The husband and I decided to meander our way to the French Embassy (I had to head there to vote in the second round of the French presidential elections) through the cobblestone streets of Georgetown. We rarely hang out in that part of the city, and when we do, we usually stick to the waterfront or the commercial areas along M street and Wisconsin. Or I get the D6 bus to drop me off on Reservoir Road. So I forget how charming this wealthy, historical neighbourhood is, with its quiet rows of brightly coloured two-and-three story brick houses. We were so busy admiring the architectural integrity of Georgetown (and all the real estate we can’t afford) that we almost walked by without noticing this striking mural:
Unfortunately I couldn’t find out much information about this particular street art piece. Based on The Great Wave of Kanagawa by Hokusai, it was painted by J. McConnell, on the side of a house at 3510 O Street, NW. And that’s about all I know, other that the house is a three bedroom, 2 bath that sold for for $500K back in 2000. I guess it’s easier to find real estate information than it is to find out about local murals…
I painted that mural in August of 1974 for my friends who then owned the house. I was an architecture student at Harvard University, and worked summers in Washington. The idea to do something with the blank stucco side wall off the house was hatched during a delicious dinner with lots of good wine. I used Sherwin-Williams house paint, which has held up remarkably well, with no retouching.
John McConnell
Winchester, Massachusetts
2017
John,
I am the owner of the Wave House since 2000. I own the other houses next to it as well. If you have a moment, I would like to talk to you about the Wave House, as at some point in the future I will need to either repaint it or touch it up the mural and would like to get some history from you about it.
My office number is 202-333-2170 if you feel like touching base.
Thanks
Jim Mula
John! Thank you so much for leaving this message (and thanks for doing this cool mural!) I will definitely update my post. Do you still paint murals? Have you done any other?
I don’t paint murals. I’m still an architect, but with a fairly lively second career as a fine artist. I do mostly landscapes in oil. http://www.JohnMcConnellArtist.com