San Francisco Wants to Destroy a 96-Year-Old’s Defining Artwork

The maligned sculpture — “weird,” “odd,” “bizarre” — is no longer a working fountain or a skateboarding mecca. But its supporters consider it an important city symbol.Vaillancourt Fountain was completed in 1971 and survived a powerful earthquake in 1989. “It’s going to be the shame of the city of San Francisco if they demolish it,” said the artist Armand Vaillancourt.