Harvey Milk

 Posted by on January 30, 2014
Jan 302014
 
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 a stringent gay rights ordinance for the city. On November 27, 1978, Milk and Mayor George Moscone were assassinated by Dan White, another city supervisor. Milk’s election and assassination were key components of a shift in San Francisco politics. Despite his short career in politics, Continue Reading

Goddess of Progress

 Posted by on January 29, 2014
Jan 292014
 
Goddess of Progress

City Hall South Light Court Goddess of Progress by F. Marion Wells The plaque that accompanies her reads: On April 17, 1906, the dome atop San Francisco’s City Hall that was completed in 1896 supported a twenty foot statue by F. Marion Wells.  The Goddess of Progress, with lightbulbs in her hair, held a torch aloft in her right hand, causing some contemporary counts to refer to it as the Goddess of Liberty.  The statue was so securely mounted that on April 18, 1906, when City Hall and the city around it lay in ruins from the great earthquake-fire, it Continue Reading

Fletcher Benton at Symphony Hall

 Posted by on July 2, 2013
Jul 022013
 
Fletcher Benton at Symphony Hall

201 Van Ness Civic Center Titled, Balanced Unbalanced T, this Steel and Flat Black Enamel piece sits on the exterior second floor of Davies Symphony Hall, it is accessible at all times via a staircase that can be accessed off of Grove Street. The piece, done in 1981, is by Fletcher Benton, who has been in this website before . Fletcher Benton (born February 25, 1931 Jackson, Ohio) is from San Francisco, California He graduated from Miami University, Oxford, Ohio with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1956. From 1964 to 1967 he taught at the San Francisco Art Institute and taught as an Continue Reading

The Doors of Court

 Posted by on June 15, 2013
Jun 152013
 
The Doors of Court

400 McAllister Civic Center This building houses the Superior Court of California and was designed by Mark Cavagnero and Associates. * There are three identical doors at the entry to the building.  They were designed by Albert Paley.  Paley’s work can also be found at 199 Montgomery Street. Albert Paley is a modernist American metal sculptor, who was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1944. He earned both a BFA and an MFA from the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia. Paley initially worked as a goldsmith and moved to Rochester, New York in 1969 to teach at the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he Continue Reading

Great Seal of California

 Posted by on June 14, 2013
Jun 142013
 
Great Seal of California

505 Van Ness at McAllister Civic Center This is the Edmund G. Brown State Office Building.  Built in 1986 and designed by Skidmore, Owings and Merril, it is one of the anchors of the San Francisco Civic Center. The seal was created by sculptor Rosa Estebanez. Estebanez’s life has been described as a remarkable story of courage, tragedy and the triumph of the human spirit. Born in Cuba, Estebanez graduated from the National School of Art in Havana with a master’s degree in art and became the official sculptor for Cuban president Fulgencio Batista. In 1960, Estebanez left Cuba following Continue Reading

Henri Crenier’s Telamones

 Posted by on May 16, 2013
May 162013
 
Henri Crenier's Telamones

Civic Center San Francisco City Hall These telamones by Henri Crenier have always taken my breath away.  They sit on the Van Ness side of City Hall. Telamones (plural) or Telamon are sculptured male human figures used in place of columns to support an entablature.  They are also called Atlantes (plural) or Atlas.  They are called Caryatids if they are female figures. * Henri Crenier was responsible for much of the art work on City Hall.

