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May 10, 2015 by tomdalzell

Unexpected Statuary

 

In Berkeley, we pride ourselves in the unconventional, in the non-conformist.  If there is sculpture in our front yard, it certainly is not statuary that you could find at a nursery in El Sobrante or at Home Depot.  The conventional elsewhere serves as unconventional here, the world upside down.

I have not documented every piece of conventional statuary, but here is a good body of work showing the unquirky as quirky.

1411 Acroft

1411 Acroft

1515 Derby

1515 Derby

1810 Derby

1810 Derby

1527 Julia

1527 Julia

2816 College

2816 College

2816 College

2816 College

1701 62nd

1701 62nd

2909 Piedmont

2909 Piedmont

2884 Kelsey

2884 Kelsey

836 The Alameda

836 The Alameda

836 The Alameda

836 The Alameda

390 Vassar

390 Vassar

1056 Keith

1056 Keith

1056 Keith

1056 Keith

848 The Alameda

848 The Alameda

1549 Shattuck

1549 Shattuck

1641 9th

1641 9th

1333 Peralta

1333 Peralta

1564 Beverly

1564 Beverly

1619 Alcatraz

1619 Alcatraz

45 Southampton

45 Southampton

496 Spruce

496 Spruce

1725 9th

1725 9th

1338 Carlotte

1338 Carlotte

2227 9th

2227 9th

2227 9th

2227 9th

1559 Posen

1559 Posen

1559 Posen

1559 Posen

742 Channing

742 Channing

2142 Eunice

2142 Eunice

1106 Colusa

1106 Colusa

Please understand that I am not judging this statuary.  I include it because it adds to the quilt that is Quirky Berkeley.  I don’t imagine that much of this statuary is presented with any degree of irony.  The people who have it love it.  The orthodox elsewhere is heterodox here.  That’s all.

When I took these photos to my friend, he had two collections of photos t spread out on his Christian Hvidt Danish Modern desk.  The first was a collection of photos of Simon Rodia, the self-taught artist/architect who built the Watts Tower.  Very Outsider.

The second was a collection of photos of Leaking Boot statues that Gabby had sent him.  Much more in keeping with the photos I present here.

They were pushed to the two sides of the desk.

bg13

In the center was a photograph of Tavia O’Connor, mother of Young Emily, taken in the late 1950s. My friend “really digs” her.  Has since he first met Gabby and Young Emily in Philadelphia in 1970.  He keeps in touch with her.  She is 80 now.  Still in the same house in West Philadelphia near Clark Park.

Okay – lots of photos, sensory overload even.  What did he think about my Berkeley unexpected statuary?

IMG_3677

Posted in Uncategorized. RSS 2.0 feed.
« (Mostly) Plastic Flamingo Statues
Northwest Berkeley: May 9, 2015 »

4 Responses to Unexpected Statuary

  1. John Turner says:
    October 31, 2015 at 2:40 pm

    Are any the photos of sam rodia unpublished ones? I’ve visited his grave in Martinez.

    Reply
    • tomdalzell says:
      October 31, 2015 at 3:06 pm

      I don’t think so. Understand that you are on a post in my website that is utter fiction, and is in a category of posts that is not often visited.

      Reply
  2. Marcia Donahue says:
    October 31, 2015 at 5:48 pm

    Tom,

    Someone gave me a concrete garden gnome, gave it with irony. I planted it pointy hat down—-your point exactly. I still have it but it’s now right side up. The chickens hang out with it in the morning.

    Marcia

    Reply
    • tomdalzell says:
      October 31, 2015 at 6:43 pm

      Gnomes are often ironic. This garden statuary, not so much.

      Reply

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