Roman de Salvo

McCairn, 2019
5535 La Jolla Blvd

18' 2" x 25' 7"
18' 2" x 25' 7"
David and Sharon Wax – Wall Sponsors

Roman de Salvo’s mural, McCairn, is a juxtaposition of antiquity and modernity. De Salvo’s mural is located above a BMW repair shop on La Jolla Boulevard in the Bird Rock neighborhood of La Jolla. Perched above the building, this two-sided site is reminiscent of a billboard surface. McCairn playfully recalls the original commercial purpose of such a sign. The iconic double arches of the McDonald’s logo are re-imagined through carefully stacked stones. De Salvo built this sculpture in a natural setting and subsequently photographed both sides. The resulting, double-sided mural is evidence of his site-specific creation. The artist mimics the fast food chain’s famous yellow arches through the archaic and artful method of stone-stacking. The jagged edges and slow craftsmanship is in direct contrast to the guise of modern advertising. Stacking stones is thought to be one of the original forms of trail-marking, drawing the comparison that perhaps cairns are the ancestors of the corporate road signs of our modern times.

Roman de Salvo is a sculptor and conceptual artist who reinvents ordinary materials through playful innovation. De Salvo was born in 1965 in San Francisco, California and grew up in Reno, Nevada. He received his BFA from California College of the Arts in Oakland, California and then went on to obtain his MFA from the University of California, San Diego. De Salvo creates sculptures and installations using everyday materials in surprising, new ways. Much of his work has an interactive component through which he encourages audience participation. His site-specific works often incorporate the architecture of the space while also making poignant commentary about modernity. His use of detailed craftsmanship and quirky details elicit thoughtful critiques about technology through subtle wit and humor.

His work has been featured at many notable institutions including the Musee d’Art Americain Giverny, France; the 2000 Whitney Biennial, New York; the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego; The California Biennial at the Orange County Museum of Art; the Timken Museum of Art, San Diego; the Seattle Art Museum, Washington; the Public Art Fund in New York; and the Nevada Museum of Art. De Salvo lives and works in San Diego, California.

Photos by Philipp Scholz Rittermann