Sculptor Larry Anderson created The Second Touch bronze art in the hospital near Mary Bridge Hospital. It commemorates the 100th anniversary of Tacoma Public Hospital. Larry Anderson also created the Trilogy piece in Wright’s Park, the Tacoma Fallen Firemen Memorial, New Beginnings outside the Union Station and many others.
On Wednesday I was in Kent and stopped to enjoy the day at Mill Creek Earthworks Park at 742 East Titus, Kent, WA. It was a lovely day and there were baby ducks! The park had good and bad to it.
The Good:
The Bad:
So the good out ways the bad and I’d love to go visit again.
A local coalition of Tacoma Urban Landscaping, Downtown On the go, Coalition for Active Transportation, 35 Ways to Safer Streets, The Grand Cinema and the New Tacoma Neighborhood Council organized the yarn bombing on the chain-link fence on St. Helens Avenue at 6th.An article about the project can be found on the News Tribune Blog. In addition to the knitted flowers, there were real flowers, banners and the word Spring in fabric. While I was checking out the art, I was asked for money by a guy just out of jail with a DUI, I visited with two legit looking young men scoping out location for a movie and visited briefly with the man moving the Ferrari that was in his shop.
Silver Root in front of Bellevue’s City Hall is one of the most wonderful sculptures that I’ve seen in a long time. It is an old cedar root harvested in the 1800s, then cast in bronze and plated in silver. It seems as though the piece is having a small technical problem with the reflecting pool not full and orange cones where the recessed lighting is. Dan Corson is the sculptor. His website is here http://dancorson.com/root and shows the sculpture in an intact pool.
The Casablanca Apartment at 720 North 2nd, Tacoma was originally constructed in 1890, but was significantly remodeled or rebuilt in 1944 by Ray Gamble. The building’s original name was the Lincoln Apartments. During the 18 year (yes, 18 years!) remodel, Mr. Gamble designed the basement level of the building based on tiles he had collected on his international travels. The three story building has 30 units. In the 1960s Mr. Gamble turned over the income from the property to the University of Puget Sound for use as scholarship money.
Tacoma Public Library’s Page on the property includes additional information and photos.
The Xipe Totec Mask is from the Mexican culture and represents the god of spring and growing seed. The Sun Mask image is from the Native American-Kwakiuti culture from Vancouver Island.
Jesus’s Custom Muffler and Dual Exhaust Shop at 4003 McKinley Avenue is a cheerful yellow with red trim and has some great muffler art! The property started it life in 1925 as Mac’s Super Service Station and there was an addition in 1949.
Sculpture Fritz Church created Ole 99, a life sized metal horse that was installed at the corner of South 47th Street and South Tacoma in 2011. The horse looks like he is patiently waiting for a Pierce Transit bus. The piece’s name reflects that fact that South Tacoma Way use to be part of Highway 99, the original thoroughfare that ran from Canada to Mexico. I love that the sculpture is tied to an ring on a spike that had originally been used for real work horses.
http://www.tacomaweekly.com/citylife/view/south-tacomas-ole-99/
A wonderful mural appeared on the side of the commercial building at 5441 South Sheridan this year. The lead artists were Kenji Stoll and Chris Jordan and the artist team included David Long, Yvette Simone, Chelsea O’Sullivan and Natalie Oswald. Sir-Amicks is the name of the ceramics business that occupies most of the building. The building was constructed in 1940 as a Safeway.
http://www.tacomaculture.org/arts/MuralsComplete.asp
I really love the FlowerHouse at 618 South 15th Street (and South ‘G’ Street)! It is a temporary photographic art instillation by Duncan Price and funded through a grant from the Tacoma Artists Initiative Program (TAIP). Each window in this 1907, three story house (apartments?) has a full paned photography of a flower which is back-lighted.
http://tacomaarts.wordpress.com/2012/12/02/botanicals-are-ablaze-in-flowerhouse-on-the-hilltop/
http://www.duncanpricephotography.com/
