A few weeks ago a mural was starting at the Water Dept Pump Station on the corner of Sloat and Great Highway, a few steps west of the Zoo. As a fan of murals, I'd fantasized about one in that location since the start of when that huge slab of concrete went up. I thought it would have been a nice opportunity for the Water Dept and Zoo to collaborate on a design. Something colorful and nature related. My vision was the ocean side with Sea Birds, Plovers to Pelicans, and the Sloat side, with Zoo Birds, Otriches to Penguins, big to small heading towards the Zoo. It was a letdown to see a drab colored mural forming, and it wasn't until it was near done that you could tell what it was. A collage of Calla Lilies.
This past week, I spied something peeking out from behind the fencing in that location, that brought a huge smile. The return of the Earth, Air, Sea Sculptures!, that once sat on that corner's spot.
I'd have to long search for my own old pix, so I grabbed this from sfpuc.org (Westside Pump Station Project PDF).
When the construction of this project started and the Sculptures were removed, I wrote a bit about it in a post.
I was worried they had been trashed, so I contacted the Construction Company to find out their fate. I was happy to learn the plan was for them to be replaced. Had I not been told that, I would have suggested the Zoo take possession and display them. In fact, in recent time, as the construction was concluding at the corner, I began to wonder about the Sculptures again, and had it on my to-do list to revisit their status. Glad it resolved itself, and the plan didn't change in the three years since.
I am so happy to see these iconic pieces back home. I don't even care about the lackluster mural anymore. In fact, I think anything more would have distracted from these treasured gems.
I love they are being showcased, but I would have liked to see them displayed more like they were before. I think the positioning of the three pieces being together and turned towards eachother, showed them as a cohesive group. I also like them on a bed of flowers. Maybe that will be added. All references are shown in the flashback photo at the top.
Without being able to get closer, it looks like theres a divider between the Lion and the Bird, which bothers me. Again lends to me liking them more together as a group. I also wish the Fish was turned slightly more toward center. Those asthetic issues aside, I get pure joy seeing them again. I only hope vandals show them respect.
Nice that the Lion's eye was restored.
History on the Earth, Air, Sea Sculptures ... Commissioned by the San Francisco Arts Commission for the San Francisco Clean Water Program.
I viewed this site before, but for some reason I couldn't get photos to load this time. This is a screencap.
A bit about the artist. At the bottom there is a list of her other works, which would be cool to seek out.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Fuller_(sculptor)
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