Call Box Art in DC

Before you could call 911 for an emergency, DC had emergency call boxes all over town. The call system was removed, but the boxes have remained.

Rather than spend a fortune trying to remove the call boxes, Cultural Tourism DC has undertaken a project to turn them into art.

Some of the boxes are reproductions of historic paintings. Some are designed by local artists. Many of them have little historic tidbits about the neighborhood on the back.

This particular box depicting George Washington on his horse is in Dupont close to my house. You can find out more about the Art on Call boxes on the Cultural Tourism DC website.

Globes in Washington DC

These crazy globes are all over the place near the Botanic Gardens on the mall.

They are part of the Cool Globes exhibit, meant to bring attention to sustainability.

I have to say, they are all pretty cool. I wish they weren't slated to come down in October. Personally, I think we should have art like this all over the city.

But alas, you have only another few months to check them out, so go to it.

Peck Mural Tour of Washington DC

Last weekend, Cultural Tourism DC sponsored a bunch of tours around town. One of them was a mural tour led by artist G. Byron Peck.

If you notice a mural in the city, there is a good chance Peck did it. Pictured is the Duke Ellington mural on the True Reformer Building on U Street.

Appropriate that the mural ended up on the True Reformer Building, since it was in that building that Ellington had his first paying gig. He made 25 cents according to our guide.

Also on the tour was the Black Family Reunion Mural up 14th street, the Mayan Mural on Florida and 18th, the Columbia Heights Mural on 14th and Clifton, and the Dupont Circle Fountain Mural on Connecticut.

Truth be told, I skipped out after the first two. A tour has to be really good to keep me herded along with the crowd. It was all moving a bit slow, all the more so because one of the volunteers along for the ride kept interjecting.

Also, while I liked the murals, I didn't love them. All of Peck's murals have a very graphic quality to them. I prefer work that is a little more organic. More importantly, I found them a little topically bland. There was little passion and no controversy. Undoubtedly, the fact that many were painted with support from large organizations, like McDonalds, contributed to that.

Erhu Musician in Washington, DC

I love this guy. He plays an erhu, a Chinese string instrument that goes back like a thousand years.

He plays it over a recording of an odd selection of jazzy pop - the kind of songs you can never quite place.

I often run into him as I am getting off the metro in Dupont or Farragut North. I think he must hop around from metro to metro.

I'm guessing he makes a pretty decent amount of cash, as he is adorable. He also seems like he's digging what he's doing. He may have discovered an enjoyable and recession proof job.

Street Musicians in Washington, DC

It isn't quite New Orleans, but there are still plenty of street performers in DC, especially musicians. On a nice day, Dupont Circle will usually have some entertainment.

These kids were in town from New York and trying to make a few bucks. Later, they were joined by a very strange and possibly homeless man who sang obnoxiously over them.

I think the kids were annoyed with the interruption, but the audience thought it was great. I'll bet they even picked up a few extra entertainment bucks. Besides, street performing isn't exactly a controlled environment.

Another common site is the trash can drummer. Here's one we spotted in Chinatown last week:

Chinatown Gate in Washington, DC

Washington DC has a pretty sad little Chinatown. It's basically a strip of chain stores and restaurants that also have their names written in Chinese.

However, Chinatown does have one cool thin - the Chinatown Friendship Arch. The arch was designed by local architect Alfred H. Liu.

It was erected as a joint project between DC and our sister city - Beijing. It is supposedly the largest single span archway of its kind in the world. It is one of DC's more colorful pieces of public art.