Tag: sculpture
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Burls will be Burls
6th Avenue between Burnside and Ash Portland, OR According to the TriMet website: Burls Will be Burls, by Bruce Conkle, is a tribute to snowmen and to the forests of the Pacific Northwest. The cast bronze figures of Burls Will be Burls represent what might happen when a snowman melts and nourishes a living tree—water…
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Lee Kelly Fountain
Southwest 6th Avenue and Pine Street Portland, OR Oregon artist Lee Kelly, often referred to as “Oregon’s Sculptor” won an international competition to design this sculpture “Untitled.” In this work, water flows over several 20-foot-tall steel structures. Born in rural McCall in central Idaho, Kelly was raised near Riggins, Idaho. In the 1950s he graduated from what…
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Talos Number 2
Southwest 6th Avenue and Stark Portland, OR Titled Talos Number 2 this bronze sculpture is by James Lee Hanson. “Talos No. 2 is part of the Portland Transit Mall. It was completed during 1959–1977, and was funded by TriMet and the United States Department of Transportation. The abstract sculpture depicts Talos, the giant man of…
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California Grizzly
San Francisco Zoo In Front of the California Grizzly Exhibit This Grizzly sculpture is by Scientific Art Studio. From their website: We are designers, sculptors, painters, welders, builders, crafters, fabricators, and – above all – dreamers. We live to see the world through new eyes, to laugh and play like children, and to explore boldly…
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Maternite
Jewish Senior Living Group Orignally known as Jewish Home of the Aged 120 Silver Avenue Excelsior District Ursula Malbin was born on April 12, 1917, in Berlin to Jewish parents, both doctors of medicine. While in Germany she worked as a cabinet-maker. In 1939, a few weeks before World War II, but after her family had…
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Hotel Pacific
300 Pacific Street Monterey, California Michael H. Casey sculpted these fountains for the Hotel Pacific in 1986. The joy of working on a beautiful hotel such as this is that you get to stay there while installing the fountains. It became the go to place to stay whenever we were in the Monterey area. Including…
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St. Mark and St. Matthew of Grace Cathedral
Grace Cathedral 1100 California Street San Francisco, California Michael H. Casey was honored to have been chosen to sculpt both Saint Mark and Saint Matthew for Grace Cathedral in 2001 – 2002. He always felt he was chosen due to the fact that he mentioned seismic stability during his interview. The sculptures were life sized, originally…
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Necklace of Lights
Lake Merritt 468 Perkins Street Oakland, CA Originally shut down during World War II, the Necklace of Lights circling Lake Merritt fell into complete disrepair and remained non-functional for many years, The Lake Merritt Breakfast club started a campaign in the 1980’s to raise money to restore the iconic Necklace of Lights. Once the project…
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1940 Packard Building Comes Back to Life
865 The Alameda San Jose, California This photo shows the Packard Buidling in 1940. Notice the wonderful sculptural detailing over the windows and the doors. As often happened during the 1960’s and 1970’s many buildings were stripped of their ornamentation to reflect the modernism trend that was sweeping the country. In 2009 the engineering firm…
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Females Grace the Olympic Club
665 Sutter Street The Olympic Club Parking Garage Union Square I have showed you the figures at the front of the Olympic Club here. But at the back, the entry to the parking garage, are 9 female nudes. The sculptures are by Michelle Gregor. Michelle has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from University of California,…
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Ndebele
1601 Griffith Street BayView / Hunters Point This abstract sculpture composed of three vertical elements, is titled Ndebele and is by Fran Martin. It was installed in 1987. I have tried three times over many many months to find this piece. It is listed at the pump station but it is actually on the side…
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SFAC Shame on You
1351 24th Avenue Outer Sunset This travesty sits in front of the San Francisco Department of Public Health Building. The only photograph I could find was through the Smithsonian Institute. The sculpture, titled Sailor and Mermaid, originally was made of copper sheets, cut, pounded, and welded, with bronze. It sits on a concrete pad. It was…
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The Sundial at Ingleside Terrace
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…
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Thomas Houseago
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…
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Reflections
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…
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Marine Firemen’s Union
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,…
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Rain Portal
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…
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Spirogyrate
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…
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Oscar Wilde
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…
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Bog Wood
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…
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Famine
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…
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Famine
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…
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Sargent Johnson and Aquatic Park
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…
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Judge James Seawell
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…
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Sky
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…
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Dianne Feinstein
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…
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City Hall in Wood
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…
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George Moscone
City Hall Mayor’s Balcony Civic Center This bronze bust is of the late Mayor George Moscone. Moscone was assassinated by Dan White along with Harvey Milk in November 1978, a tragedy for the City of San Francisco. Moscone was our 37th mayor. The bust was done by my dear friend Spero Anargyros. Spero has a…
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Log
Corner of Webster and Golden Gate Avenue Park behind the Rosa Parks Senior Center Western Addition I have driven past this park one thousand times and have always wondered about this tree stump. Then one day my dear friend Netra Roston told me about an artist named Sargent Johnson. Sargent Johnson was not a stranger…
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Harvey Milk
City Hall Supervisors Legislative Chamber Civic Center This is the only bust of a supervisor in San Francisco’s City Hall. Harvey Milk was the first openly gay person to be elected to public office. Milk won a seat as a San Francisco supervisor in 1977. He served almost 11 months in office and was responsible for passing…