Mayor Lee Launches Return of Art in Storefronts Program to Central Market
Blick Art Materials $10,000 Contribution Allows for the Second Year of the SF Arts Market in UN Plaza
05/13/11— Mayor Edwin M. Lee today launched the return of Art in Storefronts at Central Market, now in its second year, with six storefront installations, five murals, and two sculptures made possible by Black Rock Arts Foundation. The latest in The ARTery Project’s efforts to revitalize a once-vibrant commercial corridor, the Art in Storefronts program temporarily places original art installations by San Francisco artists in vacant and under-used storefront windows and exterior walls.
“We are working to bring new creative energy to Market Street through a dynamic collaboration between City agencies, artists, community organizations, and the business community,” said Mayor Lee. “These vibrant public art works will attract locals and visitors alike, driving foot traffic to the neighborhood and stimulating the local economy.”
“This addition to the ARTery Project is one way to turn vacant storefronts into vibrant, ground-floor art exhibits that engage passersby and generate community pride,” said District 6 Supervisor Jane Kim.
“We launched The ARTery Project in the fall with three dynamic site-specific light installations, which was a big step forward in transforming Central Market into a lively destination with the arts at its core,” said Cultural Affairs Director Luis R. Cancel. “Art in Storefronts adds another layer of cultural richness to the neighborhood, as does the SF Arts Market at UN Plaza.”
Art in Storefronts, under the auspices of the ARTery Project, is part of the City’s ongoing efforts to catalyze the revitalization of Central Market. The Central Market Partnership, a public/private effort that is targeting as City and private resources toward the improvement of the neighborhood, is focused on business and arts venue development, physical improvements, safety enhancements, and the activation of open and vacant space through the arts. The partnership with Black Rock Arts Foundation for the two sculptures near Seventh and Market marks the arrival of Burning Man’s headquarters to Central Market. Burning Man will move into its new home at Sixth and Market later this month. San Francisco Beautiful also joined the project, contributing $3,000 to the green façade on the Luggage Store Gallery at 1007 Market Street.
Mayor Lee today also announced a $10,000 contribution from Blick Art Materials, a premier art supply source in San Francisco with a location near Sixth and Market, allowing for a second year of the San Francisco Arts Market in UN Plaza. The City has partnered with Independent Arts & Media to run a weekly open-air market offering local arts, crafts, literature, music and performance. The market will open June 16 and run Thursdays through the summer alongside Off the Grid food trucks.
“Blick Art Materials is dedicated to supporting art and art education in every way that we can, including partnerships with cities and colleges nationwide, such as the San Francisco Arts Market,” said Blick Art Materials President Edward Ogorzaly. “While we are the largest in the industry, it is our service and community involvement that set us apart from all the rest. We are excited to support the 2nd Annual SF Arts Market.”
Adding an array of eclectic visual offerings to Central Market, this round of Art in Storefronts installations will remain on view through August 13, 2011, and include:
· A partnership with Black Rock Arts Foundation (BRAF) on Market Street Blooms, an installation of two of Karen Cusolito’s 20’ flower sculptures at UN Plaza and across the street at 1123 Market Street.
· Highlighting the bicycle culture of Market Street, Alexis Arnold fills a Market Street window with old bike rims encased in glinting crystals along with a series of gold-painted U-locks (the bicycle detritus often left behind as a marker).
· Vanesa Gingold presents colorful sculptures and mobiles inspired by interviews with individuals from the Central Market community about their childhood memories.
· Creating an illusion of transformation, Madeline Trait’s installation presents a pile of discarded aluminum cans that magically transform into gracefully flying butterflies that fill the storefront and escape to the exterior surroundings of the building.
· Erik Otto envisions change as a catalyst for Central Market’s history and future. His installation depicts the openness for lasting change through metaphors symbolized by clouds, houses, and a circle of neon light. On a storefront window, the Indigenous Arts Coalition project looping images of historical footage, personal photography, appropriated images and impactful text to represent the “double life” of individuals straddling cultural identities.
· Cat U-Thasoonthorn documents in black and white photographs the defunct commercial signage around Central Market. Combined into a panoramic fictional street view, the scenes are reanimated with the insertion of neon and fluorescent lights.
· the luggage store will debut artist Keith Agoada’s installation of living plants called City of Green, which transforms the exterior wall between the gallery’s second and third floor windows.
· Gray Area Foundation for the Arts will host a closing for their TRANSMUTATIONS exhibition in their new space, and Central City Hospitality House Community Art Program will hold a closing party for their Identity Theory exhibition.
This round of Art in Storefronts also features a record number of murals, which include:
· Robert Harris creates an abstract urban landscape of Market Street looking towards the Ferry Building. Above the city skyline, a series of paintbrushes will drip bright colors onto the scene while the bottom of the mural will be bordered by brightly colored painted tiles representing Market Street’s culturally diverse environment.
· Paz de la Calzada covers the old Strand Theater with a charcoal drawing of tangled strands of hair, which appear to wrap around the building. Both Robert and Paz’s murals are funded by the Department of Public Works as part of the StreetSmARTS program.
· Vicky Knoop and Beatrice Thomas celebrate under-recognized businesses and iconic sites of Central Market with their mural rendered in the style of vintage tourist postcards.
· Rafael Landea’s mural pays homage to the historic theaters that once lined Market Street, depicting a swirl of old theater seats swept up into tornado-like activity. Each chair will be unique and reflects on the lost glamour of Market Street.
· In a photo-collage mural Amber Hasselbring brings to life the story of the Western Tiger Swallowtail butterfly and the London Plane tree, two indigenous species found on Market Street.
