Looming Deco

I was on the rooftop in the sculpture garden of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on Friday afternoon, as bright and warm as any spring day. By preference I would have been at the playground with Mabel Watson Payne, but that could not happen – because she is recovering from a little indisposition right now. There is much sickness around, of course, everyone hears this reported by word of mouth.

The visible sculptures above are by Mark di Suvero. But on this occasion instead of looking at the art I spent most of my time looking at the preparations to revamp the relatively small, stylish, Egyptian-themed, art deco skyscraper behind the museum. A pair of large carved stone eagles perch at sky level atop the central pillars. It seems amazing I never noticed them before. We are looking at the back of it. The formal entrance faces onto New Montgomery.