Monday, 2 March 2026

Monday Murals -- Mysterious Geisha

I'm taking part today in
Monday Murals hosted by Sami.


This beautiful and mysterious geisha was painted on a
commercial building in my city of Edmonton, Alberta.
I took this photo quite a few years ago. Alas, she has
since been painted over and no longer exists.

With her intense gaze focused on us, is she the one who
controls "Love & Longevity"? I believe that is
the Red String of Fate wound about her wrist and hand.

Unfortunately, I did not make note of the artist's name.
It's possible the name appears in the large graffiti tag
at the bottom of the mural, but I can't really decipher it
(does it say "Glitz Crew" perhaps?)

Anyway, I miss seeing this mural. It was a favourite of mine.

[Photo © Debra She Who Seeks, 2012]

32 comments:

Marie Smith said...

It was a beauty! You are keeping it alive!

Mitchell Block said...

A shame that such beautiful art was painted over.

Liz Hinds said...

these artists are amazing, aren't they?

Tom said...

...Debra, this is fabulous and I look forward to see what you find as spring arrives.

gluten Free A_Z Blog said...

What a gorgeous colorful mural. Too bad they painted over it..

Bob said...

What a shame they painted over it. It was quite beautiful.

Travel said...

There is something ephemerial about outdoor murals, they come and go, they are fleeting, impressive, then fade away like we do.

whkattk said...

Murals don't last very long around here....

Ms. Moon said...

There is a LOT going on in that mural. The artist had a busy mind and quite a bit of talent, too.

Duni said...

Wow, I love this mural in grafitti style! Pity it's no longer there.

sirkkis said...

Beautiful mural, indeed. Sure it consists of the great message 👍🏼🎭

Violetta said...

Oh you have found beautiful murals too - although it´s some years ago. But what was beautiful stays beautiful. Have a good time and thanks for your always so kind visit to my blog.
Violetta

DVArtist said...

Wonderful mural. So glad you have photos of her now that it is painted over.

Mae Travels said...

I have a very dissident view about murals: they are destined to be replaced. Surely the artists know that this is an ephemeral work, and that exposure to the elements will efface the work even if no one paints over them or tears down the wall where they are painted. Even Leonardo da Vinci’s famous murals in Florence — The Battle of Anghiari (1505) — were painted over!

Shammickite said...

I wonder what the chap with the paintbrush was thinking as that lovely geisha image gradually disappeared.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ Mae Travels -- Yes, I think you're right but it's still sad to see favourite ones disappear!

Bill said...

It's a beauty! Glad you got a photo of it when it was still there.

Mary Kirkland said...

That's really nice.

Sixpence Notthewiser said...

Love graffiti.
Only downside of these murals? Too ephemeral. I think the artist's name is there. I am not on my iPad, so I cannot zoom in close enough....
He could be on Insta...
XOXO

Linda's Relaxing Lair said...

What a fabulous mural, Debra! Thank you so much for sharing.

Iris Flavia said...

Glad you at least took a photo - she is beautiful. I still have pics of my Dad meeting Geishas in Japan. He was invited by watch-maker Seiko (in the 70´s).

DB Stewart said...

I love Edmonton's murals. I hope for more. My favourite mural is of Leonard Cohen in Montreal.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ DB Stewart -- Yes, I've seen photos of that mural -- it is indeed fabulous and a great tribute of one of Montreal's favourite sons.

Barbara said...

I admit some old brick buildings are beautiful and should not be drawn on, but I'm sure the majority of them would look much better with a drawing like this. Exquisite.

River said...

It's a beautiful mural and now kept alive in perpetuity on this blog, though the original is long gone.

Kirk said...

To my untrained eyes it appears to have been strongly influenced by manga.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ Kirk -- You could well be right!

Kirk said...

To my untrained eyes it appears to have been strongly influenced by manga.

Rade said...

Very cool!

Sami said...

What a pity a lot of murals get painted over. This is certainly a lovely one. Thanks for participating in Monday Murals Debra.

CaptainKirt said...

Did a bit of AI assisted research and the artist is apparently Curly YIA.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

@ CaptainKirt -- Thank you so much for that info, you research whiz!