While many readers of
ArchitectDesign probably think I'm a boring, dry architect, I do have my whimsical side which comes out now and again on the blog. While in California last month I made sure to visit the
Charles M Shulz Museum in Santa Rosa.
Designed by
C. David Robinson architects, the post-modern building expresses this whimsy through its design. Charles Schulz himself was involved with the design before his death.
In the nearby separate gift shop building are a number of exhibits, one of which was an exact Lego replica of the museum. Compare the 2 photos above, the likeness is amazing!
The gift shop itself is worth a visit.
Located between the museum and the gift shop is a
whimsical hockey rink and Warm Puppy Cafe which Charles Schulz would visit everyday and still in operation.
The black and white facade of the museum echoes the cartoons made famous by Schulz.
Life-size statues of snoopy and the gang are littered around the grounds.
Charles Schulz's office where he drew decades worth of his cartoons was installed piece by piece into the 2nd floor of the museum; a period piece if you ever saw one!
The colors throughout the museum echo the cartoon strips.
Artworks based on the Peanuts series are to be found throughout the museum as well as many of the original cartoons and stories behind them.
I loved this 'Snoopy' version of the famous
Knoll Bertoia chair.
The 'backyard' is a playful place to rest and enjoy the weather. One of my favorite pieces in the museum wasn't connected with the comic strip at all but rather was a wall mural Schulz created for his daughter early in his career which the current homeowners donated to the museum.
Any visit to northern California isn't complete without a stop to the
Charles M Schulz museum in Santa Rosa; it will be sure to put a smile on your face!
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This put a big smile on my face Stefan! Love this fun and artful posting on the Charles M. Schulz Museum!
ReplyDeletexoxo
Karena
The Arts by Karena
You boring and dry? Never! I went to elementary school in Minneapolis before we moved. I became obsessed with snoopy cartoons around the fourth grade. It was all because I bought my first violin from a shop below the apartment where he was raised in St. Paul. I still remember when the shopkeeper told me that! Love that stained glass by the way!!
ReplyDeleteYou boring and dry? Never! I went to elementary school in Minneapolis and became obsessed with Snoopy and Charles Schulz in elementary school when I bought a violin from a shop below where he was raised in St. Paul. I still remember the shopkeeper telling me that! In the late 90's/early 2000's there was a parade of Peanuts statues in the Twin Cities area where artists each painted their own and they were auctioned off. I think the snoopy statue reclining on the doghouse might be from that collection.
ReplyDeleteDelightful, Stefan! What a fun post. As a Snoopy fan, I'm putting this one on my list....all the way at the top!
ReplyDeleteI LOVED Charlie Brown. I used to collect the Sunday comics that featured "It was a dark and stormy night". I framed them and used them as art in my apartment.I was teaching in Kansas at the time and I loved the non sequitur...meanwhile, a boy grows up in Kansas. I married that boy!
ReplyDeleteThere's a delightful story between the cartoonist who pens Pearls before Swine and Charles Shultz...including the ice rink.
And yes to the above: no you aren't dry and boring.
Stefan,
ReplyDeletePoof into thin air ... I left a comment on the day you posted and I guess it never reached you, bad iPad!!!
I so enjoyed this post and of course is added to my list of must go to vacation tours.
Isn't it truly wonderful how people enter our lives, through their writings, photography, poetry and design and they implant a lingering memory of happiness. Charles Shultz did this for all of us... he reminds us to always remember the child within. Snoopy was my favorite.
Thanks for posting this.
Vera