snow chains for a 103 degree day (2/2)

several different interesting doors lead out to very nice grounds with interesting plants and art (I guess even historic buildings require web access these days...)

peaceful

carved wood planters

also on the grounds, the Mission in the Sun

De Grazia wall murals

The inside of the mission. Those benches will keep you awake. A very cool feature of this room is the long ceiling opening down the center to the outside...

Looking up and out through the center of the ceiling, through a towering cross of cholla wood. This must have been a spectacular night view of the stars back when Tucson had dark night skys.

another inside wall mural

what mission is this roadrunner on?

Another building on site is the little gallery. I really liked this door. If ever there was a door to another realm, this looks like it could be it.

I'm not sure what this is... At first glance it appeared to be nice environmental art, but on closer inspection there are religious figurines on top, and on still closer inspection, there are copper pennys placed on the ledges of all the rocks from top to bottom. A shrine to the copper industry? Or...

So... what a find! Even though I may be the last person in Tucson to discover this place, I was impressed. My pictures just scratched the surface of what there is to see at the Gallery in the Sun, and definitely don't capture the ambiance. So if any of you Tucsonans are looking for a great staycation activity that's free and right in town, check out the Gallery in the Sun, on Swan, north of Sunrise.

I've visited more traditional art galleries in Tucson and in other cities that I liked, but rarely have I seen such a nice integration of art, nature, buildings, history, non-commercialism and sense of place as this. I'm adding it to my "must visit" recommendations for Tucson visitors.

Thanks to Alanna & Tad for posting in their blog about this place and thereby enticing me to get over to it!