Tuesday, December 1, 2009

#335












#335, San Francisco


File this one in the "numbers that look like their cities seem to suggest" folder. It'll go well along with the fabulously glitter-spackled Chelsea hair salon at #328, the timber lodge Branson, Missouri fish at #218, and the rugged, distressed #85 at the chic hotel adjacent to Brooklyn's notorious House of D, the now-defunct juvie detention center. (Not to be confused with the David Duchovny film by the same name from earlier this year -- for the 0.002% of you who saw that blow past like so much tumbleweed.)

This unabashedly cheery mosaic decorates the Katherine Michiels School on Guerrero and 25th Street in San Francisco's hilly and highly respiratory Mission District. The school, a stately, symmetrical architectural charmer, is one of many San Fran style Victorian dollhouses that look almost too cute to inhabit. In fact, I don't think anyone actually lives in half of these houses, and if they do, I don't know what they do when they want to slam a door once in a while. While I don't routinely go in for decorative rainbows (those who've been following along know I belong more to the skull-and-crossbones set), there's no harm in trying to make going to school more inviting. &7 Seal of Approval is hereby duly given.

Now that I think about it, a school adorned with a cheery skull and crossbones mosaic might not be such a bad idea. I'll have to have my people draw up some sketches and get back to your people. Zaha Hadid it ain't, but in this recession, it'll have to do.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

How about a Hadid-inspired skull and crossbones?!

GreensboroDailyPhoto said...

329- 335 is my favorite stretch of numbers this year! Great diversity!

Therese Cox said...

Designslinger - the mind boggles. Would love to see that, too. Let's see if she's busy.

GDP - glad you like them. And completely unencumbered by my whimsical commentary! Sometimes it's better to show, not tell.

Ray Gunn said...

Some unpublished reviews:


"Hideous."
"A rainbow coalition of awfulness."
"Makes one wish to be color-blind."
"Ugh."

consob: (v.) To have a good cry with a friend who's depressed.

Ray Gunn said...

Oh, um, reviews of the mosaic, not of you, dear one. In case it wasn't obvious.

Jackie said...

I'm with Ray on the rainbow-threw-up-on-the-tiles mosaic. I appreciate you making me aware that this exists. I actually find it shocking that one could be THIS inordinately cheerful in one's decorating. Bring back the skulls! The crossbones! The Creepy Fisher Dude who is friends with Murf! Thank goodness blacks & grays exist in this world-- (and that we own all of the clothes that they make in these more subdued colors.)

Therese Cox said...

"A rainbow coalition of awfulness." Ahahaha!

I still say, let the kiddies have their rainbows. It gives them something to rebel against as they get older. And apparently, it sharpens the wit as well. Nicely excoriated, ladies!

And ahhhh! Murf!

Anonymous said...

The rainbow-mosaic hating is a generational issue. Be patient. You will get to the point in your life when you need a lot of color!


Dorothy Gale

Therese Cox said...

I hear ya, Dorothy. Just so long as those colors are black and purple, I'll be OK.

Julie said...

Sometimes it might be better to show than tell, but nothing beats your telling. More please!

And why no link to Hadid? I had to go and find who she was myself. Boo-hoo ...

Interesting reaction the the coloured tiles here. Coloured tiles in Venice, Italy might be offensive ... but in San Fran?