Local artist paints Joe Musgrove mural and meets the pitcher

It’s not often an artist gets to meet the subject of his work on the spur of the moment.

Yet, that is exactly what happened with Peninsula artist Jack Stricker, who glanced up, while painting a mural of San Diego Padres pitcher Joe Musgrove on the side of BBQ House Bar & Grill at 5025 Newport Ave., only to find Musgrove himself examining his work.

“It was about two minutes after I was done and I was biting into my second bit of fried chicken,” noted Stricker, of his unexpected meeting with Musgrove. “He said, ‘Who is that guy on the mural? That’s a nice picture.’ And it was him. He had just randomly come in to get some food: It was perfect timing.”

Stricker and the Padres’ starting pitcher connected right away. “It was really nice meeting Musgrove, he’s a local guy too, lives in Point Loma,” noted Stricker adding, “We hit it off. He was kind and respectful. He is a great guy just doing his thing.”

After they met, Stricker said he and Musgrove “fist-bumped, had a drink, and hung out for a couple of minutes.”

Stricker, a 35-year-old artist who has been painting murals in Ocean Beach and Point Loma for the past 15 years, is currently doing one depicting S.E.S Portuguese Hall of San Diego in Shelter Island. He said it took him three or four days to do the Musgrove mural he was commissioned to paint by the owners of the barbecue restaurant.

Stricker discussed how he broke into painting murals. “I pretty much got into it while skateboarding through graffiti,” said the artist, who graduated from SDSU after studying painting and printmaking. “I wanted to fuse the two – oil and graffiti spray painting – together. That has been my jam for the last 10 years.”

Of his Musgrove mural, Stricker noted: “He’s just doing a bad-ass stare over his shoulder. When people walk by, it looks like he is looking at them pretty much. I wanted to draw everyone in with his eyes and his pitching stare.”

Concerning his murals’ themes, Stricker said, “I do a lot of ocean-inspired painting and murals. But I’m pretty flexible with that. My main thing is to try and get as many murals as I can up around the Peninsula where I grew up. I completely love this place. I’m doing two huge walls right now with blue-and-white Portuguese tiles down on Shelter Island.”

After that is finished, Stricker plans “to do a couple of murals down near Petco Park for a couple of breweries that I know. That will be a lot of fun.”

Asked about his artistic technique, Stricker replied: “I use lots of mediums, everything I can get my hands on pretty much. I use brushes and spray cans. I try to fuse the two, those two mediums, together.

To view examples of Stricker’s work, check out his Instagram @jackstrickerart.

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