By TR Robertson
Driving around Vista on a Sunday morning can turn up some interesting sites at times and such was the case this past Sunday. Taking a quick trip down Melrose Drive to the local Home Depot store brought more than was originally intended. Driving past the corner of Melrose Dr. and Buena Vista Dr., I noticed a gentleman busy at work painting a very colorful and artistic design on what I would find out later was a traffic control box. On my way back from Home Depot, I decided to stop by and have a chat with the artist to learn more about what he was doing.
The artist painting the unique design on the traffic control box was James Faber. James is currently on disability due to a traffic accident involving him on his bike and a car around four years ago. He said he is an artist who works in a variety of artistic media, including designing artistic tattoo designs for individuals. When asked about how he became involved in painting artistic designs on the city control boxes, James said the process took a while. It involved going to the city website, looking under Public Arts Program, and printing out the forms needed to be approved to paint the boxes. A proposal must be submitted using the application forms available on the website.
In the application, a resume must be submitted with detailed information about the artwork, including the design, colors, and other pertinent details. The artwork must be G-rated. The Public Arts Commission and the Vista City Council must then approve the application and proposal. If approved, the applicant must sign a release form that gives the city permission to display and publicize the artwork. James said they are not paid for their work but are given resources to get the supplies they need for their art.
James submitted 20 pieces of art for the traffic control boxes. He said 18 were approved, and he is currently beginning work on the approved 8 traffic control boxes on Melrose. The one he was working on, at the corner of Melrose Dr. and Buena Vista Dr. is the first one of the eight. The design of this artistic piece centers around a sacred heart with angel wings surrounded by a crown of thorns, with a web in the background. James said there was no large symbolic reason for the design, just an artistic idea he came up with. He was adding more to the design he was working on after I left.
I asked James if he was a veteran and he said he was a veteran of the arts and of the streets. James said he has been through some challenging times, but it is good to see him use the talent he has in turning what is an ugly, big green and grey metal box on the street corners where traffic lights are into beautiful, unique, colorful conversation pieces to look at while you wait for the lights to change. Take a look at the artwork of James Faber on the corner of Melrose Drive and Buena Vista Drive and look for more coming soon on Melrose Drive at the corners where traffic lights are located. If you are interested in James’s artwork, he can be reached at 760-415-5857.
