Public Art and Architecture from Around the World

An Ode to the Automobile

Posted by Cindy on July 7, 2014

Jul 072014

Mason and O’Farrell Streets Union Square The construction of the Downtown Center Garage, now the Mason O’Farrell Garage, harkens back to when the automobile was king. San Francisco now has a Transit First Policy which specifically gives priority to public transit and other alternatives to the private automobile as the means of meeting San Francisco’s transportation needs. Essentially this means that this garage would never have been built in today’s times. Built in 1953, and situated between Union Square and the then vital theater district, is was meant to augment the Union Square Parking Garage and contained 1,200 parking stalls. The Continue Reading

The Rialto Building

Posted by Cindy on July 2, 2014

Jul 022014

116 New Montgomery South of Market I became intrigued with this building when a friend showed me this Black and White photo in the lobby of the Rialto. (Note: the round building on the left is the Crossley building) The Rialto is an eight-story H-shaped plan with center light courts. It has a steel frame clad in brick and terra cotta. The eighth story is highly ornamented. The façade accommodated the lack of interior partition walls by providing a large space between the window mullions. This allowed partitions to be erected between the windows once floors were leased. Since the interior Continue Reading

Covering Construction

Posted by Cindy on June 23, 2014

Jun 232014

4th and Folsom South of Market This piece, sponsored by the SFAC, is by Randy Colosky. It is titled Ellipses in the Key of Blue. According to Randy’s Website: Ellipses is the Key of Blue is 140 ft. long x 8 ft. tall, digitally printed and drawing mounted on plywood. According to the sign on the wall next to the piece: Ellipsis in the Key of Blue is a temporary mural by Randy Colosky commissioned for the construction barricade at the site of the upcoming Central Subway Yerba Buena/Moscone Station. Colosky has worked in the building trades and is interested in Continue Reading

The Sundial at Ingleside Terrace

Posted by Cindy on June 17, 2014

Jun 172014

Entrada Court Ingleside Terrace What is now Ingleside Terraces was the southwestern most portion of San Miguel Rancho, bordered on the west by Rancho Laguna de la Merced. Rancho Laguna de la Merced and San Miguel Rancho were apparently the last of the Mexican “ranchos” to be incorporated in what we now know as San Francisco. The sundial was dedicated on October 10, 1913, with a rather spectacular event attended by 1500 people. According to the dedication brochure: “The ceremony attending the dedication of the sundial at Ingleside Terraces was one of rare delight. It took place at the Continue Reading

San Francisco Flower Market

Posted by Cindy on June 9, 2014

Jun 092014

San Francisco Flower Market 6th and Brannan SOMA With the face of San Francisco changing so very rapidly right now, I thought I would take a look at a block of buildings that has been a stalwart in the South of Market area serving an single industry, the San Francisco Flower Market. There are only 5 grower owned Flower Markets in the United States, and San Francisco is privileged to have one of those. A coalition of three ethnic groups founded the organizations that began the early San Francisco Flower Mart. Italian growers started the San Francisco Flower Growers Continue Reading

Thomas Houseago

Posted by Cindy on May 26, 2014

May 262014

Foundry Square 1st and Howard These two sculptures are by Thomas Houseago. The standing is titled Boy III and the one laying is Sleeping Boy. These are both white coated bronze. Photo Courtesy of the San Francisco Planning Commission This information about the artist comes from the San Francisco Planning Commission. Thomas Houseago was born in Leeds, England in 1972. In 1989 he received a grant to attend a local art school called the Jacob Kramer Foundation College, and later continued his studies at Central St. Martin’s College of Art in London. After finishing college in London, Houseago attended De Continue Reading

Sargent Johnson Tile’s the Maritime Museum

Posted by Cindy on May 11, 2014

May 112014

Sargent Johnson Tile's the Maritime Museum

Maritime Museum Aquatic Park This 14′ x 125′ glazed tile mural was created by Sargent Johnson in 1939 with the help of FAP (Federal Art Project) funds. The east end, however, is incomplete. When the project began, the building was to be a publicly-accessible bathhouse. However, shortly after it opened, the City leased a majority of the building to a group of private businessmen who operated it as the Aquatic Park Casino, limiting the public’s use of the building. Because of this, Johnson walked away from the project before he had completed this interior tile mosaic. Johnson has been in Continue Reading

