murals – Page 4 – HappyFeet Travels

September 16, 2009August 30, 2019

Precita Eyes Benefit: 19 Sep

SOMArts (South of Market Cultural Center)
934 Brannan Street (near 8th Street)
San Francisco, CA. 94103
6:30-9:30 pm
Admission:Â general $35, VIP $50

For more information please visit our website

I’ll have my autograph pen there this Saturday, along with a pile of artists, authors, and photographers in the Mission Muralismo book. Not cheap, but the money goes to a great cause: MURALS!

September 6, 2009

On Contemplating Art and Public Space

I spend a lot of time walking/biking around urban landscapes, looking at space and photographing art. If you’ve followed my travels, you’ve notice that this is something that goes beyond hobby. This search isn’t a job either, but I have been paid for my efforts. For me, walking through a living system where humans work, play, eat, sleep, etc. brings rewards beyond a systematic point of reference. It is hard to label it as work, hobby, etc., when the urge to wander and look for art is a deep way of living for me.

This Saturday, I went for a walk, thinking a bit more about space. I reflected on the potential that space has to present art. The way people relay their feelings in more creative ways. And the lost histories that surrounds us in the neighborhoods we live in.

The following photo essay are the images that made me stop, stare, ponder, and snap. We all live in a world full of many colorful possibilities. We also live in a culture that doesn’t tolerate certain opinions, while letting others flourish. These photos touch on all the ideas I carry with a passion, and might help add context to why I constantly “stencil hunt” in the urban wilds of the USA and beyond.

I have photographed Bruce Tomb’s Dappropriation Wall for almost 10 years now. But this is my first photo of the facade of the former SFPD Mission “cop shop.” This building has a violent history, somewhat forgotten by new residents distracted by the pirate flag and postered public wall.

A perfect example of a space’s potential to hold art. Green drops protect sacaffolding and a paint crew’s work. They left the billboard open, with neglected, rotting ads on it. Easy access for a nimble artist, or someone who wants to take it down!

A great example of humor with stencil graffiti, someone put the phone back in the phonebooth. Placement is one of the foundations of street art, and this well-placed stencil on paper gets high marks.

When I first moved to the Mission, a beautiful mural graced this wall. “Our Roots Are Still Alive” kept getting defaced due to its pro-Palestinian visuals. So it is lost to the public behind plywood.

Dolores Park has become the hang out in recent years. Now the locals living nearby want to curb the excessive good times. This brings up the natural question: who controls public space and what goes on in it?

These peace pillars dot the world, giving people a public space for expressing their desire for peace. Set with intention, they create space in the heart as well as by the sidewalk.

This colorful graffiti-covered truck would be a white “canvas” or logo-pasted ad otherwise. When thinking of the potential for a space to hold art, this mobile object is a logical choice.

August 21, 2009August 30, 2019

woah… empty blog…

Hey there. Did anybody miss me? Has the webos-cloud of attention moved away from the humble digs of HappyFeet Travels? I can only guess that you all have been sucked into the micro-webos clouds of Twitter and FaceBook. Huh? Have you? So easy to blog in 100-ish characters or less, isn’t it? Simple to throw some links to vids, articles, and pics over on those sites, yes? Beyond bands, has anyone wandered to the MySpace-webos cloud lately? They’ve made it less blinky last I checked, which was a while ago!

I’ve been laying low for several reasons. Getting off of a year of touring and promoting and producing has been part of the reason. Resting, regrouping, and reconnecting has been another. Not feeling like I have much to say that isn’t too personal (I don’t post too personal here) is yet another reason for the blank cal on this site. And just plain coming to grips with life in the microcosm of the reality-cloud we call a crappy economy has been another.

Things here at HappyFt HQ are feeling caught up. The Fall is looking great for potential creative endeavors. Some of them might actually help me pay the rent! On the book front, Stencil Nation is currently “out of stock” while Manic D tries to figure out the future in what is now a glutted street art book category (we were there before the wave crested…. I beat the crowd once again!). I still have some banged up return copies that I’m trying to sell on my site. A few have gone out.

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