The Mayor, Sir Francis Drake
11x14, oil on panel
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The distinguished doormen at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel clearly own the piece of our world at the corner of Sutter & Powell, San Francisco. We spent Christmas week there several years ago and, while Mr. Right and the kiddos slept in each morning, I would sneak down to enjoy a quiet cup, sketch, and watch that intersection come to life. It was always the same routine: the festooned cable cars made their first runs, the corner newspaper man unpacked for the day, the taxis picked up their airport fares, the merchants swept their sidewalks, and the doormen seemed to orchestrate it all... while greeting a steady parade of locals and tourists with handshakes and holiday wishes. This gentleman told me it is the greatest job and that he'd been there 30 years and {I quote}, "put two kids through college in this flowered hat."
