Virginia Court Motel Diver

neon sign

West Hollywood Aquatic and Recreation Center, 647 N San Vicente Blvd.

The Virginia Court Motel Diver is a replica of a sign that was originally built in 1950 for the Virginia Court Motel in Meridian, Mississippi. The owner of the motel, Ike J. Davis, named the property after his daughter. In 2000, the motel was demolished, and the original sign was rescued by Mike Gambone. In 2002, the Diver was shipped to Mark “The Neon Man” Jamison in Virginia for restoration and display. In 2006 the Diver was restored again by Flexflume Sign Company. And, then finally in 2008, the diver was loaned to the Museum of Neon Art in Glendale, CA for display at their temporary location in Downtown Los Angeles.

The West Hollywood's neon diver is a reproduction of the original sign, fabricated by Federal Heath, and was included in the City’s on route - 66 lights exhibition on Santa Monica Boulevard in 2010 in collaboration with the Museum of Neon Art. The neon sign is a part of the City’s Urban Art Collection and is installed outside of the entrance to the Aquatic and Recreation Center at West Hollywood Park.

The Diver's form was inspired by female Olympic divers training for the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. These Olympians were training in Portland, Oregon when artist Florenz Clark saw them and used them as inspiration for Jantzen's marketing campaigns. The company began distributing "Red Diving Girl" cutouts and windshield decals. The diving girl had become such an effective brand-recognition device that an independent trade market survey conducted in 1931 indicated that the icon was the seventh best known pictorial trade mark in the United States.(credit, credit)

West Hollywood exhibition history:

• 2010 on route 66 exhibition on Santa Monica Boulevard
• 2015 647 N San Vicente Blvd, West Hollywood Park
• 2016-2021 8400 block of Santa Monica Boulevard
• 2022 West Hollywood Aquatic and Recreation Center (final location) 

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For questions, contact Marcus Mitchell, Public Art Administrator at (323) 848-3122 or mmitchell@weho.org. For people who are deaf or hard of hearing, please call, TTY: (323) 848-6496. To learn more information about the City of West Hollywood and its arts programs visit www.weho.org/arts.