Walk 3: Social Territory

Walk: The Rillito River Walk/ Rio Vista Natural Resource Park

Walk Map

(Yellow walk, Red Drove)

LINK: Interactive Map Link

Key:

*Note* when viewing the map, some labels have been removed to help with clarity. To view what the pin is depicting, click on it and read the description.

Social Scene: Creative/Artist/Art Teacher

I won’t lie, this walk had me stumped at first.
My original idea was to approach it through the eyes of a consumer on a budget. But Tucson’s thrift stores are scattered across town and closed until 8am, which is when you start to feel the heat. Driving also felt like cheating the walk.

So, I pivoted and chose to focus on my creative side.

I’ve never been fond of the label “Artist.” It carries weight and an expectation. I don’t always feel like I measure up to that word. But I do see the world through a creative lens. If we need a label, call me a creatively inclined person. Someone who believes in the quiet power of art and its place in everyday spaces.

With that lens, I chose to walk the Rillito River Walk, which is near where I live. It's familiar, yet still a place im discovering every everyday. I have walked it many times, but always on the north side. This morning I ventured into the parts I hadn’t been to yet.

I set my alarm for 5am (which is a decision I immediately regretted). I’m not a morning person, never have been and never will be, and especially not in summer. But I did it anyway and drove to St. Philip’s Plaza to begin, promising myself coffee at the end.

Mornings always make me think more. I used to drive 45 minutes to and from work and always used that time to decompress, whether it was with an audiobook, listening to music, talking with a friend on the phone, or just sitting in silence. There’s something about the quiet of early morning that just makes one think, especially in a car. It makes my mind replay memories I’d forgotten:
The tradition of waking up at 4am to secure a red cup from starbucks each december.
Waking up before sunrise to go hiking at sabino canyon with my friends. 
Dragging myself out of bed after two hours of sleep to go Black Friday shopping with my mom.

Morning feels like nostalgia. It feels like reflection. It feels like home. 

During the Walk:

As I began my walk, I let anything that captured my creative eye inform how I would continue. I did have a small plan which was to capture art that has already been made and potential spots where art could be made, but I didn't want to create categories before I actually started the walk. 

Art to be Made, Art Already Made, and Graffiti:

Current art:

    The reason why I chose this location to complete this assignment is because I already knew of one large mural on this walk. It spans over a hundred meters, and it is bright, beautiful, and meticulously painted to reflect the Arizona desert. 

 So while I walked, I kept an eye out for other pieces of art like murals, sculptures, graffiti, or even stickers that were placed on random objects. I found so many pieces of art I had either never noticed or stumbled upon while exploring new places. On the riverwalk bridges, I did not notice the ceramic installations on each side before, probably because there are a few missing from lack of upkeep/destruction. 

In the park, I found these beautiful metal pieces. there were 3 in total. 

There were so many mosaic pieces/ceramic art pieces across the natural resource park! It really helped make the space colorful and reflect the area that we live in. 

There were a few welded metal sculptures on the walk. 

Some ceramic tile art on the bridges I passed. 

Some photos of the large mural that spans aproximately 148 meters. 

There were a few informational signs for people to view. These signs had some beautifully drawn images on them like this one of the coyote pups!

Graffiti:

I found several places where graffiti has been created. After watching Style Wars, it made me think about the art form differently. It made me appreciate the thought behind it. 

Potential Art Spots:

Another category I noted were spots that would serve as artistic real estate. As many murals that Tucson has, we do not compare to cities like Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I kept an eye out for objects and locations that would make good locations for artwork, such as trash cans, empty walls, and areas for metal sculptures. 

There are at least 10 benches along the main river walk. Imagine if these were all painted or had glass murals on them- It would make it so much more colorful!

Some of the ceramic tile murals need to be replaced. 

This picnic table blends in to the ground. I wish they would have added a ceramic moasic mural on this to help give it some life. 

Same with these two benches. They could use more life in the space. 

I almost didn't see this doggy water station. I think color would help it pop out more. 

The trash cans are green, which admittedly blends in to the surrounding desert area. What if we had a program (similar to Philadelphia's Color Me Back program) where we could help people get off the streets to help paint these with pretty mural-inspired paintings? It would help them stand out more and create a bright and colorful space.

