FiDi just got a little sweeter. At Candytopia, the immersive, Instagrammable pop-up museum of candy art, you can gorge yourself on Tootsie Pops, Pixy Stix, Lindt chocolate truffles and cotton candy taffy stocked in special boxes inside the interactive exhibit, but please refrain from licking the sugar-filled installations.
The 16,000-square-foot museum dedicated to candy is the brainchild of Santa Monica-based artist Jackie Sorkin, the self-described “Candy Queen” and founder of boutique sweets service Hollywood Candy Girls.
“The idea of the museum is to give to people a place to escape from their lives, have a fun and eat a lot of candy,” says Sorkin.
Launched first in Los Angeles (with a subsequent stop in New York), the wonderland was immediately loved by celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow and Christina Aguilera. But the San Francisco iteration, which is now open across the street from the Museum of Ice Cream, includes some SF-only components and treats.
As soon as you enter the sugar-filled space, a candy librarian (who looks like an extra in a Harry Potter movie) guides you to the library, where you'll find books, pendulum clocks and a stoic soldier in a coat of armor as well as a portrait of Sorkin herself—all made out of candy.
Photograph: Anna Volpicelli
Photograph: Kelly Sullivan/Getty Images for Candytopia
A flashy escalator gets you to the core of the museum, where your sweet journey continues with a Hansel and Gretel-esque room filled with colorful marzipan, followed by the celebrity portrait gallery filled with candy-crafted portraits of familiar faces such as Prince, Marylin Monroe, Steve Jobs, the Mona Lisa, and even replicas of the Golden State Warriors' championship trophies.
Photograph: Anna Volpicelli
Photograph: Anna Volpicelli
In the deep ocean room you'll find sharks, seahorses, starfish and a diver and a mermaid. This in the best place to get a shot for the 'Gram.
Photograph: Anna Volpicelli
The amusement continues in the unicorn and pig room (where a flying pig farts confetti—yes, really) before arriving at the last sugary land: a gigantic marshmallow pit for jumping and playing a a candy reproduction of the Golden Gate Bridge!
Photograph: Anna Volpicelli
Photograph: Kelly Sullivan/Getty Images for Candytopia
Check out the images and try not to salivate.
The candy-centered pop-up is now open at 767 Market Street and will run through November 30. Tickets are $26–$34.