Henri Crenier adds Beauty to San Francisco City Hall

 Posted by on May 15, 2013
May 152013
 
Henri Crenier adds Beauty to San Francisco City Hall

City Hall San Francisco Civic Center San Francisco’s City Hall has an art collection of its own within its walls.  This is about the art work that graces the building.  City Hall was the cornerstone to the City Beautiful Movement in San Francisco. On City Hall there are two tympanums each holding a sculpture by Henri Crenier.  A tympanum is the triangular space enclosed by a pediment or arch. The tympanum that faces the War Memorial Building on Van Ness features a figure representing Wisdom.  Wisdom stands between the figures of Arts, Learning and Truth on the left and Industry Continue Reading

The Masonic Temple – 25 Van Ness

 Posted by on April 26, 2013
Apr 262013
 
The Masonic Temple - 25 Van Ness

Masonic Temple 25 Van Ness Civic Center Walter Danforth Bliss and William Baker Faville were the architects of this, the second Masonic Lodge in San Francisco. The first lodge, at 1 Montgomery Street, was built in 1860 and burned down in the 1906 fire. In 1911 the Masonic Temple Association, headed by William Crocker, laid a 12—ton cornerstone (the largest ever in California at that time) for their new building. Two years later a grand parade of 8,000 Masons, with Knights Templar on horseback, marked its dedication. Cornerstone An outstanding example of the Beaux-Arts period, the temple is primarily Italian Gothic in Continue Reading

The Beaded Quilt

 Posted by on January 11, 2013
Jan 112013
 
The Beaded Quilt

214 Van Ness Avenue Civic Center This “Beaded Quilt” sits on the outside of the Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired building on Van Ness Avenue.  According to the Please Touch Garden Site this mural is part of a LightHouse community arts initiative created by dozens of blind San Franciscans.  The mural is created out of 150,000 colored beads. As part of the Please Touch Community Garden, artist Gk Callahan envisioned the “Beaded Quilt” mural as a social arts project and enlisted clients from his art classes plus blind staff and volunteers at the LightHouse to assemble the 576 beaded squares that make up Continue Reading

San Francisco’s Civic Center the Heart of the City Beautiful Movement

 Posted by on December 29, 2012
Dec 292012
 
San Francisco's Civic Center the Heart of the City Beautiful Movement

San Francisco’s 1906 fire and earthquake not only destroyed much of San Francisco, it also destroyed the dream of many to bring the City Beautiful Movement to large sections of San Francisco. The City Beautiful Movement began with the “White City,” also known as the 1893 World Columbian Exposition. The Exposition took place in Chicago and was an exercise in light, order and forward thinking. The shimmering “White City” was a model of early city planning and architectural cohesion. In the Court of Honor all of the buildings had uniform heights, were decorated roughly in the same manner, and painted bright Continue Reading

Richard Mayer at Hastings Law School

 Posted by on September 30, 2012
Sep 302012
 
Richard Mayer at Hastings Law School

Civic Center Hastings Law School 200 McAllister at Hyde *  I would like to extend a big thank you to Suzanne Parks, the Volunteer Art Curator at Hastings Law School for this information. This sculpture  is titled “Gary Diptych #1” and is by San Francisco Bay area artist Richard Mayer. He loaned Hastings the sculpture back in the early 1980’s and then gave it to them in 2008. In his statement, the artist said: With its affirmation and ambiguity, “Gary Diptych #1 is intended as a metaphor for our times. Mayer sat on the board of the SFAC when Arneson Continue Reading

Firefly on the new SFPUC Building

 Posted by on September 17, 2012
Sep 172012
 
Firefly on the new SFPUC Building

525 Golden Gate Avenue Civic Center This is the new Public Utilities building in San Francisco.  It is touted as one of the more “green buildings” built in the US. Four egg-beater-like wind turbines are on view behind a 200-foot-high, 22-foot-wide curtain of polycarbonate squares called Firefly. Ned Kahn’s Firefly is a lattice of tens of thousands of five-inch-square, clear-polycarbonate panels that are hinged so that they can freely move in the wind. During the day, the ever-changing wind pressure profile on the building appears as undulating waves. At night, this movement is converted into light. As the wind presses the Continue Reading

