Fire Light

On November 8, 2018, the smoke from the destruction by wildfire of Paradise, California filled the skies of San Francisco, 160 miles away. The sunlight filtering through the smoke was red orange. This is the light shining on an off white wall.

The David Ireland House

500 Capp Street in San Francisco's Mission District is both the house the Conceptual Artist David Ireland used to live in and his central work of art. He bought the house from an accordion maker in the 1970s.

He spent the rest of his life working on it when he wasn't teaching. The house dated from the late 19th Century and was well worn. He decided to preserve its dilapidated walls by coating them in many, many layers of polyurethane varnish. He also installed some unique lighting fixtures,

and art that highlighted the walls.

He incorporated the walls' imperfections into pieces.

After the artist's death a patron of the arts bought the house and set up a foundation so that the public could see it. Tours are offered and well worth taking.

When the bureau chief and family toured the house in August pieces by New York Conceptual Artist Tony Matelli were displayed. The smaller of the two metal windows above, made by Matelli, is a homage to the larger window from which Ireland removed the glass and replaced it with a sheet of copper. But he then provided a written description of what one could see through the window if that was possible.

Another Matelli piece highlights the environment.

And finally there is "Josh" which is simply uncanny.

Los Angeles Late September

LACMA.

Across the street lunch time.

Building across the street.

LACMA Art.

LACMA lunch spot.

Huntington Gardens.

Pro-war Kimonos

The De Young Museum in San Francisco has an exhibit titled "Weapons of Mass Seduction: The Art of Propaganda". The most amazing things in the show are children's pro-war kimonos from the later 1930s.

M. Mouse chased by the rising sun.

Knowing how it all turned out makes these objects even stranger.

Art

Found art?

Staged art.

Chocolate sardine art

On Bernal Hill

We walked up to the top of our hill recently. It was a beautiful day. Here's a very orange wagon.

Big bird?

Spikes.

Find the bee.

Stump eye.

Very yellow house.

Commemoration and Chocolate

Some of the students in the Bureau Chief's French Conversation and Literature Class very thoughtfully bring back small souvenirs from their travels, as gifts to the rest of the class. One woman recently toured Saint Petersburg and Moscow and brought back little wrapped chocolates commemorating Lenin and the 1917 Revolution.

Another woman made a trip to New York City and brought back chocolate coins from Peter Luger Steak House. They did not have a picture of Lenin on them. One side said the restaurant has been famous for over 125 years.

The other side says that it was founded in 1887. That makes it 131 years old. That is not a notable number so they are wise to simply stick with "over 125". Peter Luger outlasted the Soviet Union handily. Hopefully he does not lie in state in the walk-in meat locker.

A Stroll on Mission Street on 4/16/18

Haven't walked there in a while. The sky was initially spectacularly ominous but cleared up.

An employment agency.

Unlike in the sign, there's blue in the sky.

A delightful bee.

Part of the Mission is new.

The start of a mural.

I posted a photo of this face a few years ago but now he's a little faded and the jewelry store next door is closed.

The signs say it all.

Book Cover of the Decade?

It's an interesting book. Like Trump, Depardieu admires Putin. (In French Vlad is "Poutine", just like the Québécois dish with cheese curds, fries and gravy.)

February 17, 2018

It was a beautiful, temperate day in San Francisco so we went out to the beach. We went down the steps where Pacheco St. dead ends at the Great Highway. There were plenty of surfers.

But also a dad pulling his little girl on a boogie board accompanied by an energetic dog.

The sun from the south shining on the surf made the sand appear silver.

Eventually surfers began to leave.

But they were replaced by others hurrying to get a little surfing in before the early winter sunset.

Normally it would be raining this time of year but we'll ignore the threat of another drought and enjoy the weather.