Public Art and Architecture from Around the World

“Advancement of Learning through the Printing Press” by Lucien Labaudt

Posted by Cindy on May 3, 2019

May 032019

"Advancement of Learning through the Printing Press" by Lucien Labaudt

George Washington High School 600 32nd Avenue This mural, by Lucien Labaudt resides on the east wall of the library at George Washington High School it was completed in 1936 as part of the WPA. In this mural you will find such notables as Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Junipero Serra, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Alva Edison, and Edgar Allan Poe. Labaut’s intent was to give an expression of mankind’s knowledge through the printed word by showing portraits of literary men, scientists, statesmen, and religious teachers, all grouped, with symbolic attributes surrounding the central figure of Gutenberg, patron saint of printed books. * Continue Reading

“Contemporary Education” by Ralph Stockpole

Posted by Cindy on May 1, 2019

May 012019

"Contemporary Education" by Ralph Stockpole

George Washington High Schoool 600 32nd Street Library Contemporary Education by Ralph Stackpole resides on the west wall of the library at George Washington High School. It was painted in 1936 as part of the WPA and the New Deal. Newspaper accounts at the time state that Stackpole was “interpreting contemporary education in the American high schools.” Ralph Stackpole(1885-1973) Stackpole grew up in Oregon and came to San Francisco after the turn of the century. He was a sculptor, muralist, etcher, and teacher and was one of the cities leady artists during the 1920s and 30s. He was already quite Continue Reading

“Athletics” by Sargent Johnson

Posted by Cindy on April 30, 2019

Apr 302019

George Washington High School 600 32nd Avenue Football Field Originally awarded to San Francisco artist Beniamino Bufano, the commission for this work went to Sargent Johnson after Bufano was fired by the WPA when he proposed to use the Marxist labor leader Harry Bridges as a model in his iteration for the frieze. This 1942 Federal Arts Project gave Johnson the chance that he needed to express himself in new materials, and allowed him to work on a massive scale in well-equipped studios. This giant sculpture was done in 3 by 4-foot panels so that it could be transferred from Continue Reading

Dewey Crumpler at George Washington High School

Posted by Cindy on April 28, 2019

Apr 282019

Dewey Crumpler at George Washington High School

George Washington High School 600 32nd Avenue This three panel mural by Dewey Crumpler is a direct response to the 1960s controversy over the Life of Washington murals. However, even these stirred controversy in their day, not with the subject, but with the artist. The Art Commission, and the students had far different opinions as to the qualifications of the chosen artist. It is a fascinating story which you can read HERE in Crumplers own words. In 1993 Crumpler wrote this about his murals: “In 1966 the student wing of the Black Panther Party saw some murals in the hallways Continue Reading

“Life of Washington” by Victor Arnautoff

Posted by Cindy on April 28, 2019

Apr 282019

"Life of Washington" by Victor Arnautoff

George Washington High School 600 32nd Avenue Foyer This twelve-panel mural covers all the walls and the stairwell of the entrance to the main lobby of the school. Depicting the life of Washington it covers 1600 square feet. Painted in the “buon” fresco style, which consists of painting with pigments directly onto wet plaster, Arntauff was able to cover about nine feet of wall per eight to twelve-hour day. This largest WPA-funded single-artist mural took ten months to complete. * This piece of artwork is not without its controversy. Arnautoff was considered a left-wing liberal and communist and many of Continue Reading

Bay View Police Station

Posted by Cindy on April 14, 2019

Apr 142019

1676/1678 Newcomb Bayview This old Bay View Police Station, with stables in the back, was built in 1911 in the Roman Renaissance style at a cost of approximately $22,000. Designed by city architect Alfred I. Coffey, it is sadly, not on any historical listing and is now in private hands. This police station was closed in the 1930s and consolidated with another Coffey designed station, the Potrero Hill Police Station at 2300 Third Street. The Potrero Hill station opened in 1915 at a cost of over $12,000. It too had a stable in the back and for a brief time was called Continue Reading

Treasure Island Museum Mural

Posted by Cindy on March 30, 2019

Mar 302019

Treasure Island Museum Former Administration Building Treasure Island This mural resides in what was originally called the Navy Museum inside the GGIE’s Administration Building. The museum opened October 3, 1975 with exhibits representing the Navy and Marine Corps from the early 1800’s to the present. Eventually the collection grew to include the Coast Gaurd and then the Golden Gate International Exhibition, the Bay Bridge, which runs through the island, and the island itself. Once the museum began covering far more than the Naval history the name was changed to the Treasure Island Museum. The museum resides in a 1938 moderne style Continue Reading

