UBC: Shepard, Circles of Delight

[truepenny]

Circles of Delight: Classic Carousels of San Francisco by Aaron Shepard

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book is full of gorgeous photographs of the carousels and carousel animals of the San Francisco Zoo carousel, the Yerba Buena Gardens carousel, and the Golden Gate Park carousel. I am particularly enamored of the carousel at Golden Gate Park, both because it was built by Herschell Spillman (Celebrating North Tonawanda Carrousel Animals 1883-1959) and because it was restored (1977-1984) by an artist named Ruby Newman, who made the transgressive choice not to follow the original color scheme (and Golden Gate Park loses major points for not crediting her in their description of the restoration). Normally I am all about AUTHENTICITY!, but her choices make the carousel alive in a way that sometimes purely authentic historical restorations fail to achieve. (For one example, look at this stunning fellow.)

If you are as hopelessly in love with carousels as I am, I recommend Circles of Delight wholeheartedly.



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