Friday, July 11, 2008

That's Random: The House of Falling Furniture

Photo by plaid_iguana

I swear, I must have driven past this a hundred times and never noticed -- and, hello!, it's been there since 1997. (I spotted it this morning via shelterrific. Nothing like the interwebs to make us finally take note of something that's right under our noses, eh?)

It's a sculptural mural called Defenestration, on an abandoned tenement at the corner of Sixth and Howard streets (aka Skid Row) in San Francisco. Created by Brian Goggin, the installation features cartoonishly warped furniture that appears to come crashing out of broken windows or to scale the sides of the building with limbs akimbo.

In the artist's own words, "The concept of 'defenestration,' a word literally meaning 'to throw out of a window,' is embodied by both the site and staging of this installation. The site is part of a neighborhood that historically has faced economic challenge. Reflecting the harsh experience of many members of the community, the furniture is also of the streets, cast-off and unappreciated. The act of 'throwing out' becomes an uplifting gesture of release, inviting reflection on the spirit of the people we live with, the objects we encounter, and the places in which we live."

Check it out:


Photo by Dawn Endico


Photos by Claudine


Photos by Octoferret



In a word: Whoa.


Find out more about Defenestration right here.

9 comments:

Rebecca Sexton Larson said...

What a wonderful installation!

Elizabeth B. said...

I used to LOVE that building when I lived in San Francisco!! I never knew anything about it, though, so thanks for the post.

Anonymous said...

That is so insanely cool!

yasmine said...

oh i love this building. it never fails to amuse every time i pass by it! i so <3 the bay area :)

SGM said...

Oh! Oh! I saw this on our way to the airport two weeks ago. Thanks for the background!

queengilda said...

hello! i've been reading your mailing list for a little while but oh my! thanks for featuring this. it's crazy and i LOVE it!!

Amber Leilani said...

wow! i am going to SF in a few weeks - i have got to see this! thanks.

Anonymous said...

I love driving by that building. I always imagined the furniture was escaping some conflagration, either real or metaphorical.

There is also a series of murals at ground level on the same building. The subjects are circus style "freaks," like a fat lady and her espoused sofa. Wild stuff.

Precision Quality Laser said...

In a word: Weird. It never ceases to amaze me what art is nowdays.

 

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