Desire is a public art installation located in the Willow Glen District of San Jose. It is one of 3…read morepieces purchased as part of a downtown beautification effort. Desire, created in 2014, is the work of San Jose artist Jeff Owen. From the artist "My sculptures combine the past and the present. I have a deep affinity toward the materials I work with, a wonderful sense of emotion, feelings, and dreams for what the material was once used for and now what it will become in my hands. These feelings direct me on my path. My processes emerge with patterns. Taking one piece of steel; adding to it, deleting from it, constantly discovering the metal's unique appeal. When a sculpture encompasses all of my creative energy, it is finished. My technique is brute force, decide-at-the-moment. The interesting shapes of metal; the patterns, textures, and grains; all entice me. I am fascinated with form. My aspiration is to create sculpture that is completely unique; that no one has done before. I resist conformity and mass production. My art is as individual as I am." The sculpture is both complex and simple with the rust of the corten setting off the red orb in the center. Desire is best part of a larger trip and there are plenty of shops and restaruants in easy proximity to it.

If 4-6 people are going, might as well get a family membership for a year, it's the same price or…read moreless. Great collection. Takes a few hours to see everything. Recommend downloading the app ahead of time, the audio tour was pretty neat. Gardens are nice too, and open to the public. There's a small parking lot if no street parking's available.

Great museum with friendly staff and interactive exhibits! They do a great job of making each…read moresection super interactive. For example, they have a place where you can play ancient Egyptian games with friends, exhibits that require guests to push buttons / ask questions, and even a passport book where people can collect stamps and write notes! It doesn't just have to be for kids - I was entertained as an adult doing these activities They have a lot of artifacts, model replicas, and even a mock tomb area. It was great for being able to 'visualize' what everything would have looked like back then. It did seem like quite a few artifacts were casts of the real thing though. There was plenty to see and we spent a few hours there. The staff are also very friendly and passionate about the subject. Even when we were just looking at exhibits, they told us about different facts / activities that the museum was hosting. Outside, there was plenty of parking and even a garden you could visit. I really enjoyed coming here and highly recommend visiting if you get the chance!

Nice metro library in a busy and popular part of west San Jose near the Rose Garden. It's not very…read morebig, but it's quite nicely designed. There's only no parking lot, so you have to park in the garage under the library on the ground floor and there's only 33 spots according to SJPL's website. That's quite limited. Thankfully, the day we came we found a spot pretty easily. The entrance is pretty impressive from the garage to the library. There's a huge glass rose sculpture that's suspended in midair, sure made me feel a little uneasy, haha, what if it comes crashing down. All kidding aside, the library is on the second floor only, it's got a kids area, a teen room, a tech room, a meeting/study room, and then a couple of bigger open areas for quite study, reading, and computer use. There's also a book sales by their Friends of the Library that's pretty decent, although some of the books were really old. All in all, this is a pretty good library. We came on a weekend afternoon so it was actually relatively calm and quiet. I see some reviews that say it gets rowdy here, but I didn't see that on my visit. A good library and architecturally unique that I might visit again.

I love the San Jose Public Library! This is a smaller branch library connected to the larger…read moresystem, so you can have any materials held and transferred for pick-up here (the holds pick-up section is by the entryway upstairs.) There is a good selection of books and DVDs, with special kids and teens sections, though, because it's not the main library you may not find an exact title here unless you place a hold. I enjoy browsing and seeing what seems interesting. Some other benefits of an SJPL library card is access to County and State Parks passes, free tickets to local museums (called Discover and Go), access to Libby (audiobooks, e-books) and Hoopla (movies, TV), and the ability to request books not in their collection from across California using the Link+ program. You can apply for a library card here, for full access bring an ID and proof of residency. They have fun card choices, too! I've used this particular library when I needed to work outside of the house. There is a rentable study room and a computer lab room, plus some seating in the adult section and by the computers in the center of the library. It's not the most conducive to quiet work at tables, but it does the job in a pinch. Some might find the crowd after the nearby school is out too loud for their ideal library experience. A pair of headphones is recommended for quiet study. There is also a Friends of the Library book sale at all times in a small room in the adult section. You can pick up books and DVDs for all ages for 50 cents to a few dollars, so I always check it out. Worth mentioning is the parking garage on the bottom level of the library. I've always been able to find a spot, but it's not huge. There's a doorway from the garage to an elevator and stairs, the library is on the top floor and the special events room is on the bottom floor.