Parisian Street Artist Tags the Asian Art Museum

 Posted by on August 29, 2012
Aug 292012
 
Parisian Street Artist Tags the Asian Art Museum

McAllister and Hyde Wall of the Asian Art Museum Civic Center   UPDATE: The artist on this is actually an artist from Iowa that goes by TheUpside.   Apparently the UpTown Almanac and I spotted this one at the same time.  Here is what they wrote: Tim Hallman, the Asian Art Museum’s Communications Director, dropped us a line about the beautiful piece: I think the Asian Art Museum got “tagged” by this famous Parisian street artist. No confirmation from the artist yet, though. It appeared overnight on the McAllister Street side of the building, near Hyde. We didn’t hire her, Continue Reading

Dancers and Musicians on the Performing Arts Garage

 Posted by on August 15, 2012
Aug 152012
 
Dancers and Musicians on the Performing Arts Garage

Civic Center Performing Arts Garage Grove and Gough Streets   * * The Dancing Musicians and The Dancer by Joan Brown 1986-1986  Bronze Joan Brown has several pieces around San Francisco.  These pieces were commissioned by the San Francisco Arts Commision.  The flautist and guitar player are twelve feet high and five feet wide and sit on the outside of the fifth floor of the garage.  The smaller dancer sits on the first floor. The simplified silhouettes are based on the classic Greek black-figures found on Etruscan pottery.

Kenzo’s Octopus on Fell Street

 Posted by on August 13, 2012
Aug 132012
 
Kenzo's Octopus on Fell Street

Civic Center/Hayes Valley  * 155 Fell Street  This is titled Big Octopus and is by Kenzo. Kenzo, (Aleix Gordo Hostau)  is from Barcelona, you can see his other work around San Francisco here or his own flicker photo stream here.

Breathing Flower by Choi Jeong Hwa graces SF Civic Center

 Posted by on July 31, 2012
Jul 312012
 
Breathing Flower by Choi Jeong Hwa graces SF Civic Center

Civic Center Larkin Street, San Francisco * * by Choi Jeon Hwa Fabric with LEDs motor This work of art is part of Phantoms of Asia: Contemporary Awakens the Past, an exhibition at the Asian Art Museum across the street. The plaque accompanying the work reads: The Breathing Flower, internationally acclaimed Korean artist Choi Jeong Hwa created an enormous lotus blossom from sheets of red fabric.  The large lotus appears full of life, its petals slowly inhaling and exhaling, simulating the movement of a live lotus flower.  In many Asian traditions, the lotus symbolizes the spiritual path a person takes Continue Reading

Heads by Jun Kaneko, San Francisco Civic Center

 Posted by on July 22, 2012
Jul 222012
 
Heads by Jun Kaneko, San Francisco Civic Center

Civic Center 301 Van Ness * Heads by Jun Kaneko This is a temporary installation in front of the San Francisco Opera House This is the press release that accompanied the installation of these heads: “The San Francisco Arts Commission announced Rena Bransten Gallery’s installation of two 6-foot ceramic heads by acclaimed artist Jun Kaneko in front of the War Memorial Opera House on Van Ness Avenue. This temporary public art installation coincides with the premiere of Kaneko’s production design of Mozart’s The Magic Flute at San Francisco Opera opening on June 13. Kaneko’s  HEADS will be on view through Continue Reading

Performing Arts Parking Garage – Dancing in the Curve of the World

 Posted by on May 25, 2012
May 252012
 
Performing Arts Parking Garage - Dancing in the Curve of the World

Civic Center Performing Arts Garage Gough and Grove Streets   * Dancing in the Curve of the World by Josef Norris Josef Norris is responsible for the murals at Kid Power Park. This piece, done in 2003 was paid for by the San Francisco Arts Commission’s Cultural Equity Fund and the Neighborhood Beautification Fund.

