Public Art and Architecture from Around the World

Building the Iron Horse

Posted by Cindy on June 19, 2018

Jun 192018

Laguna Honda Hospital Lobby of the Pavillion 375 Laguna Honda Boulevard Forest Hill Owen Smith’s WPA-style mosaic murals depicting the building of the Golden Gate Bridge pay homage to Glen Wessel’s Professions mural series in the historic Laguna Honda lobby and provide a visual continuity between the old and the new buildings. The artist chose to illustrate the building of the Golden Gate Bridge because of the subject matter’s connection to the Wessel murals, which include themes related to labor and the four classic elements. To Smith, the building of the Golden Gate Bridge represents human audacity, bravery, skill and Continue Reading

Peter Vandenberge and his Whimsical Ceramic Art

Posted by Cindy on June 15, 2018

Jun 152018

Peter Vandenberge and his Whimsical Ceramic Art

Christopher Park 5210 Diamond Height Boulevard Diamond Heights These whimsical tile plagues are by Peter Vandenberge and reside inside, what is now, the nursery school in the Christopher Park Rec Center Building. Born in 1935 in The Hague, Vandenberg grew up in Jakarta. “I was obsessed with making things out of clay,” “I was like Pigpen,” the Peanuts character. “My mother and father were always telling me to get out of the mud.” In 1942 the Japanese invaded Indonesia and placed the expatriate population into POW camps, “The whole goddamn thing was a nightmare,” he recalls. “There was not enough food, there Continue Reading

Laguna Line

Posted by Cindy on June 14, 2018

Jun 142018

Laguna Honda Hospital 375 Laguna Honda Boulevard Forest Hill By observing Laguna Honda residents using wheelchairs and the handrails located throughout the building, Cliff Garten saw the potential for a public artwork in the form of a handrail. While meeting all codes and functional requirements, he transformed a ubiquitous handrail into a sensuous sculpture that addresses the space at a visual, tactile and psychological level. The Esplanade features approximately 600 feet of sculptural handrail elements that interpolate the interactive qualities of the handrail into other situations and activities in the hospital. The handrail is cast in bronze and embellished Continue Reading

Reflections

Posted by Cindy on June 12, 2018

Jun 122018

Laguna Honda Hospital 135 Laguna Honda Forest Hills This bi-fold, water-cut, stainless steel access door is by Diana Pumpelly Bates. The design incorporates selected elements of the new architecture of the hospital and imagery derived from the surrounding environment. The relationship of the lines and shapes in the imagery are intended to suggest a “landscape of reflection.” Diana Pumpelly Bates is a sculptor and public artist working in bronze, iron, and steel. Her work has been included in exhibitions at the Oakland Museum, Oakland, The Triton Museum in Santa Clara, the Oliver Art Center at California College of Arts and Continue Reading

Rabbinoid on Cell Phone

Posted by Cindy on June 11, 2018

Jun 112018

Laguna Honda Hospital Garden Area 375 Laguna Honda Forest Hills This life size bronze is called Rabbinoid on Cell Phone and is by California artist Gerald Heffernon Gerald Heffernon lives in Winters, California. He has shown at galleries and museums nationally as well as in France, including the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento and the Centre Pompidou in Paris. He has been awarded over a dozen public art commissions since 1978, including those for fire stations in San Jose and Sacramento, parks in Sacramento and Denver (both in progress), and the Light Rail Station in Sacramento. Mainly depicting animals, most of his sculptures are made Continue Reading

Islais

Posted by Cindy on June 9, 2018

Jun 092018

Islais Creek 3rd Street and Cargo Way Bayview – Hunters Point Islais by Cliff Garten Studio is an artwork that is inspired by the history and landscape of Bayview Gateway and Islais Creek. “I have created sculptures whose gestures and forms are iconic yet formal and free, solid and transparent, because no one history should take precedence over another. The images of the Bay and Islais Creek are a reference point for the sculptures and for the celebration of the Bayview community.” The piece is made of blue polychrome bronze with a stainless steel wrap, referencing the shape of the Continue Reading

Grandview

Posted by Cindy on May 24, 2018

May 242018

7351 Route WI-39 Hollandale, Wisconsin This lovely and imaginative spot well in the countryside of Wisconsin is the creation of Nick Engelbert. In 1937, after his children were grown, Nick Engelbert began to build an elaborate arched porch of concrete around the front entrance of his farmhouse, ultimately covering every inch of the outside surface of the house with concrete inlaid with shards of china, glass, beads, buttons, and seashells. Over the next 15 years, Nick created more than 40 concrete sculptures in his yard, combining patriotic themes with imagery from history, fairy tales, mythology and his own imagination. At Continue Reading

