The Delight of Flowers Traditional Cache
ladypilot: I don't know when they are going to finish the construction around the Kaiser Auditorium, so I'm just going to archive this cache.
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Difficulty:
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Size: 
(regular)
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This is a temporary relocation of the Delight of Flowers while the
area is under construction. It is a VERY easy find, by the Laney
College tennis courts (not IN the courts), off 10th Street. It is
visible from the paved path on the east side of the courts. The
cache is named after a detail in an art deco niche (currently
blocked by construction, on the back of the Kaiser Convention
Center) sculpted in 1915 by Alexander Stirling Calder, father of
the famous mobilist.
This cache takes you to (but not inside!) the tennis courts across
the street from a construction site which hides a Beaux Arts
masterpiece -- seven niches with three-story-tall allegorical
friezes:
The Joy of Effort
The Consolation of the Arts
The Wealth of the Earth
The Wealth of the Mind
The Wealth of the Sea
The Duties of Life
The Gifts of the Air
During construction you can see them from the sidewalk that extends
along the south shore of Lake Merritt. The south (10th Street) side
of the Kaiser Convention Center is totally nondescript, in total
contrast to the gorgeous north side. The Convention Center closed
in 2006, but when it was active, you could rent one of four spaces
including the art deco "Olympic Room" with a view of the lake, and
a real ballroom. The arena was once the home base of the Grateful
Dead and The Police (when they were in town). The building was
refurbished in 1984 and again after the 1989 earthquake which took
down the entire plaster ceiling of the interior. The current
construction will make the north side of the Convention Center much
more pedestrian friendly, giving safe access to the lake
shore.
I recommend you walk from Lake Merritt BART or park on 10th Street,
and pay the meter if it's during the day. Coming from the Lake
Merritt side, walk over on 2nd Avenue. Follow along the estuary
inlet to another cache for art lovers--
Art in the Park.
Note for wheelchair users: this is accessible up to the last
step.
More things of interest: The
Oakland Museum, next door to the Kaiser Convention Center,
houses one of the copies of The Star Maiden, one of Stirling
Calder's famous depictions of
the world's first super-model. She was featured as part of
the
Panama Pacific exhibition.
Read
Stirling Calder's notes on and photos of the sculpture of the 1915
Panama Pacific Exhibition.
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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