Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Potrero and 17th

November 6th from 2:00 - 6:00 is the opening reception for Studio Gallery's Tiny Show. I have quite a few pieces in the show which runs until December 23. Trish Tunney, Catherine Mackey, Wendy Miller, and many others from 1890 Bryant will have work there. Hope to see you at Studio Gallery!


Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Capp & 26th

I've noticed the birds in San Francisco seem to change their flight patterns in the fall. I know that migration is related to food availability, and there's plenty of that in the City, year around, so they're not migrating. But they do seem to fly around in big swooping flocks and land in new places. Last year I noticed dozens of birds on the lines around Bernal Heights and promised this year I would carry my camera to capture them.  Maybe they're stopping in on the way down South from Canada. In this shot, my neighborhood pigeons are hanging out, where I can count on seeing them year around. 



Sunday, October 16, 2011

Analogue Ivy

At some point the power lines will come down and the urban birds will find new places to perch. In this shot, which is a favorite of mine, the ivy has grown around the telephone poll and given them a second option. I went back to Saint Mary's Park to get more images of this scene and the ivy had been cleared away. I wondered by whom. The City gardener? The telephone company? Do they even exist anymore?  Hopefully by the time the world goes entirely digital, I'll have moved on to new subjects. In the mean time, I'm working to capture this urban scenario that I can't seem to get enough of. 




Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Another view of the Bakery Outlet


The Bakery Outlet at 17th and Bryant is a puzzling relic. I know my years in California, along with my innate tendency to be impressed by healthy foods, fads, and happy cows, have taken me a long way from my Midwestern Wonder bread roots - actually it was Gardner bread in Madison, Wisconsin. So I have to wonder (ha!) how does that bread maker that bakes that yummy smelling "bread" survive in the land of gourmet baguettes and vegan, gluten free pastries? I can smell the bread being baked while in my studio up the street, so I know they're not shipping it in from the Midwest. I guess it's good the squishy white bread lovers of the City still have a place to buy day old bread.

Friday, October 7, 2011

Stopping for a Chat




An entire week has passed since my Open Studios - three days of chatting about my work to the public. This year, I really want a do-over.  It takes so much energy to get the work completed and get it up on the walls, clean and organize the space, paint the walls, buy food, get labels and mailing lists, figure out what to serve and by the time it's all over, I am really sad.

And this year, we were competing with "Hardly Strictly Bluegrass," a huge festival in Golden Gate Park so I didn't feel like I had the usual crowds we're accustomed to seeing at 1890 Bryant Street Studios. Also, now it means I need to get back to work, and prepare for the next show. So you see, I want a do-over so I can hang out in that tension and relief of wondering if anyone is going to come, and oh yay, they came, they bought. Now it's over, until spring.

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Looking for Birds

It's been a very exciting and busy week. Art for AIDS took place Friday and it was, as usual , an incredible event. The new location in the Galleria at the San Francisco Design Center is fabulous.
Trish and I are now the proud owners of a second piece by Sonya Philip.

I also volunteered at SOMArts for ArtSpan on Sunday checking in art for the 2011 Fall Open Studios gallery exhibition. This piece is in the exhibit and the kick off party is tonight.

And...my new studio at 1890 Bryant Street is painted, cleaned and filled with art. I haven't actually moved my studio furniture - that will happen after this weekend - after Open Studios.
Come by if you're in town, Friday, 9/30 from 6pm - 10pm, Saturday and Sunday, 10/1 & 2, 11 - 6.


Sunday, September 25, 2011

Crescent Street Crow

I've been trying to catch a crow on this electrical poll for years. Every Friday after the garbage trucks roll through Bernal Heights, the crows are picking through the truck's path in hopes of some juicy scraps. They pop up to this poll when cars go by and the fly back down to the street when it's clear. I usually don't have enough patience to wait too long, so catching one really means one happens to be up there when I walk by. Thus, it's taken me years to get the shot.