At 100-ft. long and 30-ft. wide, this is one of the most hidden public art projects in San Diego. It is located in a space that is within walking distance of a major transit center and a major tourist attraction. While it can be spotted from the I-8 freeway, all you would tend to notice is the huge commercial building that houses it. No one knows that a thing of beauty is suspended in the Caltrans building in Old Town.

Many decades ago, Caltrans was housed in a non-descript two or three story building that looked like, well, a state building. In other words, no frills and very bureaucratic looking. But, a few years back, Caltrans decided to reinvent its old state buildings and managed to incorporate exciting architectural elements in both San Diego and Los Angeles.

Most locals know that San Diego's Old Town highlights a lot of what is old about San Diego, hence the name. In fact, you can find many things in Old Town unique to San Diego. But, there are also new things in Old Town to see. Walk a block to the north of Old Town, and you will find an award-winning public art project in the courtyard of the Caltrans District 11 Headquarters in San Diego.

Nexus Eucalyptus

We won't drive you up the wall with details. The first thing you will see as you enter the structure from the east side are the large gates that are hinged to swing wide open to welcome you into an inner exterior corridor. As soon as you walk through the gates, look up! Just continue walking in the corridor and carefully look up to see how the sculpture continues its winding path through the two Caltrans buildings. Be aware that you are not the only one around, there can be human congestion. Be sure to look ahead so you don't crash into someone with pocket protectors.

Let us tell you more about this artistic rendering of what is considered the mundane. The artist drove a hard bargain in selling his innovative concept. Beauty, as you know, is in the eye of the beholder. "Nexus Eucalyptus," is carved from dead and diseased eucalyptus trees and hangs from a 250-foot trellis to create a huge and beautiful mobile of grand scale. The $300,000 commissioned art project, "Nexus Eucalyptus," creates an inventive intersection of wooden lines, both curved and straight, creating the feel of transportation corridors with the sense of movement that we all get from freeways and highways.

And faithful SanDiegoTravelTips.com "Tip of the Week" readers may remember the whimsical singing bridge over SR-94. To refresh your memory, the artist/designer of the singing bridge, Roman de Salvo, is the driving force and genius behind this beautiful "Nexus Eucalyptus."

What we're driving at is when you go see "Nexus Eucalyptus" just imagine how much work went into engineering the balancing and installation of this very creative, sustainable, and natural work of art.

Map-Caltrans 4050 Taylor Street, San Diego