Point Cloud

Posted by Cindy on March 26, 2019

Mar 262019

Moscone Center “Point Cloud” by Leo Villareal, the designer of “The Bay Lights” on the Bay Bridge has been incorporated into the new East Bridge, which connects Moscone North and South. Commissioned by the San Francisco Arts Commission for $1.5 million, it is part of the city’ 2% for Art Program. This light sculpture is made up of over 50,000 full-color LEDs arranged in a three-dimensional array. Approximately 800 mirrored stainless steel rods, hanging from the ceiling, support the LED matrix. The lights on this site-specific artwork are sequenced with Villareal’s custom software. The patterns are constantly changing. While these Continue Reading

Geneses I at Moscone Center

Posted by Cindy on March 14, 2019

Mar 142019

Christine Corday was born in 1970 in Maryland. Before receiving her B.A. in Communication Arts (1992), she wrote an original research paper which led to an Astrophysics internship at NASA Ames Research Center. She went on to do graduate work in Cultural Anthropology and the works as a graphic and structural designer for advertising companies. Corday received the Edison Ingenuity Prize in Montreal, Canada and has also won a number of international design awards for her patented glass bottle for the Republic of Tea. In 2000, Corday was selected for a Short Story prize from Francis Ford Coppola’s fiction magazine Zoetrope. According Continue Reading

Wall Art #1012 on Mission

Posted by Cindy on March 12, 2019

Mar 122019

1400 Mission Street This artwork is part of San Francisco’s 1% for Art Program. The piece covers the façade at the corner of 10th Street and Jessie Street and is the height of the ground story, and spans approximately 66 linear feet of the facade along 10th Street and 27 linear feet along Jessie Street. The original wall drawing was created in 2002 and was originally installed in a private residence in Los Angeles. The drawing was applied directly to a plaster substrate, transported, and installed on site. The installation is a rather complicated process done by a team Continue Reading

New Life at 77 Van Ness

Posted by Cindy on March 9, 2019

Mar 092019

77 Van Ness San Francisco Paul Gibson, born in Los Angeles in 1957, was educated at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, California, in Architecture, and received his BFA from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. Following his passion for arts, he decided to move to New York City and received a full-time painting scholarship at the prestigious National Academy of Design in New York. Paul lived in New York for five years and became a believer in the visual arts and a collector of works on paper. Gibson moved with his family to San Francisco Continue Reading

Words Fly Away

Posted by Cindy on March 8, 2019

Mar 082019

Ocean View Branch Library 345 Randolph Street This is a fabulous piece for a library. John Wehrle imagined the library interior as a metaphor for a book. He covered the library in jumbled letters, words and pictures. According to the artist’s website: Created in 2004, Worlds Fly Away is a complete installation – floor to ceiling, using a variety of materials to create a theater of effects permeating the stairwell and second-floor hallway of the Ocean View Branch Library in San Francisco. Color, image, and language are the elements that transform the library interior into an allegorical experience akin to Continue Reading

Art at Bernal Heights Branch Library

Posted by Cindy on March 5, 2019

Mar 052019

Bernal Branch Library 500 Cortland Avenue Reuben Rude of Precita Eyes Murals was chosen for this project. It was a difficult decision, as it replaced a mural that had been on the walls of the library for years. A recent renovation required the removal of the old mural which the current mural attempting to pay homage to some of its elements. This mural with its bronze book and tile embellisment was paid for by the San Francisco Arts Commission at a cost of $115,000. Reuben Rude grew up in the woods of Northern California and studied at the Academy of Continue Reading

Full Circles

Posted by Cindy on March 4, 2019

Mar 042019

Visitation Branch Library 201 Leland Avenue This piece consists of interlocking steel hoops embellished with recycled bicycle gears and, according to Grieve, is intended to evoke a “universe of possibilities.” Mark Grieve (1965-) is a contemporary American artist. He studied painting and drawing at the San Francisco Art Institute and the College of Marin and apprenticed in Japanese ceramics in the Hamada lineage. He practices in a variety of media including found objects and large metal sculpture as well as site-specific installations, performance, and public art. Ilana Spector has a background in civics and law and brings a multidisciplinary approach to creating Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco

Posted by Cindy on February 25, 2019

Feb 252019

January to May 2019 At San Francisco’s Public Libraries This exhibit is something after my own heart. A WPA map of San Francisco combines my love of the projects that stemmed from the WPA and the history of San Francisco. This exhibit is called Take Part and more information about the locations of the parts of the map can be found here. The model is a detailed wooden replica of the city of San Francisco at a scale of one inch to one hundred feet. It was built by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the late 1930s, under the Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 10 – Visitation Valley and Bayview Branch Libraries

Posted by Cindy on February 25, 2019

Feb 252019

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 10 - Visitation Valley and Bayview Branch Libraries