I think the base of this pole could also be used in a similar way to the trash cans. 

This would look beautiful with some textured art installations. Maybe it could be in the shape of a diamondback snake? 

The bridges would look amazing with some welded animal plaques. It could make it more inviting. Similarly, on the main campbell street brdige, metal sculptures could also be placed to promote the name of the bridge (bat bridge)

Sit Down and Create:

Almost instantly, I noticed things that aligned with making art. 
Benches that asked me to sit and sketch passing strangers, animals, and the way the plants sat. 
Plants that asked to be studied with their unique textures and glowing colors. 
I also found materials that supported a nontraditional creativity, like dead plant leaves and trash cascaded on the ground.

For this category, I combined a few things. I found multiple areas along my walk that invited people to sit. All of these spaces made great areas to sit, people/animal watch, and sketch. I also found that inspiration played a key role during my walk for myself, which is why I included it in this category. I found so many cool textures, plant life, and subjects that made me want to sketch and gave me loads of ideas to paint. I even took some pictures to use for color swatches later on. 

Place to view, sketch, and people-watch.

One-point perspective practice?

A place to practice architectural drawing? 

Inspiration:

Plants, animals, and textures:

Dead bushes and plants can be used in a similar way to Andy Goldsworthy's work. This could help students create art that's temporary rather than permanent, helping them learn to cerate for the joy of creating rather than making something "perfect."

Textures on trees and the ground can make really good texture rubs and inlays on digital pieces. 

Flowers can help with observational drawing.

Practicing gestural drawing could be done at parks since there are so many animals and people! 

I personally felt a pull towards these sunflowers. I would have loved to sit down and sketch these out. 

Capturing photod of Desert wildlife can help aide in gesture drawing as well. 

Repurposing trash could be an amazing way to create art in a classroom. It not only helps the environemnt but also repurposes waste- two birds one stone!

Potential Art Community Spots:

The last thing I wanted to find were spaces that could invite the community to be involved, whether it's creative or not. I think these two spaces would make great locations. 

This was the entrance to the park. I felt like this would not only make a great place for a mural but also a great place for a community flyer wall to both tape/pin flyers to promote gatherings (yoga at the park, creative gatherings, performances) but could also serve as a great place to give small sketches and art pieces out (think little free library but for art).

Similar to the top photo, I think this would also make a great location for a board. I also think that this space would make a great location for the painted rock art project since it's at the intersection of where people usually join from the Tucson Racquet Club and the other far side of the street. 

Creative Art piece:

    This piece is inspired by The Naked City by Guy Debord and Asger Jorn, an artwork discussed in D’Ignazio’s (2009) Art and Cartography. It reimagines my walk along the Rillito River as a creative cartographic map. I highlight the marks, evidence, desires and artistic connections I experienced throughout it. This maps not geography, but rather the experience as a whole.

Final Reflection:

    Before this assignment, it never really occurred to me that walking could incite so much inspiration for a type of group. I’ve always walked with a purpose. To get from point a to point B, to clear my head, or to grab a coffee. But after reading art and cartography and last week's chapters of wanderlust, I realize how walking is something more layered.

    D’Ignazio’s ideas on re-reading space through lived experience encouraged me to look at the familiar through unfamiliar eyes. It didn’t need to be "productive" in the traditional sense. It just had to be observed. Felt. Walked. In last week’s readings, Rebecca Solnit’s writing added a historical and poetic frame to this. She describes walking as a way of claiming space, of knowing it with our bodies. She reminded me that walking is one of the oldest ways of making meaning. Her words helped me realize that mapping is not just a tool, rather its a way of telling a story. Not just the geography of a place, but the story of how we move through it and who we are when we do. 

Both of these insights changed the way I approached my walk this week. Although this route is the one that I have taken dozens of times, it became something new as I walked with a new perspective in mind. I mapped this walk not just with lines and pins, but instead with feelings, inspiration, and artistic potential. I looked for where art already is and where art could potentially be. I also thought about what it means to create in public spaces, like leaving something behind or invite others in.

This walk made me realize that art and walking are both acts of noticing, ways of slowing down, and reclaiming space and sense of self.