Philadelphia’s Girasole restaurant just added a beautiful, original sign to mark its location, just off Broad Street on Pine.
Instead of neon or plastic, the metal frame of the sign surrounds hand-crafted steel sculpture.
An elegant rendering of the restaurant’s name in bronze- and silver-colored cut metal rests over a blue-burnished background.
At the top, the restaurant’s signature flower (Italian for sunflower = girasole) shines down like the sun.
The overlapping petals — appearing somehow delicate, yet strong — allow glimpses of the real sky to peep through and are different on each side of the sign.
It’s a wonderful example of the work coming out of Chora Leone Art & Design in Atlantic County, NJ.
Jose Chora and Judy Leone have been creating together for over 15 years, and last year opened a gallery in Somers Point, NJ.
I caught up with Judy via telephone and she was kind enough to send over some additional photos of their works. He works with the metals and she does the mosaics.
Peep some of their other artworks below.