A. D. German Warehouse

Posted by Cindy on May 22, 2018

May 222018

300 South Church Street Richland Center, Wisconsin The Albert Dell German Warehouse was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in the Mayan Revival style, between 1917 and 1921. While there is some controversy, it is believed that Wright was born in Richland Center, making this his only building in his birth town. The building is a four-story, rectangular structure of brick and cast concrete. It was commissioned by the A.D. German Wholesale Grocery Company to store flour, feed, and groceries. The three lower floors were designed for storage of non-refrigerated goods, and the fourth floor was to be refrigerated for perishable Continue Reading

Wisconsin Historical Society

Posted by Cindy on May 22, 2018

May 222018

816 State Street University of Wisconsin, Madison Campus The building that houses the Wisconsin Historical Society (officially the State Historical Society of Wisconsin) is an excellent example of the classicism that followed the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago The organization is simultaneously a state agency and a private membership organization. Founded in 1846 and chartered in 1853, it is the oldest historical society in the United States to receive continuous public funding. The Wisconsin Historical Society has occupied this building, designed by Ferry & Clas, since 1900. When it was completed and dedicated in the fall of 1900, it was Continue Reading

The State Capitol of Madison, Wisconsin

Posted by Cindy on May 20, 2018

May 202018

There is more information on the State Capitol of Madison than many I have seen. So I will just be touching on the art and architecture, rather than the history, of this magnificent building. It is important to point out that the people take very seriously that this is the building of the people, so it has no metal detectors and should you so desire, you can walk through this magnificent structure simply to get from one side of the block to the other. Atop the dome is “Wisconsin”, sculpted by Daniel Chester French of New York. She holds a globe Continue Reading

The Jacobs I House

Posted by PQPP3 on May 18, 2018

May 182018

Madison, Wisconsin 441 Toepfer Avenue Traveling with the VSA we had the true pleasure of touring the home of James Dennis, who graciously opened his home and took time to answer all of the questions we could possibly throw at him. The home is the first of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Usonian homes and was originally built for Herbert and Katherine Jacobs. Wright used the term “Usonian,” to refer to an artistic, low-cost house built for an average citizen of the United States of North America. The North America portion was an important part of his adaptation of the term. Wright Continue Reading

The Unitarian Meeting House

Posted by PQPP3 on May 17, 2018

May 172018

Madison, Wisconsin Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright and completed in 1951, when Wright was 84 years old, this church is recognized as one of the world’s most innovative examples of church architecture and one of Wright’s more influential buildings. Despite being one of the more stunning buildings in Madison it was almost not to be. When the congregation was deciding who should design the meeting hall Wright was not the most obvious or wanted choice. In a widely circulated letter, one society member described Wright as “arrogant, artificial, brazen, cruel, recklessly extravagant, a publicity seeker, an exhibitionist, egotist, sensationalist, impatient, Continue Reading

Taliesin East

Posted by PQPP3 on May 17, 2018

May 172018

Spring Green, Wisconsin So very much has been written about Taliesin that it seems silly to write a post about it, but it has been on my list of architectural sights to see ever since my father took me to Taliesin West when I was 10. Taliesin was named in honor of FLW’s Welsh heritage, it was the name of a druid bard, and literally means “shining brow.” The structures wrap around the ridge of the hill, embracing the site and standing as a “brow.” Taliesin (or Taliesin East, following the construction of a Taliesin West in 1937) was the home and Continue Reading

Wyoming Valley School

Posted by PQPP3 on May 17, 2018

May 172018

Spring Green, Wisconsin Built in 1957, the building was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, who donated his design and 2 acres of land to the Wyoming School District in honor of his mother, Anna Lloyd-Jones Wright. It is the only public school ever designed by Wright. The story goes that the school had land close to the road, but Wright, who truly believed in making architecture part of nature, wanted to build it into the small hill so he moved the building site back several 100 feet. It was not until later that it was discovered this was not property Continue Reading

Glass Flowers

Posted by Cindy on May 10, 2018

May 102018

Portola Branch Library 380 Bacon Street Portola/Excelsior Dana Zed has been exhibiting her art nationally and internationally for over 30 years. She holds a BA from Brown University in Rhode Island. She has works in the permanent collections of The Corning Museum in New York and The Oakland Museum. Zed owns and operates a glass studio in Oakland as well as teaching ceramics to kids in the East Bay. She also teaches adults at Esaeln Institute in Big Sur. California Wildflowers is a set of four handmade glass and metal shutters installed in the front window of the Portola Branch Library. Continue Reading

