A beloved sandcastle sculptor has been banned from working outside a luxury beachfront hotel due to “political messages” in his artwork.
Bill Pavlacka claimed he was told to leave his spot outside the historic Hotel del Coronado in San Diego County after 20 years for using a Mark Twain quote in one of his pieces.
He previously made other works containing the phrases “I love democracy” and “I love freedom of speech,” which he admitted he was warned about over the last year.
Pavlacka claimed the hotel also accused him of drinking on the job and even asked to inspect his cooler while he worked, but he insisted it was the Twain quote that was “the last straw.”
The quote read: “Get your facts first, then you can distort them as you please.”
Pavlacka said he got a tap on the shoulder from the Del manager Nick, who dragged him to an upstairs office to reprimand him.
He shared a letter with CBS 8 allegedly from the hotel addressing “conduct that violated policies”, which include “political or controversial messages.”
He told the Coronado Times: “I couldn’t believe it. I was just thinking in my head, what is this about? I love doing my art. This is what I do. It’s fun and people appreciate it.”
Pavlacka continued: “He told me this the final straw. That this message was totally unacceptable.”
He added: “I thought Mark Twain was a loved American writer. I actually thought the quote was kind of funny. And they didn’t say that any hotel guests complained.”
The Twain comment is believed to originate from the author’s conversations in Rudyard Kipling’s 1899 work From Sea to Sea: Letters of Travel.
But its meaning today has been twisted for political purposes – to claim that what someone says is the truth may just be them manipulating it to suit their agenda.
Pavlacka, a former construction worker known as The Sandcastle Man in the area, has created art in the same place for nearly 20 years – using a bucket, paintbrush and a plastic fork.
He does not work directly for the Del, but was on the section of beach it owns and has worked with staff on corporate events in the past.
He has become a popular figure, with locals furious at the hotel for banning him. Kimberly Weed told the Coronado Times: “Bill is hardworking and quiet and never have we ever seen him drinking.
“This is a huge loss for the people of San Diego, and everyone loves the Sandcastle Man. Bring him back and appreciate the joy it brings people from all over the world.”
Ken Fitzgerald added: “There is nothing controversial, much less offensive, about a quote from one of America’s greatest authors about the importance of truth and objective reality in our nation’s civic life.”
Pavlacka admitted he was devastated by the ban, but added: “I won’t give up, I’ll still build sandcastles. It may not be here, it will be somewhere.”
Hotel del Coronado did not directly address his claims. Its statement said: “We can confirm that Hotel del Coronado and The Sandcastle Man have parted ways effective February 5.”
