Mosaic for 210 Freeway sound walls will be La Cañada’s largest art installation
As construction crews work to erect sound walls along La Cañada segments of the 210 Foothill Freeway, one locally known artist is in the process of creating an art piece that will grace a portion of the finished project.
Miriam Balcazar, a ceramics teacher for the Community Center of La Cañada Flintridge, was commissioned by a design company working with the city’s Public Works Department to create a 90-foot-long tile mosaic to be installed at the Curran Street sound wall.
The scene depicts various aspects of Foothills life, from hiking and biking to dog walking and horseback riding. The art piece will embellish an overlap in two sound walls through which pedestrians pass, making it the largest piece of public art in La Cañada, according to Public Works Director Edward Hitti.
“The mosaic reflects residents’ activities along the trail system in the city,” Hitti said. “It is a creative element (intended) to soften the height of the 16-foot-tall wall in the city right-of-way.”
Hitti has estimated the sound walls will be completed around late October, with the art installation to begin sometime after that.
This isn’t Balcazar’s first public project — she created the cheerful mosaic in the Community Center’s own sign — although the artist admits she’s never tackled a project of this magnitude.
“I’ve done other murals and projects, but never this size,” she said.
In preparation for the massive tile installation, Balcazar has been breaking and sorting Italian tile pieces by shape, working in the studio of her Valley Glen home.
Once she has a well-fitting piece, she sticks it onto an adhesive-backed foam board cut to the exact shape and size of an individual figure. When a figure has been laid out, the tiled foam board goes into a stack of completed figures that will remain in her home studio until the wall is ready for tiling.
“When I break tiles, I think, ‘This part is going to be perfect that the piece of the hat for one person,’” Balcazar said. “I just fill in the lines and once it’s done, I put it on the pile. I have a pile of people and animals. They’re waiting — we’re all waiting.”
When the city was first thinking about decorating the overlap walkway, they reached out to the Community Center for ideas. Deb Jordan, executive director of CCLCF, said she was thrilled to learn of Balcazar’s selection.
“Everybody can’t stop talking about what a fantastic project this is, for Miriam and for the Community Center,” Jordan said. “She said once it’s done you’ll be able to see it in Google Earth — it’s a huge project.”
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Follow Sara Cardine on Twitter: @SaraCardine.
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