvd S, Petaluma. (Courtesy of Maxfield Bala)
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"Welcome to Petaluma" by Maxfield Bala, Petaluma: This mural, spanning 50-feet wide and 13-feet tall, is one of multiple projects Bala has been asked to contribute to Sonoma County. "The welcome mural I am painting has so many features that represent the city that are iconic to Petaluma that we have all grown up with as a community," said 25-year-old Bala in a recent interview. "It is just nice to give back to the community in the way I know how, which is through art." Petaluma Boulevard South, along Highway 101 heading toward San Francisco. (Courtesy of Aaron Quinnell /@aaron_shane125)
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Phoenix Theater Mural, Petaluma: A "splash of cosmic color" in downtown Petaluma, local artist Ricky Watts's 3000-square-foot mural transformed the southern wall of the Phoenix Theater into a huge outdoor art exhibit in 2013. In 2015, Claus Brigmann, with the help of Mike Hollibaugh, built a solar-powered LED lighting system to illuminate the mural after dark. Watts describes his artwork's abstract style as "space rainbows," with fluid shapes and colors that intertwine. The Phoenix Theater, 201 Washington St, Petaluma. (Courtesy of Scott Hess)
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Various Murals, American Alley, Petaluma: Alleyways aren’t typically known for their photographic potential, but Petaluma’s American Alley is an exception. This hidden gem is home to abstract and realist murals. Painted on historic brick buildings, they offer a glimpse into the life of the working class. The murals were painted by various artists during the O+ Festival in November 2015. Located between Petaluma Boulevard North and Kentucky Street, off of Washington Street. (Rachel Simpson)
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This mural, depicting a migrant farmworker, is one of eight public artworks in American Alley in Petaluma. Located between Petaluma Boulevard North and Kentucky Street, off of Washington Street. (Chris Samson)
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Artist Maxfield Bala painted these doors on a building on American Alley in Petaluma. Located between Petaluma Boulevard North and Kentucky Street, off of Washington Street. (Chris Samson)
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"Dreamer" by Rima Makaryan, Santa Rosa: Artist Rima Makaryan, a Montgomery High School junior, wants people to see beauty in the immigrant experience, and not just focus on border walls, family separations and other charged elements of the current debate. Drawing on her own experience as an Armenian immigrant, Makaryan pushes viewers of her work to appreciate those who come to this country seeking better lives, or to escape hardship or violence in their native lands. Montgomery High School, 1250 Hahman Dr, Santa Rosa. (Alvin Jornada)
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Untitled Mural by MJ Lindo-Lawyer, Joshua Lawyer, Big Hepos, Santa Rosa: Husband-and-wife artists Joshua Lawyer and MJ Lindo-Lawyer, along with friend and fellow artist Big Hepos, completed work on this Santa Rosa Avenue mural in December, 2018. Only five months later, the mural was vandalized. The faces it depicted, two of them brown, had been splashed with white paint. Thanks to a successful GoFundMe campaign, the artwork was restored. While the original had featured the faces in profile, the restored version shows the faces looking straight at the viewer. 505 and 514 Santa Rosa Avenue, on a former used car lot at the corner with Sebastopol Avenue. (Ricardo Ibarra)
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Mural by MJ Lindo-Lawyer on Santa Rosa Avenue. 505 and 514 Santa Rosa Avenue, on a former used car lot at the corner with Sebastopol Avenue. (Ricardo Ibarra)
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Mural by Joshua Lawyer at Santa Rosa Avenue. 505 and 514 Santa Rosa Avenue, on a former used car lot at the corner with Sebastopol Avenue. (Ricardo Ibarra)
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Mural by Big Hepos on Santa Rosa Avenue. 505 and 514 Santa Rosa Avenue, on a former used car lot at the corner with Sebastopol Avenue. (Ricardo Ibarra)
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"Battle of Good versus Evil" by Joshua Lawyer, MJ Lindo-Lawyer and Big Hepos, Santa Rosa: A struggle between light and darkness, the idea behind this mural was "a David and Goliath story arch," according to Joshua Lawyer. It depicts two figures, face-to-face in a wrestling ring: an indigenous woman in jeans, sweatshirt and Converse shoes facing a looming Lucha Libre-masked wrestler, painted in darker, heavier tones. The mural sits on a Roseland site that has historically been a community gathering place, the meeting spot for protests and the location for the annual Cinco de Mayo fiesta. 883 Sebastopol Road, Santa Rosa. (Ricardo Ibarra)
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Untitled Mural, by Daniel Doughty and Nick Jensen, Santa Rosa: The South of A Street arts district — SOFA — covers a few blocks between Santa Rosa Avenue and South A Street, bordering Sebastopol and Sonoma avenues and neighboring Juilliard Park. A great destination for art appreciation, it is home to galleries as well as street art. This mural, created by Daniel Doughty and Nick Jensen, can be found in SOFA's Art Alley. (Alvin Jornada)
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Guernica Mural by Mario Uribe, Santa Rosa: Ever since local artist Mario Uribe was in art school, almost 60 years ago, he's been moved by Pablo Picasso's 1937 oil painting Guernica. One of Picasso's best known works, it captures the horrors of war in a scene depicting the German aerial bombing of the Basque town of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War. Today, the painting is exhibited in the Museo Reina Sofía in Madrid. Thanks to the Uribe, locals and visitors to Sonoma County can see a reproduction of it it in SOFA's Art Alley. "The message in Guernica fits our world today and deserves to be replicated," says Uribe, who projected the painting onto the wall at night and traced it. He then premixed the colors for the mural and several Artstart apprentices helped paint the various areas, while Uribe put in the finishing touches. 461 Sebastopol Ave., Santa Rosa. (John Burgess)