Civic Center – Hiro II

 Posted by on March 24, 2012
Mar 242012
 
Civic Center - Hiro II

Civic Center San Francisco War Memorial Opera House Hiro II by Peter Voulkos * This piece is actually owned by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, it was acquired in 1971. Peter Voulkos was born January 29, 1924, in Bozeman, Montana to Greek-born parents, Efrosine and Harry Voulkos, and died February 16, 2002 in Bowling Green, Ohio.  He first studied painting and ceramics at Montana State University (then Montana State College) in Bozeman, then earned an MFA degree from the California College of the Arts. He began his career producing functional dinnerware. He is most known for his ceramic Continue Reading

Civic Center – Hall McAllister

 Posted by on March 23, 2012
Mar 232012
 
Civic Center - Hall McAllister

Civic Center * Hall McAllister by Robert Ingersoll Aitken – Bronze – 1904 Outside the north wall of City Hall, on McAllister Street coincidentally, is the figure of pioneer attorney Hall McAllister. McAlllister served as first presiding judge of the Circuit Board of the Pacific States from 1855-1862. The pediment reads: HALL MCALLISTER Leader of the California Bar Learned Able Eloquent Fearless Advocate A Courteous Foe The artist, Robert Ingersall Aitken, was born in San Francisco, California in 1878. Robert Ingersoll Aitken studied at the Mark Hopkins Institute of Art, in San Francisco, with Douglas Tilden. From 1901 until 1904 Continue Reading

Civic Center – Abraham Lincoln

 Posted by on March 22, 2012
Mar 222012
 
Civic Center - Abraham Lincoln

Civic Center Front of San Francisco City Hall * * Abraham Lincoln by Haig Patigian – 1926 This statue of Abraham Lincoln by Mr. Patigian replaced a statue by P. Mazarra of Lincoln destroyed in the 1906 earthquake.”Lincoln was dead! A period of national mourning swept the nation immediately after his assassination. During this time, Pietro Mezzara–who was listed in the San Francisco city directory as a cameo cutter and a sculptor–began working on a clay model of a large statue of Lincoln.The Mechanics Institute was soon going to host a fair, and so the Institute suggested that Mezzara cast the statue Continue Reading

Civic Center – Henry Moore

 Posted by on March 21, 2012
Mar 212012
 
Civic Center - Henry Moore

Civic Center Davies Symphony Hall Corner Van Ness and Grove Street * * Large Four Piece Reclining Figure by Henry Moore – 1973 – Bronze This piece, by Henry Moore, sits prominently in the Civic Center, and an easy one to see and enjoy by anyone that visits San Francisco. In the early 1970s Moore produced a group of monumental sculptures relying heavily on the curve or arc as its principal motif. This work exemplifies the trend, its complex semi-abstract composition and highly polished bronze patina making it a ‘difficult’ work to read. The hollows, voids and truncated elements do, Continue Reading

Civic Center – Pioneer Monument

 Posted by on January 27, 2012
Jan 272012
 
Civic Center - Pioneer Monument

Civic Center San Francisco’s Pioneer Monument, created by F.H. Happersberger was dedicated to The City by James Lick in 1894. Previously located at Marshall Square, near the intersection of Hyde and Grove, it marked the site of the Old City Hall, destroyed by fire in the earthquake of 1906. During the renovation of the new San Francisco Library there were plans to relocate it, preservationists opposed this relocation, wishing to retain the marker as the last tie to the vanished city hall. It now sits between the new Asian Art Museum and the new San Francisco Library. Native Americans opposed Continue Reading

Civic Center – Simon Bolivar

 Posted by on January 26, 2012
Jan 262012
 
Civic Center - Simon Bolivar

Civic Center  Simon Bolivar a 1984 “Gift from Venezuela to the People of San Francisco.” Simón Bolívar, was a Venezuelan military and political leader. Together with José de San Martín, he played a key role in Hispanic-Spanish America’s successful struggle for independence from the Spanish Empire, and is today considered one of the most influential politicians in Latin American history.  “With the passing of time your glory shall by exalted like the boundless shade of the setting sun” Choquehuanca Simon Bolivar, the liberator, was born in Caracas, Venezuela on July 24, 1783 and died in Santa Marta Columbia, on December Continue Reading