A Duel Fought Over Slavery

Posted by Cindy on April 30, 2018

Apr 302018

The site is in an unamed park Off of Lake Merced Boulevard Access is available off of El Portal Way near number 79 Daly City just South of the San Francisco City Limits Just after the discovery of gold the State of California found that its citizens were as divided as the rest of the nation in regards to slavery. California was home to people from the North—often referred to as free-soilers—who were against slavery, and Southerners who supported slavery and called themselves the Chivs (for chivalry). California entered the United States as a free-state, however, its vague antislavery constitution Continue Reading

Yarn Bombing Civic Center

Posted by Cindy on April 28, 2018

Apr 282018

San Francisco Civic Center Plaza These whimsical animals and are designed and installed by Jill and Lorna Watts of Knits For Life as part of the “Knitting the Commons” project. For those not familiar Yarn bombing is a type of street art that employs colourful displays of knitted or crocheted yarn or fibre rather than paint or chalk. It is also called yarn storming, guerrilla knitting, kniffiti, urban knitting, or graffiti knitting. According to their website: Knitting the Commons is a temporary art project that aims to ‘knit’ together San Francisco’s central public spaces – Civic Center Plaza, UN Plaza, and Continue Reading

Light as Art

Posted by Cindy on April 3, 2018

Apr 032018

Ellis Street Between Stockton and Powell The Ellis entry to the O’farrell Garage This light installation, titled Spine, is by Christopher Townsend Sproat, it was created in 1993. Sproat was born in Boston and studied art at Boston University, the Boston Museum School of Fine Arts, and Skohegan School of Fine Arts. He has created public sculptures for a number of transit systems and government buildings. This piece, part of the San Francisco Art Commission collection cost $76,000.

Gates of Kezar Stadium

Posted by Cindy on April 3, 2018

Apr 032018

Kezar Stadium Frederick Street Entrance These gates stand at the entry to Kezar stadium and were installed in 1991. There are 22 of them around the stadium Kezar Stadium has a long history in the City of San Francisco, but much of its original elements no longer remain. The gates were purchased by the San Francisco Arts Commission for $99,825 and were the product of designer Alan Fleming. According to the artist the final design is evocative of the merging of the natural and the man made, the hard edge and the soft edge, the straight line and the curved, Continue Reading

Balboa Has its Name up in Mosaic

Posted by Cindy on March 29, 2018

Mar 292018

Balboa at 39th and 34th Avenues These two sided sign posts on Balboa street were commissioned by the SF Arts Commission as part of the Balboa Streetscape Improvement Project. They were created by artist Colette Crutcher, who has been in this site many times. The site of the Balboa Streetscape Improvement Project extends from 34th to 39th Avenue. The $3,200,000 renovation provided a safer and more pleasant environment for pedestrians, motorists, cyclists, and transit riders to enjoy the neighborhood.

Red Gothic

Posted by Cindy on March 28, 2018

Mar 282018

Muriel Leff Mini Park 7th Avenue between Geary and Anza Richmond District This piece by Aristeded Demetrius is titled Red Gothic. It was donated to the park by the Cyril Lerner Foundation and was installed in the park in 1986 at the request of Ms. Leff and other community members. Demetrius has several pieces throughout San Francisco. Aristides Burton Demetrios (1932- ) was born and raised in Massachusetts. His father, George Demetrios, was a classical sculptor, trained by Bourdelle, a student of Rodin. His mother, Virginia Lee Burton was the renowned author and illustrator of children’s books, including Mike Mulligan and His Steam Continue Reading

Global Garden

Posted by Cindy on March 26, 2018

Mar 262018

474 Natoma South of Market On this affordable housing unit are digitally embossed metal panels entitled Global Gardens, by artist Catherine Wagner. The images are of culturally specific plants representing the diverse community. Catherine Wagner is a Professor of Studio Art, as well as the Dean of the Fine Arts Division at Mills College. She received her BA and MFA from San Francisco State University. Wagner is an American conceptual artist whose process involves the investigation of what art critic David Bonetti calls “the systems people create, our love of order, our ambition to shape the world, the value we Continue Reading

SurfHenge

Posted by Cindy on March 23, 2018

Mar 232018

Taraval and 48th Street Sunset District These sculptures designed by DPW landscape architect Martha Ketterer are part of the Taraval Streetscape Improvement Project. The design combines the lightness and fragility of surfboards or sails with monumental weight and verticality. The work was then adorned with tile work by Colette Crutcher suggestng the ceaseless dance of the ocean and its creatures. Surfhenge is a nickname for Taraval Street. The $1,600,000. Taraval Streetscape project is part of the revitalization of a neglected neighborhood at San Francisco’s western edge. Martha Ketterer is a Landscape Architect for the Department of Public Works. She is a Continue Reading

