‘Reflexion’ artwork delayed until fall for La Jolla Shores; other locations besides Kellogg Park considered

A temporary art installation originally intended for Kellogg Park this month will wait a bit longer for its turn in the La Jolla Shores sun.

“Reflexion,” consisting of three mirrored columns with rotatable segments that stood at Scripps Park at La Jolla Cove for two weeks through June 26, is being considered for a fall installation in The Shores.

Because of a lack of electricity sources for “Reflexion,” which is illuminated at night, locations aside from the original at Kellogg Park are being considered, the La Jolla Shores Association heard during its July 13 meeting.

The artwork had been scheduled to go to Kellogg Park July 9-24, which angered LJSA President Janie Emerson because the city of San Diego didn’t gather input about it from the organization. That led to the July 13 presentation.

“Reflexion” is being displayed as part of the city’s Park Social project, which brings art installations to city parks. Under the initiative, 18 artists and artist teams — two for each of the city’s nine council districts — were commissioned to create temporary works of art, according to Charles Miller, senior public art manager with San Diego’s Commission for Arts and Culture.

The artists collective Art Builds, which specializes in “large-format participatory art installations,” was commissioned for District 1 and created “Reflexion,” said Lara Bullock, civic art project manager for the Commission for Arts and Culture.

Bullock said the Scripps Park installation brought “a lot of positive responses from park-goers of all ages.”

“We’re currently working with the artists to consider best options for a second iteration of the project,” Bullock said.

Other possible locations include Laureate Park on Avenida de la Playa between Paseo del Ocaso and El Paseo Grande, along with Avenida de la Playa itself as part of its outdoor dining.

Bullock said “the landscape is kind of integral to the piece,” as a varied landscape with trees, greenery and the ocean is desirable, along with access to electrical power.

Finding such a place in La Jolla will be difficult, said Emerson, who considers Kellogg Park inappropriate for a summer installation given the volume of people who go there.

La Jollan Patrick Ahern encouraged installation planners to find a way to put “Reflexion” at Kellogg Park, calling it “a real benefit … that created art in [Scripps] Park.”

But LJSA board member Mary Coakley Munk cautioned against it: “With the amount of traffic and vandalism that we have in Kellogg Park currently, you’re probably fortunate that it didn’t go there. … I would be afraid it would be seriously damaged.”

Air pollution

Members of the La Jolla Shores Association meet July 13 online.

(Elisabeth Frausto)

LJSA also heard a presentation on ways air pollution is monitored in the region from Melina Meza, public information officer for the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District.

The discussion was a follow-up to a September presentation by LJSA board member Meinrat Andreae, who is also an atmospheric chemist with UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography. During the September discussion, Andreae said pollution from beach fires at The Shores often exceeds World Health Organization standards for healthy air.

He said July 13 that air pollution levels in The Shores are still a concern.

The Air Pollution Control District is regulated by the California Air Resources Board and reports to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Meza said.

The San Diego County APCD is one of 35 such districts in the state. Its key program areas are air quality monitoring, planning and rule development, engineering, compliance, grants and incentives, and environmental justice, Meza said.

“We investigate odors, asbestos, dust, smoke, unpermitted businesses or operations, truck idling and gas facilities, among various other issues,” she said.

The district operates several air quality monitoring stations throughout the county, though none is currently on the coast. The closest to La Jolla is in Kearny Mesa.

Monitoring locations are based on data showing “the areas that are most impacted,” Meza said.

Also, there are constraints to placing equipment in La Jolla, she said, since La Jolla’s land belongs to the city of San Diego. The other monitors are on county land, she said.

She encouraged residents to email concerns about air quality to apcdcomp@sdapcd.org.

Andreae said he checks pollution measurements using “publicly available monitoring stations” through the company Purple Air.

“EPA has recognized these monitors as a complement to their own network of stations,” he said. “They have, in fact, provided calibrations and correction equations to convert the measurements with these monitors to those made by EPA regulatory monitors.”

Andreae said a map of available Purple Air monitors shows air pollution in The Shores is often quite high.

Since the city, not the county, has jurisdiction over the La Jolla coastline, Meza said the Air Pollution Control District might start a process to weigh in on the effect of beach fires on air quality if asked by LJSA members during public comments at a future APCD board meeting. ◆