Undersea Nemo Mural has Surprising Models

It’s official name, according to the artist Joe Pagac, is “Harboring Beauty”. Around Tucson, however, it’s known as the Finding Nemo mural. It takes up about half the wall space on the 191 Toole Ave. building and a seemingly unrelated mural (or murals) fills the other half of the space facing a parking lot. More about this second mural, below.

The faces on the sea gods depicted on the mural are incredibly realistic because Joe Pagac used local homeless people as his models. The two older figures looks as if they have lived for centuries. And each of the three gods shelters a Nemo-like fish guarding it from the circling, shadowy sharks. (The figure immediately below I think of as Poseidon.)

Most of Pagac’s murals have a whimsical feeling about them. This mural is a far more serious comment on homelessness, only slightly disguised by the playful image of Pixar’s Nemo. For unknown reasons this Joe Pagac mural is unsigned. Perhaps to avoid copyright infringement letters from animation studio’s lawyers about using the Nemo image?

Now about the mural or murals on other half of the long wall. I think the black and white image of two men and the Movie Theater marquee are one mural. Looking closely, it is apparent that words previously written on the marquee have been painted over and “Black Lives Matter” added recently as part of a blitz of new BLM murals downtown.

I haven’t been able to find much more information about this mural(s) or the two men depicted. Perhaps someone will let me know who they are. Like the three men in the Nemo mural, these two look as if they were painted from life or from photographs.

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Tucson news: The Pima County Recorder’s office is already counting the ballots mailed for the Presidential election tomorrow. Arizona has been doing vote by mail elections for a decade.