Coronado's Love of Tiles

The Artistic Legacy of Kirstin Green

In Coronado, where art and community spirit intertwine, Kirstin Green is the personification of creativity and dedication to her hometown. Kirstin was born in Coronado in 1976, her mom worked at Sharp Coronado Hospital for five decades and her dad served as the head running coach at Coronado High School from the mid-1990s.

Known for her stunning mosaic installations adorning public spaces, Kirstin's passion for enhancing the beauty of Coronado knows no bounds. She once jokingly (or I initially thought it was a joke) commented that her goal was to create beautiful mosaics on every available wall in town and with five pieces in the City of Coronado Public Art collection and more than that on the Coronado High School campus Kirstin is doing a good job of reaching her goal. Her public installations can be viewed and enjoyed at Spreckels Park, the Coronado Municipal Golf Course, The Cays Tennis Court, and Sharp Coronado Hospital. In addition, she has completed dozens of installations for private residences and businesses.

Kirstin installed her first public art piece, “Concert in the Park,” a three-panel mosaic with assistance from Coronado High School Art students. This was the first of many collaborations with Laura Hill, the amazing art teacher who has been teaching there since 1995. Completed in 2002, the piece has been the backdrop for where the community gathers to picnic, play, and hear music. It is an integral part of a Coronado summer, and the theme of music and community was ideal for Kirstin Green’s first collaboration with Coronado High School students as well as her foray into the world of public art.

In 2003 she created a bench in the Cays near the Coronado Cays Tennis Courts. “Silver Strand Sunset '' pays homage to the amazing sunsets visible on the Strand. Five years later Kirstin created another bench, but this one a bit more elaborate, housed in the Brian Bent Memorial Aquatic Complex. “Water” captures the color and shapes of water while providing an area for seating in the complex. This was Kirstin’s third public art installation.

In 2010 Green was once again commissioned by the City of Coronado to create “Par for the Course” in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Coronado Municipal Golf Course which opened in 1957. Kirstin used multi-colored tesserae (individual pieces of stained glass) to create this mosaic. It is located just outside the main entrance to the Coronado Golf Course Clubhouse. Each tessera radiates out from the golf ball and creates a feeling of action. The mosaic features a ceramic golf ball made from a cast of a real golf ball.

In 2017, Coronado built a new restroom in Spreckels Park, and at that time the original mosaic was cleaned and updated with a new frame and lighting. In addition, Kirstin returned to Spreckels to install two new mosaics on the exterior of the new permanent restroom building. “Zinnia” and “Hibiscus” designs were inspired by the annual Coronado Flower Show held every spring in the park since 1922. Fifteen years later, and with several installations under her belt, Kirstin made this mosaic using smalti, a traditional Italian glass. Considered one of the most beautiful of all mosaic materials because of its brilliance and range of colors, it is made according to a process developed by Byzantine craftsmen. Green had never worked with smalti on this scale before and the learning curve was significant. But her results were exquisite and were unveiled in time for the annual Flower Show in the spring of 2017.

Before and in between the work for the city Kirstin has stayed remarkably busy teaching her craft to students while installing several new mosaics on the Coronado High School campus often in collaboration with her fellow art teachers including Laura Hill, Eric Rempe and Kelly Telebrico. Mosaics on the CHS campus include “The Sweet Piece,” (2006), “Math in Nature,”(2007), “Jazz Hands,” (2016), and “The River of Giving, (2011), a mosaic that continues to grow as it honors donors and Islander families who contribute to the Coronado Unified School District. “The Universe” (2009) is an elaborate, colorful, overhead mosaic inspired by the quote “Somewhere, Something Incredible is Waiting to be Known,” associated with Carl Sagan.

Her latest school project was “Roots of Wonder,” (2019-2022) created before, during and after the Covid 19 Pandemic. It is a multimedia labor of love with references to forty novels. It is truly a tribute to perseverance, creativity, literature, and imagination. Kirstin took some time in 2017-2020 to complete a master’s degree program for Expressive Arts Therapy. Coincidentally that year Sharp Coronado Hospital CEO, Susan Stone reached out to her to do a 9’ x 9’ mural for a new healing garden. She agreed to do it and saw a great opportunity to host gatherings at the hospital to hear what healing meant to people in the community. Green felt that the community would know best what healing looked like and she wanted the mural to reflect their experiences. Through this arts based research, “Healing” was created for the hospital she was born in and that her mother worked in for 50 years. She commented that this was “a true piece of community art.”

Her latest endeavor is the Coronado Cays Tile Project. It reveals yet another facet of her artistic talent and commitment to community enrichment. This project presented Kirstin with a unique challenge and an opportunity to expand her artistic repertoire once again. Tasked with revitalizing the aging ceramic tiles adorning the walls of Kingston Villas in the Cays, Kirstin embarked on a journey into the realm of hand-glazed tiles, a departure from her traditional mosaic work. Amidst her many accomplishments, Kirstin's latest work unveils a chapter of artistic innovation and community collaboration that demonstrates her ability to create what others can only envision.

Drawing inspiration from traditional techniques like wax resist, Kirstin delved into the intricate art of Cuerda Seca, infusing each tile with vibrant colors and timeless designs. Cuerda Seca, or “dry cord” in Spanish, is a tilemaking technique used when creating colored ceramic tiles. This technique was developed in the 15th century to prevent colored glazes from running together, allowing for the creation of intricate colored tile designs. Despite the steep learning curve and challenges inherent in the process, Kirstin's unwavering dedication, vision and collaboration with the Coronado Cays Homeowners Association yielded remarkable results.

Her meticulous approach to the craft, from designing and refining the patterns to painstakingly executing each step of the glazing process, reflects her commitment to excellence and her fearlessness in learning and mastering time-tested artistic techniques. Through countless firings and meticulous touch-ups, Kirstin transformed ordinary terracotta tiles into exquisite works of art, breathing new life into the community spaces they adorn.

The culmination of her efforts can be witnessed in the revamped entry signage of Coronado Cays, an acknowledgment to Kirstin's vision and craftsmanship. At five feet by seven feet, the sign welcomes visitors with a blend of tradition and modernity, a symbol of community pride and identity.

Beyond the Kingston Villas, Kirstin's artistic journey continues as she ventures into creating custom tiles for Grand Caribe Isle, crafting each piece with nautical motifs that pay homage to Coronado's coastal heritage. With each project, Kirstin's passion for preserving the town's aesthetic legacy shines through, enriching the lives of residents and visitors alike.

As Kirstin looks towards the future, her collaboration with the Coronado Cays Homeowners Association demonstrates the transformative power of art in fostering community bonds and revitalizing shared spaces. Her tireless dedication and artistic ingenuity not only beautify the town but also inspire a sense of belonging and pride among its residents.

In a world where art goes beyond mere aesthetics to become a catalyst for community engagement and revitalization, Kirstin Green's mosaic masterpieces create an enduring legacy of creativity and collaboration in Coronado. She creates vibrant, beautiful public art, leaving an indelible mark on the heart of her beloved hometown.

So, in your travels around Coronado, if you find yourself captivated by the mosaic murals or hand-glazed tiles adorning its residential streets, public buildings, schools and parks, take a moment to appreciate the artistic vision and dedication of Kirstin Green, a true creator of Coronado's artistic heritage and community spirit.

And if you see a blank wall . . .

For more information or images of her work visit: kirstingreen.com

Hibiscus (2017)