Civic Center – Double L Excentric Gyratory

 Posted by on January 25, 2012
Jan 252012
 
Civic Center - Double L Excentric Gyratory

Civic Center San Francisco Public Library  Double L Excentric Gyratory by George Rickey – 1982 The plaque reads – A gift from an immigrant Carl Djerassi to his adopted City.  Dedicated by San Francisco Arts Commission May 1997. George Rickey was an American kinetic sculptor born on June 6, 1907 in South Bend, Indiana.  When Rickey was a child, his father, an executive with Singer Sewing Machine Company, moved the family to Helensburgh, Scotland. Rickey was educated at Glenalmond College and received a degree in History from Balliol College, Oxford. He spent a short time traveling Europe and studied art in Paris. Continue Reading

Civic Center – Ashurbanipal

 Posted by on January 24, 2012
Jan 242012
 
Civic Center - Ashurbanipal

San Francisco City Hall Ashurbanipal by sculptor Fred Parhad sits on the sidewalk of the Asian Art Museum, facing the San Francisco Library. The sculpture shows Asurbanipal wearing a short tunic and holds a lion cub in his right arm. The figure stands on a concrete base, with bronze plaque and rosettes. The statue shows the king grasping a lion cub and holding a clay tablet which bears this dedication in cuneiform: Peace unto heaven and earth Peace unto countries and cities Peace unto the dwellers in all lands Ashurbanipal was an Assyrian king, the son of Esarhaddon and the last Continue Reading

Civic Center – High School of Commerce

 Posted by on August 12, 2011
Aug 122011
 
Civic Center - High School of Commerce

Civic Center San Francisco 135 Van Ness Avenue There are so many wonderful building on the Van Ness Corridor, sadly, most people are driving either in or out of San Francisco and much to busy to notice them.   This building is near Market Street, not far from City Hall, if you are in the area, take a stroll. The High School of Commerce, designed by John Reid, Jr, was built in 1926-1927.  In 1952, Commerce became the central office for the school district and has remained in that use ever since. John Reid, was born in San Francisco in Continue Reading

UN Plaza

 Posted by on August 5, 2011
Aug 052011
 
UN Plaza

Civic Center – San Francisco United Nations Plaza United Nations Plaza is an area off of Market Street with a walkable corridor straight to Civic Center, which includes City Hall and Herbst Theatre.  The United Nations Charter was signed in the War Memorial Veterans Building’s Herbst Theatre in 1945, leading to the creation of the United Nations. According to Wikipedia “Civic Center has a seedy, run-down, high crime reputation and appearance with large amounts of Homeless encampments which has prevented it from attracting the large amounts of tourists seen in other areas of the city. Despite repeated redevelopment of Civic Continue Reading

UN Plaza Fountain

 Posted by on March 7, 2001
Mar 072001
 
UN Plaza Fountain

UN Plaza Civic Center There is more to the U.N. Plaza fountain than meets the eye, however, typical of the City of San Francisco it took three redesigns, one public vote and a lot of back and forth (much of it ridiculous), to finally get the thing built. The fountain was designed by landscape architect Lawrence Halprin.  The Plaza was a joint effort between Halprin, Swiss architect Mario Ciampi and John Carl Warnecke. The fountain is intended to represent the seven continents of the world.  Each “landmass” is tied together by the water symbolizing the ocean. According to an April 26, Continue Reading

The Faces of 50 UN Plaza

 Posted by on March 7, 2001
Mar 072001
 
The Faces of 50 UN Plaza

50 UN Plaza City Center The Federal Building of San Francisco was vacated by the US Government in 2007 when they built a newer building in Civic Center.  It has recently undergone a $121 million restoration and will be the offices of Section 9 GSA. This article is about the exterior of the building. In 1927, the government allocated $2.5 million for the Federal Building’s design and construction, although final costs reached a total of $3 million.  Architect Arthur Brown, Jr. designed the building, which was constructed between 1934 and 1936. Arthur Brown, Jr. (1874-1957) was born in Oakland, California. He graduated Continue Reading

 Newer Entries
error: Content is protected !!