Arelious Walker Stairway

Posted by Cindy on May 5, 2014

May 052014

Innes Avenue Bay View / Hunters Point This was the proposal that was written for the Call for Artists by the SFAC: The Arelious Walker Drive Stair replacement is a dynamic community project in partnership with the San Francisco Redevelopment Agency and the Department of Public Works to create ceramic tile mosaic steps on the Arelious Walker Drive extending uphill from Innes Avenue to Northridge Road in the Bay View Hunters Point neighborhood. The stairway provides a vital connection from an isolated low-income community to the India Basin Shoreline, the Bay Trail, Herons Head Park, and future development at Hunters Continue Reading

Exultadagio

Posted by Cindy on April 28, 2014

Apr 282014

San Francisco Conservatory of Music 50 Oak Street Civic Center Fulfilling the 1% for public art requirement for private development in San Francisco, this glass curtain wall of the music school includes 8” deep horizontal and vertical glass fins. A dichroic glass bevel at the front edge of each fin casts colored light across the building facade and the interior classrooms. The combination of sunlight and glass creates an ever changing composition of colored light throughout the day. The project is by Daniel Winterich. The glass was fabricated by Lenehan Architectural Glass Company. Interior Shot courtesy of Winterich Studios According Continue Reading

Reflections

Posted by Cindy on April 21, 2014

Apr 212014

680 Folsom Street SOMA East of 5th This piece by Gordon Huether is titled Reflections. It is part of the 1% for Art program in San Francisco. According to his website Gordon Huether was born in Rochester, NY in 1959, to German immigrant parents. Having dual citizenship in Germany and the U.S., Huether has spent much time traveling between both countries. Huether learned art composition and appreciation at an early age from his father. In the course of his initial artistic explorations, Huether was resolved to create a lasting impact on the world around him through the creation of large-scale works Continue Reading

Marine Firemen’s Union

Posted by Cindy on April 14, 2014

Apr 142014

240 2nd Street SOMA East of 5th The Pacific Coast Marine Firemen, Oilers, Watertenders and Wipers Association often referred to as the Marine Firemen’s Union is an American labor union of mariners working aboard U.S. flag vessels. The Marine Firemen’s Union is an affiliate union of Seafarers International Union.The union was formed in San Francisco, California in October, 1883 by firemen on coal-burning steamers. The building that holds this bas-relief was opened in 1957. Sculptor Olof Carl Malmquist designed the exterior bas-relief depicting marine firemen at work in a ship’s engine room. Olof Carl Malmquist (1894-1975) was born in Wallingford, Continue Reading

Rain Portal

Posted by Cindy on April 7, 2014

Apr 072014

SFPUC Building 525 Golden Gate Avenue Civic Center Rain Portal by Ned Kahn. Kahn has several pieces around San Francisco that you can read about here. Ned Kahn’s Rain Portal is located inside the lobby of the new Public Utilities building. Kahn’s Firefly graces the exterior of the building and you can read about it here. Rain Portal seeks to permeate an interior architectural wall with rain. Drops of water falling inside of an undulating polycarbonate membrane suggests the endless cycle of evaporation and precipitation. According to Kahn, “One of the paradoxes of the Rain Portal is that much of the entire history of Continue Reading

Peace

Posted by Cindy on March 31, 2014

Mar 312014

154 McAllister Street Civic Center According to Reka’s own website: James Reka – Melbourne, Australia Self-taught artist James Reka is a young contemporary Australian artist based in Berlin, Germany. His origins lie in the alleyways and train lines of Melbourne’s inner-suburbs where he spent over a decade refining his now-emblematic aesthetic. His character work has come to represent the beginnings of a new style of street art: clean, unique and not necessarily on the street (much to his mother’s joy). With influences in pop culture, cartoons and illustration, Reka’s style has become known for its fusion of high and low Continue Reading

Island Fever

Posted by Cindy on March 24, 2014

Mar 242014

50 8th Street SOMA/Civic Center I am a huge fan of Lady Mags and Amanda Lynn, and they have been on this website many times. I have also been walking by this piece for quite a while, admiring it and yet not quite having a chance to take pictures when it wasn’t blocked by cars. Finally, I had the chance, so here it is for your pleasure. According to Amanda Lynn’s website: Lady Mags and I (aka Alynn-Mags) recently completed the largest mural production we have ever created, and it all happened in less than 5 days! We were asked Continue Reading

Neptune Society Loses its Ruffle Shirt in the Loma Prieta Earthquake

Posted by Cindy on March 21, 2014

Mar 212014

Neptune Society Loses its Ruffle Shirt in the Loma Prieta Earthquake

729 South 2nd Street San Jose, California After the 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake the owners of this building came to work to find that the ornamentation on the front of the building had cracked, broken and in some cases fallen off. Upon further inspection they found that the building was a wood structure and that the original plaster ornamentation was simply nailed onto the wood structure and adhered with a bit of stucco. The front of the building needed to be completely restored. After taking field molds of the pieces, Michael H. Casey Designs brought the pieces back to their studio Continue Reading

