Thursday, July 28, 2011

Sidewalk Jones

There doesn't seem to be a structural reason for it to be there. We don't get snow or ice here, so it's not for traction. It's too big to be a thumbprint.

To give context:
It joins its fellows on South Raymond Avenue, in front of Jones Coffee Roasters. Could it be they're just for decoration? Whimsy? Superfluous details?

Update, 8/1/11: Robert Montano of the City Manager's Office sent some info! Very cool info. 
"TommyW has pretty much hit it," he says. "The imprints were part of a streetscape/art program for the Innovation Corridor that were meant to symbolize the “seeds” of innovation. In addition to the stamped symbols were to be solar powered "seeds" that would glow. The Seeds, stamped and installed, were to have culminated in a large, permanent art installation at the Power Plant, as the gateway to Pasadena from the south."

Here are two links to the project:

[you'll need to copy and paste into your browser]
http://indexaward.dk/index.php?option=com_content_custom&view=article&id=266:powerplants-and-powerseeds&catid=12:finalists-2007&Itemid=19&Itemid=19

http://c-wagner.de/proj/1off/ru/img/070921_Powerplant.pdf

When I told Robert it sounded like the project never happened, he said, "Correct. The last I heard, the seeds were being engineered AND, once complete, will be installed as development projects occur within the Corridor. We have one, power dependent seed in our office for demonstration."

Mystery solved! Thank you, Robert.

30 comments:

John Sandel said...

Egad, it's a lobe of the Underbrain! The great, unhallowed, pulsatng, subterranean postmodern cerebellum which underlies all our modern infrastructure! A vast, measureless, pointless & soulless glob of cerebrating jelly which few have seen and fewer comprehend! They say the very sight of its cortical folds, pushed by its titanic mass through the fabric of modern society, is enough to drive the observer mad with …

Oh—wait … sorry. I'm sorry. I'm wrong. It's not the Underbrain at all. No, sorry, it's not. It's just a sidewalk decoration. Nothing to see here, except a charming photograph. Beg your pardon.

wv: tralingi!

dive said...

How splendid, Petrea.
Whimsy is oft derided in art but can sometimes be as delightful - and confusing - as this. If it perks up your brain and brightens your day then it needs no other reason. If it's outside a good coffee shop then so much the better.

And please may I have some of the drugs John's been taking?

Speedway said...

They're great little bits of charm in a gray sea of bland. They're beautiful. Sad to say, if there were a lot of them, we'd pay no notice.

jb said...

"We don't get ....ice here"
14.1.2007 Huntingdon Gardens. 2007 Western United States freeze. Believe me...!

We arrived in LA after the coldest NZ summer on record, froze our tails off for 3 days and left to arrive in a Frankfurt in the throes of Hurricane Kyrill's 180km/h gales...

I'd have these rune-ish thingies down as the imprints of decorative ferrules of oversized crutches

Bellis said...

Brains, whimsy, charms, ferrules? It must be Zen Thursday. I'm guessing it's for the final exam of a navigation course for ants - a maze they have to find their way through. The winner, Top Ant, gets a sugar cube from Jones.

TommyW said...

Looks like design elements meant to inspire dialogue.

Petrea Burchard said...

Such inspired comments from sidewalk art. I'd say TommyW has the answer!

John Sandel said...

Bellis is onto something—it's an ant baffle. Keeps 'em busy 'til the anthorities arrive.

Anonymous said...

Curiouser and curiouser. PA might know.

Trish said...

for once, I don't have the answer, or even the Liar's Club answer! ;-)

I like Bellis' idea of a ant baffle, which has now baffled us humans! And John...wow yeah, love the perspective!

Or, instead of true concrete stamping (which construction companies have done for years around here) perhaps this is the new style for the less than stellar work? Can't find the name, but we are required by contract to put a stamp down, so good luck in tracking our logo!

Petrea Burchard said...

Whatever they are, I like them.

JB has given me an image of a giant on crutches, slipping in the ice. And John has given me an image of that giant's head, with holes in it. I believe I prefer ants.

Susan Campisi said...

Zen Thursday and I'm coming up blank, but I like them too. Maybe Jones Coffee commissioned them to guide us to their new location?

Trish said...

Hopscotch for elephants!

Mister Earl said...

Laurie's photo today has an interesting similarity to yours.

Petrea Burchard said...

They could have been commissioned by Jones, Susan--if the municipal laws allow. Jones is definitely all about art.

Trish, now you've got me worried about our injured giant.

Mister Earl, you're right. I guess Laurie and I need to point our cameras upward next time. I do love what I find on the ground, though.

Mister Earl said...

Me too. I've found $2.76 in the last 12 months!

WV: mulasm. An orgasm, the intensity of which is the result of how much mula was spent on dinner and the play.

Virginia said...

Funny but I loved the top ;one not knowing what or where it was. Silly me. But I love it anyway! :)
V

Ms M said...

Cool design. Hop by hop, leading you to Jones Coffee.
And the comments it has brought about -- I'm like you, with many strange visions in my head.

Petrea Burchard said...

Really, I do love it when y'all get creative here, Monday or no.

Trish said...

Petrea---I'm not so worried the elephant is injured, I'm thinking maybe he's young and got branded on the bottom of his feet (you know, so Grandma won't be so likely to notice?!?!) and happened to play hopscotch thru this particular newly laid cement field. ;-)

tragra---like foie gras, but slightly different

Pasadena Adjacent said...

reminds me of maze puzzles with the bb

Petrea Burchard said...

Haven't seen those since I was a kid.

Dina said...

Where the UFOs landed?

Petrea Burchard said...

I like that, Dina. Three little ones, as opposed to a larger one with three feet, because it wouldn't have stood up very well. Unless it had a fourth foot in the bushes.

Dina said...

I love how your pain does not quash your humor, Petrea.

Petrea Burchard said...

I'm one of the lucky ones, Dina.

Petrea Burchard said...

If you're still subscribed to this post, you might want to check the post for an update about the sidewalk shapes in front of Jones Roasters. Mystery solved.

Patrizzi Intergarlictica said...

I'm at Jones almost every morning and I never noticed the underbrains.

Petrea Burchard said...

Amazing, isn't it? I walked by many times before noticing. But carrying the camera with the intent of finding photos makes you notice things you might not otherwise see.

Patrizzi Intergarlictica said...

Truely a mazing.