San Francisco Fountain, Bronze fountain sculpture in Union Square, San Francisco, United States

The San Francisco Fountain is a bronze sculpture completed in 1970 by Ruth Asawa, standing outside the Grand Hyatt San Francisco. Its cylinder, about 2.3 m tall and 4.9 m in diameter, forms the outer wall of the fountain basin and carries bas-relief scenes of the city. It sits in a base of brick stairs, with Albert Lanier as architect.

Completed in 1970, the fountain was commissioned for the new Grand Hyatt San Francisco after architect Chuck Bassett of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill saw Ruth Asawa's work, alongside children's pieces, at a California Redwood Association exhibition. Bassett asked Asawa to make a low-relief exterior for the hotel's entrance fountain with children from across the city, working in flour, salt and water "baker's clay". The cast bronze cylinder, 2.3 m tall and 4.9 m across, was set into brick stairs, with Albert Lanier as architect. The Smithsonian's Save Outdoor Sculpture! program labeled it "treatment needed" in September 1992, and restoration accompanied Apple's 2016 store project.

Children from Alvarado Elementary School and other parts of the city shaped the bas-relief scenes in "baker's clay", a mix of flour, salt and water; Ruth Asawa's mother Haru Asawa made the leaves. The bronze cylinder carries the work of children and friends, so the wall reads as a collective portrait of daily life in San Francisco.

The fountain stands outside the Grand Hyatt San Francisco at the corner of Post and Stockton Streets, set into a base of brick stairs that form part of the surrounding public open space. The area was renovated in 2016 with wooden tables, chairs, planters and a living wall, so seating is available beside the sculpture. Approach on foot from the nearby Stockton Street transit stops.

The fountain's bas-reliefs were made from "baker's clay", an inedible mix of flour, salt and water that children from Alvarado Elementary School shaped and baked in ordinary ovens. Architect Chuck Bassett of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill spotted their work at a California Redwood Association exhibition and asked Ruth Asawa to involve children from across the city. Leaves in the bronze were fashioned by Asawa's mother, Haru Asawa.