McDowell Hall

Posted by Cindy on March 17, 2014

Mar 172014

McDowell Hall Franklin Street Fort Mason Marina District Fort Mason was originally called Fort Point San Jose According to a 2005 Historic American Buildings Survey Quarters 1 was built in 1877. General Irvin McDowell secured $9,998.74 from Congress to construct Quarters 1. This building was not named McDowell Hall until July 1958, in honor of the General. From the Report: “The original building plans have not yet been found. Quarters 1 was originally built for General Irvin McDowell, the commander of the Military Division of the Pacific, who was stationed at Fort Mason. Prior to 1877, the building Continue Reading

Atlantis and Mu

Posted by Cindy on March 13, 2014

Mar 132014

Maritime Museum Aquatic Park The interior of the museum is painted with a large mural by Hilaire Hiler, These murals depict the mythic continents of Atlantis and Mu. Many know the story of Atlantis, but Mu is not as well known. Mu is the name of a suggested lost continent whose concept and the name were proposed by 19th-century early Mayanist, archaeologist, photographer, traveler and writer, Augustus Le Plongeon Le Plongeon claimed that several ancient civilizations, such as those of Egypt and Mesoamerica, were created by refugees from Mu—which he located in the Atlantic Ocean. This concept was popularized and expanded by James Churchward, who asserted that Mu was once located Continue Reading

Spirogyrate

Posted by Cindy on March 11, 2014

Mar 112014

Terminal Three SFO Post TSA One weekend in January 2014 the city of San Francisco and the contractors opened the new Terminal Three to the public before it went live. I used the opportunity to capture as much public art as I could before you had to buy an airline ticket to get access to this part of the airport. The lighting in the terminal is pretty bad. There are big windows letting in lots of natural light, but the placement of the art made reflections, often the only thing, I was able to photograph. This piece by Eric Staller Continue Reading

Oscar Wilde

Posted by Cindy on March 7, 2014

Mar 072014

Merrion Square Dublin, Ireland This fun statue of Oscar Wilde, laying back without a care in the world is in Marrion Square, Dublin. He is facing his boyhood home just across the street at 1 Merrion Square. Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde, was born in nearby Westland Row in 1854. Wilde, who spent much of his adult life in England, is regarded as one of Ireland’s greatest literary figures. Until the late 1890s, owing to a gay affair which led to a prison sentence and disgrace, he was the darling of the upper classes, entertaining them with his considerable wit Continue Reading

Art under the waterfall

Posted by Cindy on February 27, 2014

Feb 272014

Blarney Castle – Rock Close Blarney County Cork, Ireland Puffballs from the Inside Out These ceramic pieces are by Michelle Maher. Maher is a Ceramic Artist who lives and works in Castleknock, Dublin. She graduated from N.U.I. Maynooth in 1996 with a Master’s degree, after studying English and History. According to her website: My ceramic sculptures are an exploration of colour and texture. Microscopic organisms often inspire my work and unusual plant forms and the science behind living things continues to fascinate me. My passion is for large-scale sculptural work and my pieces are mostly for outdoor exhibition. Symmetry by Michelle Continue Reading

Bog Wood

Posted by Cindy on February 26, 2014

Feb 262014

Blarney Castle Blarney County Cork, Ireland Blarney Castle has a fabulous curator. There is art work spread out throughout the grounds, and it is all so beautiful chosen for its particular site. This piece is by artist Pieter Koning. The pice is actually a 7000 year old piece of bog oak and is titled Organic Growth. Pieter has done many pieces out of bog wood and according to his website: Bog Wood is found in the Irish bogs where it has been preserved for 5,000 years or more. There are three types of Bog Wood: Oak, Yew and Pine. The wood Continue Reading

Famine

Posted by Cindy on February 23, 2014

Feb 232014

St. Stephen’s Green Dublin, Ireland There are many famine statues around Ireland, as well as the world, and this one is by Edward Delaney. Edward Delaney (1930–2009) was an Irish sculptor born in Claremorris in County Mayo in 1930. His best known works include the 1967 statue of Wolfe Tone and famine memorial at the northeastern corner of St Stephen’s Green in Dublin and the statue of Thomas Davis in College Green, opposite Trinity College Dublin. These are both examples of lost-wax bronze castings, his main technique during the 1960s and early 1970s. Delaney attended the National College of Art and Design in Dublin and, supported by the Irish Arts Council, studied casting in Germany. He represented Ireland at Continue Reading

