R-Evolution Leaves Embarcadero Plaza in October, With a Free Farewell on the 2nd

The 45-foot figure standing over Embarcadero Plaza comes down next month. Marco Cochrane’s R-Evolution will start to be dismantled on Monday, October 12 and will be off the site by Thursday, October 15, according to the Downtown SF Partnership. Before that, on Friday October 2, there is a free farewell event at the plaza from 2pm to 8pm.

The Farewell Event

Big Art Loop is running it with Building 180, Opulent Temple and the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department. The afternoon starts with talks about how the sculpture was made and about public art in the city, then moves to live music, performances, a group meditation and a closing DJ set from Opulent Temple. It is free; the organizers ask for an RSVP through the event listing.

What It Is and How It Got Here

R-Evolution is a steel-and-mesh figure by Northern California artist Marco Cochrane. It was built for Burning Man in 2015 and traveled to Petaluma, Miami Beach and Las Vegas before San Francisco, SFist reported. It was meant for Union Square, and that plan fell through over its size and weight. It has stood at Embarcadero Plaza since April 2025.

The numbers explain why moving it is a multi-day job. The sculpture arrives in seven pieces that get bolted together on site, and the work plus its anchoring system weighs about 32,000 pounds, or 16 tons. Installing it takes a crane. Bringing it to the waterfront cost roughly $300,000, sponsored by the Sijbrandij Foundation and produced by Building 180 under the Big Art Loop program.

It was due to leave in April. The San Francisco Arts Commission voted earlier this year to extend the stay through the fall, which is the reason it is still up now.

It Has Been Argued About

The installation has drawn a running debate about who decides what goes into the city’s civic spaces. Critics of Big Art Loop, including in coverage by KQED and Frieze, argue that privately funded projects are increasingly setting the agenda for public art while local artists from underrepresented communities compete for far less support. Supporters say the program has brought people and activity into spaces that had neither. Readers can weigh that for themselves; the point for anyone planning a visit is that the argument ends when the crane arrives.

R-Evolution has been listed for sale or lease. Other Big Art Loop works have gone to private buyers, including Steelhead on the Embarcadero and The Giraffes at Sunset Dunes.

What Replaces It

The plaza itself is next. Embarcadero Plaza and Sue Bierman Park are being combined into a single five-acre waterfront park, with construction expected to start late this year and run into early 2028. We covered the naming of the two halves after the Agnos and Bierman proposal in August. The Vaillancourt Fountain, the other large object in the plaza, was taken out in the spring.

Seeing It Before It Goes

Where: Embarcadero Plaza, at the foot of Market Street across the Embarcadero from the Ferry Building. Until: Dismantling begins Monday October 12. Cost: Free, at any hour.

Getting there: Embarcadero station sits directly underneath, on BART and on every Muni Metro line. The F Market and Wharves historic streetcar stops alongside. The Ferry Building farmers market runs on Saturday mornings, which pairs with a look at the sculpture in the same walk.

One scheduling note: the October 2 farewell is the same day Hardly Strictly Bluegrass opens in Golden Gate Park, at the other end of the city. Both are free and both run into the evening.

Photo: Downtown SF Partnership.