55 Stockton Street
Union Square / Market Street
This building, designed by Heller Manus Architects in 1989 stands at a very busy corner one block off of Union Square.
If you look closely you can see 14 figures drumming or holding spheres.
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According to the Smithsonian Institute, these figures were done by Tom Otterness. Mr. Otterness has a difficult history with the City of San Francisco. In 1977, at the age of 25 Otterness bought a shelter dog, tied it to a fence and shot it on camera. He displayed the footage in an art exhibit in a constant loop and called it “Shot Dog Film.” In 2011, when this was discovered, Otterness’ contract for $750,000 worth of work for the new subway terminal, was cancelled. You can read about the controversy here.
Tom Otterness was born in 1952 in Witchita, Kansas. He is an American sculptor whose works adorn parks, plazas, subway stations, libraries, courthouses and museums.
His style is often described as cartoonish and cheerful, but also political. His aesthetic can be seen as a riff on capitalist realism. He studied at the Arts Students League in New York in 1973, the Independent Study Program at the Whitney Museum of Art in New York. and was a member of the Collaborative Arts Project in 1977.
The pieces at 55 Stockton Street are of concrete.
Most people wouldn’t even notice these figures. It is so much fun when you discover something like this. I don’t go along with the dog incident at all.
Love the details in this building. Neat looking figures.