Untitled B-24 Mural

Untitled B-24 Mural

Nancy Hadley, 2021

This mural was painted on the exterior side of one of the Quonset huts off Costa Mesa’s 17th Street, Nancy Hadley painted a B-24 Liberator bomber. The bomber depiction is a nod to the orgin of the Quonset hut which was used for housing and training on the Santa Ana Army Air Base. The base was deactivated in 1946 and the land was annexed by Costa Mesa.

Nancy Hadley, who operates a studio out of one the Quonset huts, researched the history of the B-24. The plane on the side of the hut only is about half the size of the actual bomber. Nancy added her own personal touch to the work. The tiny pin-up girl on the side of the nose of the plane was inspired by her mother, Shirley Walker who grew up during the 1940s.