Visitation Valley Branch Library Bayview Branch Library This is installment ten about the pieces of the WPA map that are being displayed as part of the joint program, Take Part, between SFMOMA and the San Francisco Library. You can read the first nine installments here. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. Most every model is under plexiglass and reflects not only the lighting from above but the light streaming in through the window. Bayview Branch Library As I mentioned, often the light made it difficult to take pictures of the model. Sadly, at Bayview itwas actually Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco -Bernal, Excelsior, Ingleside and Portola Branch Libraries

Posted by Cindy on February 22, 2019

Feb 222019

WPA Map of San Francisco -Bernal, Excelsior, Ingleside and Portola Branch Libraries

Bernal Branch Library Excelsior Branch Library Ingleside Branch Library Portola Branch Library This is installment nine of the pieces of the WPA map that are being displayed as part of the joint program, Take Part, between SFMOMA and the San Francisco Library. You can read the first eight installments here. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. Most every model is under plexiglass and reflects not only the lighting from above but the light streaming in through the window. Bernal Branch Library * On the corner of Precita and Folsom is St. Anthony of Padua, which burned in the Continue Reading

WPA map of San Francisco Part 8 -Ocean View and Glen Park Branch Libraries

Posted by Cindy on February 21, 2019

Feb 212019

WPA map of San Francisco Part 8 -Ocean View and Glen Park Branch Libraries

Ocean View Branch Library Glen Park Branch Library This is installment eight about the pieces of the WPA map that are being displayed as part of the joint program, Take Part, between SFMOMA and the San Francisco Library. You can read the first seven installments here. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. Most every model is under plexiglass and reflects not only the lighting from above but the light streaming in through the window. Ocean View Branch Library Niantic Street is now the Southern Freeway. On Niantic is a route of the Southern Pacific mainline into San Francisco. There Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 7 – West Portal and Merced Branch Libraries

Posted by Cindy on February 19, 2019

Feb 192019

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 7 - West Portal and Merced Branch Libraries

West Portal Branch Library Merced Branch Library This is installment seven about the pieces of the WPA map that are being displayed as part of the joint program, Take Part, between SFMOMA and the San Francisco Library. You can read the first six installments here. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. Most every model is under plexiglass and reflects not only the lighting from above but the light streaming in through the window. West Portal Branch Library The tree-covered hill behind Laguna Honda Hospital is the Twin Peaks area of San Francisco. Today (2019) Twin Peaks has 1361 homes Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 6 – Sunset, Ortega and Parkside

Posted by Cindy on February 17, 2019

Feb 172019

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 6 - Sunset, Ortega and Parkside

Sunset Branch Library Ortega Branch Library Parkside Branch Library This is installment six of the pieces of the WPA map that are being displayed as part of the joint program, Take Part, between SFMOMA and the San Francisco Library. You can read the first Five installments here. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. Most every model is under plexiglass and reflects not only the lighting from above but the light streaming in through the window. Sunset Branch Library San Francisco was home to what was once the largest sand dune ecosystem in the western hemisphere. These dunes spanned Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 5 – Richmond and Park Branch Libraries

Posted by Cindy on February 11, 2019

Feb 112019

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 5 - Richmond and Park Branch Libraries

Richmond Branch Library Park Branch Library This is installment five of the pieces of the WPA map that are being displayed as part of the joint program, Take Part, between SFMOMA and the San Francisco Library. You can read the first four installments here. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. Most every model is under plexiglass and reflects not only the lighting from above but the light streaming in through the window. Richmond Branch Library The map at the Richmond Library is a fun walk down memory lane. In the photo above you not only can see Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 4 – Western Addition and Anza Branch Libraries

Posted by Cindy on February 9, 2019

Feb 092019

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 4 - Western Addition and Anza Branch Libraries

Western Addition Branch Library Anza Branch Library This is installment four of the pieces of the WPA map that are being displayed as part of the joint program, Take Part, between SFMOMA and the San Francisco Library. You can read the first three installments here. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. Most every model is under plexiglass and reflects not only the lighting from above but the light streaming in through the window Western Addition Branch Library The pieces at the Western Addition Branch Library not only does not show what was there, but it shows what is Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 3 – Golden Gate Valley, Marina and Presidio Branch Libraries

Posted by Cindy on February 8, 2019

Feb 082019

WPA Map of San Francisco Part 3 - Golden Gate Valley, Marina and Presidio Branch Libraries

Golden Gate Valley Branch Library Marina Branch Library Presidio Branch Library This is installment three of the pieces of the WPA map that are being displayed as part of the joint program, Take Part, between SFMOMA and the San Francisco Library. You can read the first two installments here. I apologize for the poor quality of the photographs. Most every model is under plexiglass and reflects not only the lighting from above but the light streaming in through the windows. Golden Gate Valley Branch Library The question in viewing this image of Lafayette Park is how the apartment building, that is Continue Reading

