Big Shoe Repair

931 Chester Ave Bakersfield, CA 93301

There's much to say about roadside Vernacular Architecture, and the Big Shoe Repair building in Bakersfield California sums it all up in a single picture (Although I'll include three). It is unfortunate that vandals think the building makes a better graffiti canvas than a piece of art. The poor quality of the cover ups also distract from the beauty of the building. But even so, one can't help but admire the originality of the architecture.

A close up of the top of the building. Rope makes a nice shoelace. I wasn't expecting the building to maintain this special detail, but was pleasantly surprised at its appearance.

From another angle the graffiti doesn't look as imposing. I'm so glad this artifact from the 1940's still remains for now. (Although these shots are from 2006)

Tags:Architecture Bakersfield Big Shoe Building Googie