if the building owner permitted, you could go hog wild and weld happy animal or leaf shapes to the bars...much less jarring to the eye (no pun intended) than mean-looking pliers and clamps.

yuch - I think it looks like something out of David Cronenberg movie, like Dead Ringers.

C R E E P Y

They wouldn't keep anybody out; you just climb onto the top bar.

Those are blacksmithing tools, ya'll. Kind of a bit of irony.

I'm with Downeast Suzy...it looks like there's enough room to enter through the top.

i like em!

Besides that it looks like there is enough room to enter on top, how would you quickly get OUT of those windows in case of a fire? You should never assume you could use another way out--that might be where the fire is.

Those must cast some scary shadows!

I love 'em too. I think they look great and nothing like torture tools. But I grew up around ferriers.

And while these probably don't pop from the inside, well made security bars do have an emergency release on the inside. Soooo... if one were so inspired to take on a totally amazing welding project, you could customize the bars and still have a safe escape. What a geat way to thumb your nose at potential crooks. Turn security into something attrative, eye catching, and completely masquerede the fact that it's about safety and not just great design.

Hey! That's next door to me!

That area of Berkeley is really industrial. There are a lot of machine shops and glass blowers in the area. Those tools are sort of a nod to that, I think.

Shades of chain saw massacre and bondage! LOL.

I JUST saw these when I went to visit Paper Monkey Press (awesome place by the way) last weekend, and I told my boyfriend how cool I thought they were. HOW FUNNY?!

Also, the idea of trying to climb over those pointy bits does not sound appealing. It would keep me out.

lisa2 in austin

irony

indeed! ;)