Street Art in D.C. #5

Street art is where you find it.

While roaming around the DuPont Circle neighborhood recently, we spotted some street art, a very large mural on the side of a building.  

The mural, painted by Peter Waddell in 2011, is titled The Toy Theatre Mural.  According to PeterWaddell.com, the mural on Sunderland Place, NW, depicts a giant toy theatre showcasing the DuPont Circle neighborhood at the beginning of its development in the 19th century.  

• "Beneath the monumental proscenium arch, 40' high, the stage is set with scenery representing the first two great mansions of Dupont Circle. The British Legation on Connecticut Avenue and “Stewarts Castle” on the Circle arose from the area's rough farmland in the 1870s."

• "These grand houses marked the beginning of Dupont Circle as a fashionable neighbourhood for the rich."

The buildings depicted in Waddell's mural were amazing in their day.  Both buildings (pictured below) were large and ornate but they were not long-lasting, since they were demolished to make way for more development.  

The British Legation (completed 1872, demolished 1931)

Stewart's Castle (completed 1873, demolished 1931)