For more information on Art in Storefronts, go to: sfartscommission.org/storefronts.
05/13/11— Mayor Edwin M. Lee today launched the return of Art in Storefronts at Central Market, now in its second year, with six storefront installations, five murals, and two sculptures made possible by Black Rock Arts Foundation. The latest in The ARTery Project’s efforts to revitalize a once-vibrant commercial corridor, the Art in Storefronts program temporarily places original art installations by San Francisco artists in vacant and under-used storefront windows and exterior walls.
“We are working to bring new creative energy to Market Street through a dynamic collaboration between City agencies, artists, community organizations, and the business community,” said Mayor Lee. “These vibrant public art works will attract locals and visitors alike, driving foot traffic to the neighborhood and stimulating the local economy.”
“This addition to the ARTery Project is one way to turn vacant storefronts into vibrant, ground-floor art exhibits that engage passersby and generate community pride,” said District 6 Supervisor Jane Kim.
“We launched The ARTery Project in the fall with three dynamic site-specific light installations, which was a big step forward in transforming Central Market into a lively destination with the arts at its core,” said Cultural Affairs Director Luis R. Cancel. “Art in Storefronts adds another layer of cultural richness to the neighborhood, as does the SF Arts Market at UN Plaza.”
Art in Storefronts, under the auspices of the ARTery Project, is part of the City’s ongoing efforts to catalyze the revitalization of Central Market. The Central Market Partnership, a public/private effort that is targeting as City and private resources toward the improvement of the neighborhood, is focused on business and arts venue development, physical improvements, safety enhancements, and the activation of open and vacant space through the arts. The partnership with Black Rock Arts Foundation for the two sculptures near Seventh and Market marks the arrival of Burning Man’s headquarters to Central Market. Burning Man will move into its new home at Sixth and Market later this month. San Francisco Beautiful also joined the project, contributing $3,000 to the green façade on the Luggage Store Gallery at 1007 Market Street.
Mayor Lee today also announced a $10,000 contribution from Blick Art Materials, a premier art supply source in San Francisco with a location near Sixth and Market, allowing for a second year of the San Francisco Arts Market in UN Plaza. The City has partnered with Independent Arts & Media to run a weekly open-air market offering local arts, crafts, literature, music and performance. The market will open June 16 and run Thursdays through the summer alongside Off the Grid food trucks.
“Blick Art Materials is dedicated to supporting art and art education in every way that we can, including partnerships with cities and colleges nationwide, such as the San Francisco Arts Market,” said Blick Art Materials President Edward Ogorzaly. “While we are the largest in the industry, it is our service and community involvement that set us apart from all the rest. We are excited to support the 2nd Annual SF Arts Market.”
Adding an array of eclectic visual offerings to Central Market, this round of Art in Storefronts installations will remain on view through August 13, 2011, and include:
· A partnership with Black Rock Arts Foundation (BRAF) on Market Street Blooms, an installation of two of Karen Cusolito’s 20’ flower sculptures at UN Plaza and across the street at 1123 Market Street.
· Highlighting the bicycle culture of Market Street, Alexis Arnold fills a Market Street window with old bike rims encased in glinting crystals along with a series of gold-painted U-locks (the bicycle detritus often left behind as a marker).
· Vanesa Gingold presents colorful sculptures and mobiles inspired by interviews with individuals from the Central Market community about their childhood memories.
· Creating an illusion of transformation, Madeline Trait’s installation presents a pile of discarded aluminum cans that magically transform into gracefully flying butterflies that fill the storefront and escape to the exterior surroundings of the building.
· Erik Otto envisions change as a catalyst for Central Market’s history and future. His installation depicts the openness for lasting change through metaphors symbolized by clouds, houses, and a circle of neon light. On a storefront window, the Indigenous Arts Coalition project looping images of historical footage, personal photography, appropriated images and impactful text to represent the “double life” of individuals straddling cultural identities.
· Cat U-Thasoonthorn documents in black and white photographs the defunct commercial signage around Central Market. Combined into a panoramic fictional street view, the scenes are reanimated with the insertion of neon and fluorescent lights.
· the luggage store will debut artist Keith Agoada’s installation of living plants called City of Green, which transforms the exterior wall between the gallery’s second and third floor windows.
· Gray Area Foundation for the Arts will host a closing for their TRANSMUTATIONS exhibition in their new space, and Central City Hospitality House Community Art Program will hold a closing party for their Identity Theory exhibition.
This round of Art in Storefronts also features a record number of murals, which include:
· Robert Harris creates an abstract urban landscape of Market Street looking towards the Ferry Building. Above the city skyline, a series of paintbrushes will drip bright colors onto the scene while the bottom of the mural will be bordered by brightly colored painted tiles representing Market Street’s culturally diverse environment.
· Paz de la Calzada covers the old Strand Theater with a charcoal drawing of tangled strands of hair, which appear to wrap around the building. Both Robert and Paz’s murals are funded by the Department of Public Works as part of the StreetSmARTS program.
· Vicky Knoop and Beatrice Thomas celebrate under-recognized businesses and iconic sites of Central Market with their mural rendered in the style of vintage tourist postcards.
· Rafael Landea’s mural pays homage to the historic theaters that once lined Market Street, depicting a swirl of old theater seats swept up into tornado-like activity. Each chair will be unique and reflects on the lost glamour of Market Street.
· In a photo-collage mural Amber Hasselbring brings to life the story of the Western Tiger Swallowtail butterfly and the London Plane tree, two indigenous species found on Market Street.
For more information on Art in Storefronts, go to: sfartscommission.org/storefronts.