33 Tehama

Project location: San Francisco

Architect: Arquitectonica & CMG Landscape Architecture

33 Tehama is Hines’ newest 35-story multifamily high-rise located in San Francisco’s South of Market (SoMa) neighborhood and is part of the San Francisco Transbay development area around the new Transbay Transit Center site.

CMG Landscape Architecture along with fine art consultant Michele C. Quinn of MCQ Fine Art, LLC commissioned world-renowned Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama to create the vibrant Flowers That Bloom at Midnight art piece and collaborate on the design of the surrounding plaza as part of SF’s 1%-for-art program that requires public art to equal at least 1% of the total construction cost.

T.B. Penick was brought on the team to collaborate and help bring Kusama’s design to life and Lithocrete was the medium of choice selected. The main field of the plaza features white-aggregate seeded Lithocrete with a honed finish. Kusama’s characteristic polka dots were incorporated into the plaza’s paving using red integrally colored Litho-thin tech with integral red glass. The polka dots were also honed and were stained red for a more vibrant look. This design continues into the lobby of the 33 Tehama building.

Photos by: Nathan Padilla Bowen