A Stroll Through Main Street

Artist: Erik Orejel

“A Stroll Through Main Street”  2022

Location: South West corner of W. 1st. St. and S. Main St. intersection

“A stroll through Main St. is what comes to mind when had thought about this piece. Thinking back to my early teen years, I used to blade or rollerblade quite a bit throughout downtown Santa Ana along with my fellow friend skaters at that time. Besides downtown having some great skating spots that I looked forward to skating at, I was also looking forward to seeing some of the old buildings and homes that were still around from the early Santa Ana years. There is a fascination that I gravitate to when it comes to the early 1900’s. Whether it’s a picture, the architectural design of a building, a car/truck, a soda bottle, a can of old tomato paste, or an old packaging wooden crate for fruit, I can’t help but to stop and admire the beauty in it. It’s fascinating to know that these things once were created and used by people way before I was born or even before my parents were born. Time has passed since but knowing that underneath many of these newly renovated buildings and streets along with the new ones currently being built, the original Santanero’s once roamed these streets. The soul and labor of the original Santanero’s still remain if you pay close attention to your surroundings when you’re in Downtown Santa Ana. This piece that I created was intended to represent those cool classical cars from the early 1900’s that once roamed throughout the city of Santa Ana in its early years, along with some design work that I feel like represents the structural design that went along some of the buildings and floors of downtown. The number 1886 just represents the year that Santa Ana established itself as Orange County’s government powerbase.” – Erik Orejel