Dahlias at Cabrillo

Posted by Cindy on March 22, 2018

Mar 222018

Cabrillo Playground 853 38th Avenue Outer Richmond Cabrillo Playground, and its attached club house were completely renovated with $45 million dollars from the 2008 Clean and Safe Neighborhood Parks Bond. The budget for the art was $35,970. These lacy flowers are by Colette Crutcher and were inspired by the Dahlia Garden that is attached to the park. The artwork is comprised of flower imagery fabricated in galvanized iron lacework, incorporated along fence panels on 38th and 39th avenues at Cabrillo Avenue, with an overall dimension of 121 in. by 299 in. at 38th Avenue; and 121 in. by 222 in. at 39th Continue Reading

Oche Wat Te Ou

Posted by Cindy on March 21, 2018

Mar 212018

Yerba Buena Gardens Oche Wat Te Ou – Reflections is by Jaune Quick-to-see Smith and James Luna. It sits in Yerba Buena Gardens and was installed in 1993. This tribute to the native Ohlone Indians, created by artists Jaune Quick-to-See Smith and James Luna, takes form in a semicircular wood wall patterned with Ohlone basket designs. Standing behind a crescent-shaped pool and a circle of moss covered rocks, it’s a contemplative environment, set beside a redwood grove with a single live oak tree nearby. The artists intended the piece to serve as a performance area for poetry, storytelling, and other events Continue Reading

Local Color by Leah Rosenberg

Posted by Cindy on March 21, 2018

Mar 212018

Natoma at 180 New Montgomery This wall of colors that include small tables and chairs is a by Leah Rosenberg and was sponsored by SitesUnseen. Leah Rosenberg is a San Francisco-based artist whose practice spans a range of media including painting, sculpture, installation, printmaking, and performance. Color plays a primary role in her work. Rosenberg received a BFA from Emily Carr Institute in Vancouver, BC, in 2003 and went on to get an MFA from California College in San Francisco in 2008. Sites Unseen is a fiscally-sponsored public art project of the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District (YBCBD)

Alleyways of San Francisco

Posted by Cindy on March 20, 2018

Mar 202018

Jessie and Annie Streets Sites Unseen is a fiscally-sponsored public art project of the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District (YBCBD). They presently have three projects on the outskirts of San Francisco’s Museum District. The first is Love Over Rules These 6 X 6 Neon letters are on the exterior wall of the Salma Family Building at 165 Jessie Street. However, the best viewing is on Annie Street. The light sculpture is the first permanent public artwork in the U.S. by New York-based artist Hank Willis Thomas. A tribute to the artist’s cousin, murdered in 2000, the blinking white neon installation shares Continue Reading

Alice Aycock at the SFPL

Posted by Cindy on March 18, 2018

Mar 182018

San Francisco Main Library 100 Larkin Street 5th Floor Alice Aycock has designed a spiral stairway between the fifth and sixth floors of the suspended, glass-enclosed reading room that projects into the library’s great atrium space. The staircase wraps around a cone tipped at an angle, and as the two-story cone appears to unravel, it sheds fragments of false or imaginary stairs. A second element, the Cyclone fragment, is suspended in the adjacent atrium and functions as a ghost projection of the spiral stair. If the stairs suggest knowledge unfolding, the Cyclone symbolizes knowledge in its most dynamic and transitional Continue Reading

Aero Memorial

Posted by Cindy on March 4, 2018

Mar 042018

Philadelphia has the largest collections of Public Art in the United States and much of it can be viewed with an audio tour I was particularly drawn to this bronze sphere which sits opposite the main entrance of the Franklin Institute and is dedicated to aviators who died in World War I. Inscribed with the Latin names of constellations and planets, this Paul Manship sculpture Aero Memorial illustrates the signs of the zodiac in a style that recalls both classicism and Art Deco. The idea for Aero Memorial was conceived by the Aero Club of Pennsylvania, which donated modest funds for Continue Reading

Lichtenstein in Philadelphia

Posted by Cindy on March 4, 2018

Mar 042018

United Plaza South 20th Street Philadelphia, PA Philadelphia has a wonderful program called Museum Without Walls, and this is part of that program. Roy Lichtenstein’s Brushstroke Group, was brought to Philadelphia in August 2005 courtesy of Duane Morris L.L.P, one of the city’s largest law firms, which occupies the adjacent building. In an unusual arrangement, the sculpture is on loan to Duane Morris from the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation. The Fairmount Park Art Association and the Philadelphia Museum of Art worked with the law firm and the Foundation to bring the sculpture to the city. It is part of the Brushstrokes Continue Reading

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