Famine

Posted by Cindy on February 22, 2014

Feb 222014

Custom House Quay Dublin. Ireland This breathtaking group of statues is titled “Famine” and is by Rowan Gillespie. The accompanying plaque reads ” Unveiled by Her Excellency President Robinson – Commissioned and Donated to the people of Ireland by Norma Smurfit 29th May 1997″ “A procession fraught with most striking and most melancholy interest, wending its painful and mournful way along the whole line of the river to where the beautiful pile of the Custom house is distinguishable in the far distance……” Irish Quarterly Review, 1854 This location is a particularly appropriate and historic as one of the first voyages Continue Reading

Love and Marriage San Francisco Style

Posted by Cindy on February 14, 2014

Feb 142014

City Hall South Light Court In 2004, San Francisco General Hospital launched Hearts in San Francisco to generate revenue to support its numerous programs. This heart, in City Hall’s South light court, was part of that program. Designed by Deborah Oropallo the interlocking Heart, titled LOVE + MARRIAGE, was sponsored by Ambassador James Hormel and Timothy Wu. The heart displays the first names of many of the gay couples married in San Francisco in 2004. ARTIST’S THOUGHTS: “I wanted to make a heart that would not just be decorative, but somehow be relevant to what is going on in San Francisco Continue Reading

Sargent Johnson and Aquatic Park

Posted by Cindy on February 13, 2014

Feb 132014

Maritime Museum Aquatic Park This carved sandstone entry to the Maritime Museum was done as a Federal Arts Project (FAP) by Sargent Johnson. Johnson was in this site before for the log. This building was originally a New Deal WPA (Works Progress Administration) building called the Aquatic Park Bathhouse. Construction began in 1936 and the building was dedicated in 1939. It is a stunning Streamline Moderne style building and a focal point of the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park. Both the interior and exterior of the building contain art funded through the FAP. Johnson designed and carved this green Continue Reading

Judge James Seawell

Posted by Cindy on February 11, 2014

Feb 112014

Second Floor City Hall Civic Center The San Francisco Call ran this article on November 8, 1898: Judge James M. Seawell. No better nomination has been made by any party than that of Judge James M. Seawell, one of the Democratic candidates for Superior Judge. During the six years he has served in that capacity he has built up a reputation as a jurist that he may justly feel proud of. He has shown conspicuous ability, has ever presided with dignity and has been honest and conscientious in his interpretation of the law. It can be truly said that his Continue Reading

Sky

Posted by Cindy on February 10, 2014

Feb 102014

San Francisco International Airport Terminal 3 Post TSA This is Sky by Merge Conceptual Design. Merge Conceptual Design is comprised of Franka Diehnelt and Claudia Reisenberger who are both architecture graduates of the Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna, and currently teach at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Sky is a suspended light sculpture comprised of 27 mirror-polished stainless steel spheres in varying sizes. The globes are hollow with circular openings oriented at various angles. The interior of the globes is painted an even matte blue, and illuminated by LED edge lighting that creates a soft interior glow. A computerized program Continue Reading

Dianne Feinstein

Posted by Cindy on February 7, 2014

Feb 072014

City Hall Mayors Balcony Civic Center Dianne Feinstein was the head of the Board of Supervisors on the day that Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk were tragically assassinated. She instantly became Mayor. This sculpture (the second of Dianne Feinstein to sit in City Hall) was done in 1996 by Lisa Reinertson. According to Lisa’s website: Lisa Reinertson is known for both her life size figurative ceramic sculptures and her large-scale public sculptures cast in bronze. Coming from a family of peace and social activists, Reinertson’s work has an underlying humanism that can be seen both in her poetic Continue Reading

City Hall in Wood

Posted by Cindy on February 6, 2014

Feb 062014

City Hall South Light Court Civic Center This is one of five wooden models that Don Potts did for the 1982 AIA Convention. The pieces were later purchased by the City and four are now on display in City Hall. You can read about the first two here. Don was a meticulous artist. Another renown project, that has since been destroyed was “My First Car”. * * * The fourth of these models is of the Hallidie Plaza, a building that houses the San Francisco Chapter of the AIA. * * In researching Don Potts I found this article by Continue Reading

Don Potts Amazing Wood Models

Posted by Cindy on February 5, 2014

Feb 052014

City Hall South Light Court Civic Center Pylon of the Golden Gate Bridge There are four amazing, exquisite and highly detailed wood models in the South Light Court of City Hall. They are all by Don Potts. These architectural models were designed and built in 1982 by Don Potts in commemoration of the Centennial of the San Francisco Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. The models were first displayed in an exhibition at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art which “highlighted the important contribution that architecture has made to the City and County of San Francisco, and which Continue Reading

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