Great community center! Started to bring the kids here so we have a quiet place to finish homework…read moreand study. They love how they can reserve a private room and use the many computers to research their projects. The librarians are always so kind and helpful they appear to really enjoy helping the community. Yay library adults!

I used the library in the past and had an okay experience, staff wasn't particularly friendly that…read moretime. I recall the female staff gossiping to each other in the main library area. Today at ~4:50PM I walked in, and immediately on seeing me coming, the female security guard who sits inside in the front abruptly stood up, quickly walked to the staff area door inside, and as I was walking past, made fun of me and my demeanor according to her brain. She made a loud "UUUGGHH" sound (like some one who is sad/ mentally slow) to another female staff in the staff area, and that staff immediately repeated the sound back to her, making fun of me as I passed by. I will give the complaint to the management, but I am worried that it may be a whole staff thing. Later I saw that other woman staff looking at me as she went to lock something in my line of sight, and then later she was gossiping to the front desk staff and talking about some in an unpleasant and immature manner, making noises at one point. Then, after I posted this review, and as I was walking around again looking for a table spot (of which there are few, it is a small library), the staff was standing all together at the front table gossiping more, then looking at me and making comments. Maybe this is something that young female visitors experience. I came to expect a secure and peaceful environment, where I would focus on my work. Unfortunately, this experience did not meet that standard.

A mural artist recommended this art supply store for an art project I'm working at home. It is…read moresmall store that shares its space with a glass art store. Good ideaThe young man behind the to share the cost of rent. Please note that the variety of supplies is limited to paints, mostly spray paints for art projects. The plus is the nice and knowledgeable young man who works there. I told him my general idea for my art project and he gave me some good ideas on how to implement it.

We followed the directions to the Bascom Ave address. We drove by four times and didn't see it. I…read morethink they are gone. If the place is hidden, someone please post how to find it.

Lots of fun! So much bro open broken glass! My son lived it! They provide all the protective heat…read more Would recommend using their boots instead of your own tennis shoes.

Very therapeutic! Fun way to relieve aggression. Got to break a furniture board while listening to…read moreQueen!

Re: Summer CMP camp - My child LOVED this day camp. She…read morespent two weeks learning how to sing, dance and act. The camp culminates with a show at the end of the camp. It's amazing what they can do in just two short weeks. This camp fed my child's creativity and sparked a love for performing. Great!! staff, easy registration and communication made this one of the highlights of our summer. We will definitely be back!

My family and I frequently visit this theatre for all different plays and school events. We love…read morethe energy of the staff and how the plays are organized. The enthusiasm is just mind blowing. Very clean and well maintained theatre for the young students and parents to enjoy . A big shout out to all the staff and sponsors for this theater in San jose .

I took the intro to stained glass here. I've been burned by other maker classes where you kind of…read morewatch the instructor do everything, but we got to be very hands on. The only shared equipment was the grinders, and there were 6 for our class of 10. There are competitor classes in the area that are cheaper, but I was very happy with my experience here. Parking is easy because there's a dedicated lot. It's a huge makerspace, so there was an open mic night, a photography session, and welding all happening in other places around the warehouse. What a cool environment! Khaled was a very energetic, kind, and supportive instructor. I'm honestly not that pleased with the quality of my work and would love to try again now that I have more experience. I'd come back for an intermediate class, but their website doesn't show any.

I took a blacksmithing class on a Saturday morning. The location for the class is in their hot shop…read morein the back. Entrance is off of Julian vs the Alameda for the rest of the studios. Area was clean and spacious and we had 4-5 hrs of safety talk, demos, and making our own knife from a piece of steel. The instructor was great and if we needed help he'll provide it and overall had a good time. They did provide water but if you want to you can bring your own beverages and a snack since it's from 10am to 2pm. Had a great time and hope to come back for more classes!

Growing up in San Jose, I feel like I took advantage of being so close to the Rose Garden. It was a…read morespot to walk to, around, etc. I was in town for Mother's Day and took a walk to Rose Garden after the festivities, around sunset. It was a great time. So many roses in bloom in just about every color. It was packed with people having picnics, taking pictures, walking around but still easy enough to find your own quiet space. Such a pocket of beauty in the neighborhood.

I last visited here 8 years ago, and I was so glad to finally return!…read more The weather was quite hot for July and I worried there might be limited roses left to see, I was gladly surprised, there are so many beautiful varieties of roses blooming absolutely everywhere! The city is doing a fantastic job maintaining the garden. It is such a lovely spot in San Jose!