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Mandala Mural, Bud Snow, Santa Rosa: This bold and brightly colored mandala was created by muralist Bud Snow in the shallow bed of an abandoned fountain in Juilliard Park. The large, circular art work features concentric rings of abstract, mythological-looking creatures Snow thinks of as contemporary versions of prehistoric, or perhaps, evolutionary beasts. “I’m interested in urban cave painting — discussing community, spirituality, friendship, joy, love — through simplified, abstracted but recognizable forms,” the Oakland artist said in a 2016 interview. Juilliard Park, Santa Rosa. (Courtesy of Bud Snow)
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Laura Kelly Memorial Mural by Bud Snow, Santa Rosa: The loss of a friend powered Bud Snow's largest project to date: a vertical mural six stories high on the backside of Santa Rosa’s Roxy theater. Laura Nicole Kelly, a Sonoma County practitioner of Ayurvedic medicine, died from cancer in 2016. “She was my best friend. A lot of people were touched and healed by Laura," said Snow, whose tribute to her friend takes the shape of a processional banner, featuring images that the late Kelly shared with Snow. First St., Santa Rosa. (Courtesy of Spring Maxfield)
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Bud Snow also created this colorful octopus mural that decorates the wall inside Perch + Plow restaurant in Santa Rosa's Courthouse Square. (John Burgess)
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Cali Calmecac Mural by Various Artists, Santa Rosa: A once-white wall defaced by anti-immigrant graffiti was transformed into a vibrant mural celebrating Latino immigrants' heritage and culture. Painted by local artists and students from Santa Rosa Junior College, the mural was conceived as an empowering response to vandalism that marred Cali Calmecac's campus in late October, 2016. In vivid shades of purple, blue, green and other colors, the mural depicts scenes of creation, indigenous dancers, agriculture and students in the classroom. The main artists involved in the mural were Arturo Monroy, Mario Quijas, Emmanuel Morales, Jiovanny Soto and Everardo Flores. 9491 Starr Rd, Windsor. (Kent Porter)
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Palms Inn Mural by Mario Uribe, Santa Rosa: Local artist Mario Uribe, along with his assistant Daniel Doughty, Petaluma artist Jennifer Mygatt Tatum and apprentices from the nonprofit Artstart, created this 208-square-foot mural on the back of the wall of the Palms Inn, a 104-unit motel for homeless veterans and the chronically homeless. Wanting to draw attention to homelessness in Sonoma County and the need for more housing, Uribe used pictures of the residents to create composites of smiling people. Together, they form a puzzle in the shape of a house and, at the residents' request, Uribe also included emblems of the five military branches. 3345 Santa Rosa Ave, Santa Rosa. (Christopher Chung)
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Artists Daniel Doughty, left, and Mario Uribe, right, move a scaffolding holding Jennifer Tatum, so that she can reach another portion of the Palms Inn Project mural, in Santa Rosa on Tuesday, September 12, 2017. The mural is installed on the west side of the Palms Inn, facing Highway 101. (Christopher Chung)
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Healing Mural by Mario Uribe, Santa Rosa: This mural, located in the Roseland neighborhood in southwest Santa Rosa, memorializes one of Sonoma County's most traumatic events, the fatal shooting of 13-year-old Andy Lopez. The 48-foot-long mural depicts strong and colorful images of Mexican-American culture and day-to-day life, combined with the familiar, now-iconic image of Lopez, a Santa Rosa teenager who was shot by a Sonoma County sheriff’s deputy in 2013 as he walked through his Moorland Avenue neighborhood carrying an Airsoft BB gun the deputy reportedly mistook for a real weapon. 779 Sebastopol Rd, Santa Rosa. (John Burgess)
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Local artist Mario Uribe, left, holds a ladder for assistant Daniel Doughty as they install a mural in honor of Andy Lopez. (John Burgess)
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Vida de la Muerte, Sonoma: This 15-by-60-foot mural, created by nearly 20 teens and organized by the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, was funded in part by a National Endowment for the Arts grant aimed at supporting public art and artist residency collaborations. Acclaimed street artist Chor Boogie, a.k.a. Joaquin Lamar Hailey, of San Rafael lead the project. Boogie's murals and artwork have appeared all over the world, including the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the Smithsonian Institute. The colorful mural, featuring bright images of vineyards, Dia de Los Muertos icons, constellations named for animals, and more, covers the wall of the Republic of Thrift shop in Boyes Hot Springs. 17496 Sonoma Highway, Sonoma. (Lorna Sheridan)
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"Teens Go Green" by Lynn Vallarino, Sebastopol: This 10-foot by 20-foot mural is brightening up the campus at Brook Haven School in Sebastopol with colorful silhouettes of youth walking, biking, scootering and skateboarding. The mural is the result of a brainstorming session during a weekly Teens Go Green Club meeting. The club encourages students to get themselves to school using environmentally-friendly modes of transportation. Sebastopol artist and Brook Haven alumni Dana Vallarino worked with club members to design the mural, even using them as models for the silhouettes. 7905 Valentine Ave, Sebastopol. (Christopher Chung)
