June 13 – June 19, 2003

Library Wall Dedicated

By Jim Kerr
Del Mar Times

Thirteenth Street was transformed into a “block party” Saturday, June 7, as the Del Mar community gathered for a dedication and celebration of the Del Mar Library wall’s mixed mosaic art installation.

The well-received public art project, was conceived and designed by Pat Welsh and Betsy Schulz, and both were honored at a ceremony held at the library’s entrance. On hand were Del Mar Mayor David Druker, and his city council colleagues Richard Earnest, Crystal Crawford and Jerry Finnell. Finnell’s wife Kathy, who is president of the “Friends of the Library” organization, presented floral bouquets to Welsh and Schulz, and County Supervisor Pam Slater who assisted in securing a grant for the completion of the project, also attended, and spoke.

“It is amazing that this was a project that was able to get done in Del Mar in one year,” quipped Slater.

Druker said he was “very pleased,” with the project, and also said, “This event has brought the whole community together, and that’s what we want more of, projects that bring us together.”

Welsh, who along with her daughter, had designed an identification game for children present at the event to explore the wall’s many art objects, Druker said, “When you tell a city that you want to build a wall with old rusty things and they say you can, you have a lot of people to thank.”

Welsh and Schulz now have their sights set on other possible projects in town, with a new wall for Seagrove Park currently in the initial planning stages.

Back

Pat Welsh and Betsy Schulz, the artists that designed the wall