Mosaics in Sausalito: Past, Present and Future

Sausalito has a reputation as an arty town. And though you don’t necessarily think of mosaics when you think of art, but there are some mosaic treasures to be found here now, and more are on the way.

Mosaics are Magic

I’ve always had a soft spot for mosaics. Maybe that’s because when I was a kid my mother helped me make a mosaic of a glorious red and blue rooster. I still remember how she had to use a special tool to cut the tiles and the snap that the breaking tiles made. I also remember the earthy smell of the grout we used to smooth between the tiles when they were all in place. Making a mosaic felt magical, like making a painting. Only it happened in slow motion because the colors in the picture filled in so slowly. The smooth, shiny surfaces and rich colors of the tiles were pleasant to touch as well as look at. Maybe that was the start of my love for working with ceramics, too.

From San Francisco to Sausalito: Travels of a Mosaic

Tucked in the corner Marinship Park, between the Bay Model and the tennis courts, is a fabulous mosaic designed by Sausalito artist, Jean Varda  in 1960. Varda created the design for a then new hotel in Fisherman’s Wharf called the Villa Roma. His design was executed by mosaic artist, Alfonso Pardinas on a wall near the hotel entrance.

Pardinas also created a number of mosaics for East Bay Bart stations which can still be seen in the MacArthur, Lake Merritt and El Cerrito stations. When the Villa Roma hotel was demolished in 1982, Varda and his friends raised funds to save the twenty-three ton mosaic and move it to Sausalito. The mosaic was permanently installed in Marinship Park in 1988 thanks to Paul Anderson, the Friends of Sausalito Art Festival, and the Sausalito Rotary. The aging mosaic is soon to be restored to its former glory by Sausalito mosaic artist, Pippa Murray . The mosaic shows a fantastic group of richly dressed figures against an opulent gold background reminiscent of Byzantine mosaics. There is a man in a bird mask holding a bird and a woman with a basket of fruit on her head.

Plans for a Portuguese Compass Rose Mosaic Downtown

Sausalito’s Sister City, Cascais, Portugal,  has gifted a traditional Portuguese mosaic to decorate the plaza in front of the Bank of America building. The design of the plaza will be a compass rose, and installation will begin this spring. The mosaic will be installed by a Portuguese artisan with special stones. I can’t wait to follow the project.

Bank of America’s Lost and Found Tile Mural

While a new mosaic will decorate the plaza in front of the bank building, the bank already has a wonderful tile mural that was rediscovered in 2013 during routine termite work and restored to its former glory. The building-height mural features bright primary colors and a design that spells out “Bank of America Sausalito Cal” in international maritime signal flags. The tile mural was originally completed in 1956.  The architects, Wurster and Emmons commissioned Marin Artist Raymond Rice to design the mural. A 1972 renovation plan called for total demolition of the mural, but instead, it turns out, siding was simply nailed over it. The old mural would have been too expensive to restore however, so it now preserved under a protective membrane with a new matching mural set in front of it.

Bus Shelter Tile Mural

The bus shelter on Bridgeway at Easterby Street (in front of the 7-Eleven Store), was enhance in 2001 by a tile mural created by local schoolchildren. Each tile is a unique example of children’s art and together they form a cheerful backdrop in what could have been a very gloomy bus shelter. Local artist, Heather Wilcoxon

was the force behind this charming project created by students from the Bayside School, the Willow Creek Academy, and Martin Luther King Academy and sponsored by the Sausalito Arts Commission.