Monday, July 1, 2013

Studio City Mosaic House

I've been reading about this house for a couple of years so it was a treat to actually see it myself.

No point in being cagey about the address: 4233 Rhodes Avenue, Studio City. The address is part of the artwork, after all. And please click on the pictures to make them bigger--the entire effect is quite wonderful.

A mix of mosaic and sculpture, as you can see. With a heavy influence of Native American themes.

More pictures can be seen on the Travels with Two blog, which covered the house in 2009, giving a lot of the area's history as well.

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And there are public documents on line indicating that in 2007, an effort was made by neighbor(s) to force the homeowner, Karl Johnson, to remove "encroachments" on the public parkway in front of his home. Since the photos accompanying those documents show the parkway looking exactly as it does now, I'm guessing that everyone decided the artwork was far more fun to look at than a plain old patch of ivy, and that a few people slowing their cars or parking to take pictures was not that big a problem.

Or, maybe Mr. Johnson went down and got some extra permits that made everyone happy. Who knows?

I have to confess that the picture at right is from the Travels with Two blog. I had a picture of this same blanketed figure which mysteriously disappeared from this blog, and I cannot reload it right now. So I borrow.

I particularly like the photo below, which shows the second story of the house. There, just as you might see at a country inn, is a quilt airing out over the railing. Only the quilt is a mosaic.

Which is pretty much true of any patched quilt. They are mosaics of fabric.

The flowers below, stand out by the curb, not far from the blanketed person above. The column at left is set back a bit, by the driveway.

Trees cover most views of the house, and I suspect there are many more mosaics around. I stayed by the street, which--unless Mr. Johnson is outside and invites you to come closer--is what any considerate person should do, right? I mean, this is his home.

6 comments:

Unknown said...

Sadly, Karl has passed away and the pieces are being sold off, it looks like. I'm a neighbor who supported his keeping the pieces on the curbway.

Vickey Kall said...

Sorry to hear that! I couldn't locate an obituary online so if anyone wants to post here about him, feel free. It's a bit sad that the pieces cannot stay with the house, since they were created for it. But he enriched the neighborhood for years.

Anonymous said...

As of October 13, 2016 The pieces of art on the parkway have been removed/destroyed, the house has a fence around it and it is scheduled for demolition.

Vickey Kall said...

This is sad to hear! I'm sorry that gmail put your comment in a folder I rarely look at, so it was buried till today.
I guess/hope family and friends took much of the art.

DN said...

Does anyone know how to get a hold of Barbara Elain Smith, Karls wife? She is an old friend that I lost touch with. WOuld love to know if she is doing OK. dpn123@gmail.com

Anonymous said...

http://www.chernovteam.com/listing/4233-rhodes-ave-north-hollywood/