WPA Map of San Francisco – Part 2 – SFMOMA, Mission, Noe Valley and Eureka Valley Branch Libraries

Posted by Cindy on February 5, 2019

Feb 052019

WPA Map of San Francisco - Part 2 - SFMOMA, Mission, Noe Valley and Eureka Valley Branch Libraries

SFMOMA Mission Branch Library Noe Valley Library Eureka Valley Library This is the second post in a series covering the joint SF Library system and SFMOMA project Take Part showing the map of San Francisco built by the WPA. Click here for Part 1 SFMOMA The hub of the San Francisco commuter bus and Greyhound system was the old Transbay Terminal. It is shown on the WPA map of San Francisco. San Francisco’s former Transbay Terminal was built in 1939 at First and Mission Streets as the terminal for East Bay trains using the newly opened Bay Bridge. The Terminal Continue Reading

Paul Selinger piece is gone

Posted by Cindy on January 26, 2019

Jan 262019

This piece once stood in the Broderick and Bush Mini Park In 2010 the SFAC de-accessed this piece due to damage, one can assume it was destroyed. “Civic Art Collection Senior Registrar Allison Cummings informed the Committee of the need to remove Paul Selinger’s sculpture Untitled, 1971 (Accession #1971.44) from its current location at Broderick and Bush Mini Park due to the artwork’s advanced deterioration. Ms. Cummings stressed that as assessed by a Recreation and Parks Department structural engineer, the sculpture should be considered a threat to public safety and will need to be dismantled and stored on site while Continue Reading

The Big Fish

Posted by Cindy on January 26, 2019

Jan 262019

The Big Fish also called The Salmon of Knowledge is a printed ceramic mosaic sculpture by John Kindness. The 33-foot long statue was constructed in 1999 and installed on Donegall Quay in Belfast, near the Lagan Lookout and Custom House. The Big Fish’s image regularly appears on tourism material related to Belfast and Northern Ireland. * *The outer skin of the fish consists of ceramic tiles decorated with texts and images relating to the history of Belfast. According to the Belfast City Council, each scale “tells a story about the city”. Material from Tudor times to present day newspaper headlines Continue Reading

Spirit of Belfast

Posted by Cindy on January 26, 2019

Jan 262019

Cornmarket Arthur Square The Spirit of Belfast was unveiled in September 2009, this large-scale steel structure sits in the Cornmarket, where a bandstand once stood. The four interlocking rings sit in the heart of the city center’s pedestrianized shopping area and are said to have been designed to reflect Belfast’s shipbuilding and linen industries. Created by Dan George, it has been given the name Onion Rings, by the ever humerous Irish citizens. Dan George was born in Lake George, New York and studied at the Arts Students League of New York and the Koning Academie in Antwerp. He says of this Continue Reading

Madhubani Paintings of Patna

Posted by Cindy on December 21, 2018

Dec 212018

These Madhubani paintings are going up all over Patna, Bihar. The project is aimed at beautifying the walls in the hopes that people don’t spit or urinate out in the open, on the walls. “Vulnerable points have been selected for the painting. However, work will continue on most of the walls. ” according to Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) deputy commissioner Vishal Anand. Before I left the United States, the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco had an exhibit on Madhubani paintings. It was fun to discover these all over the town of Patna. Madhubani paintings originated in the Mithila region of Continue Reading

Secret Garden

Posted by Cindy on October 22, 2018

Oct 222018

Transbay Terminal Second and Folsom Julie Chang is a San Francisco-based artist who, at the time of her selection, coincidentally lived within blocks of the Transbay Transit Center. Chang received her MFA at Stanford University in 2007. She also received an MFA Studio Award from the Headlands Center for the Arts in Sausalito in 2007. Chang’s 25,000 square foot terrazzo floor of the Grand Hall of the Transbay Terminal is meant to evoke a lush sunlit Victorian garden. Mined from local ecology, design elements include California poppies and jewel-toned hummingbirds highlighted by mirrored glass. Integrated into the design is a Continue Reading

The Joker’s Chair

Posted by Cindy on October 15, 2018

Oct 152018

Joker’s Chair – Dermot Morgan Memorial (2002) By Catherine Greene The Joker’s Chair was erected in the memory of the Irish writer, actor, satirist and comic Dermot Morgan (1952-1998), The inscription which accompanies this piece reads; ….and all the rest is laughter liberating laughter to be remembered Catherine Greene was born in Galway and studied at the National College of Art and Design from 1979-85. Greene was approached by Dermot Morgan’s partner to create the memorial which was funded by RTÉ (Ireland’s National Television) and supported by Dublin City Council. A condition of the commission was that it should be Continue Reading

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