Clarion Alley
Located in the block formed by 17th & 18th and Mission and Valencia Streets (parallel to 17th)...Clarion Alley has been an enchanted site of bohemian culture at least as far back as the early sixties when artists like the Cockettes and Terry Riley performed in the same warehouse that the Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP) was based in until its demolition last year. CAMP was established in October 1992 by a volunteer collective of six North Mission residents: Aaron Noble, Michael O'Connor, Sebastiana Pastor, Rigo 92, Mary Gail Snyder, and Aracely Soriano. Photographer Fiona O'Connor documented CAMP from the beginning. Other members of CAMP over the years include Carolyn Castano, Diego Diaz, Kate Ellis, Permi Gill, Maya Hayuk and Vincent Oresman. Currently CAMP is run by Administrative Director Megan Wilson with a revolving group of volunteers including founding members Noble, Rigo 02, and Pastor, alley residents Jenn Bowman, Jonathan Parra, and Brian Dawson, and Mission artists Lucena Valle and Andy Schoultz.
CAMP was directly inspired by the mural cluster in Balmy Alley focused on Central American social struggles. CAMP did not choose a single theme however, instead focusing on the two goals of social inclusiveness and aesthetic variety. As a result CAMP has produced more than 100 murals on and around Clarion Alley by Latino, Caucasian, African-American, Native American, Asian, Indian, Queer and disabled artists of all ages and all levels of experience, with an emphasis on emerging artists and new styles. Clarion Alley was a key site for the development of the aesthetic that has become known as the Mission School, and boasts significant works by Carolyn Castano, Carolyn Ryder Cooley, Kenneth Huerta, Chris Johanson, Alicia McCarthy, Barry McGee, Jesus Angel Perez, Cynthia Rojas, Andy Schoultz, Daniel Segoria, Christine Shields, Scott Williams and many others.
Recent Murals by: Andrew Schoultz & Aaron Noble (18th and Lexington), Bryan Dawson & Rogelio Martinez & Sayaka Tagawa, Emily (butterfly), Eric Derail, Isis, Ivy McClelland, J Garcia, Jessica Miller, Lucena Valle, Marisa Jahn & Steve Shada, Rigo 02 & Aaron Noble, Scott Cowgill, SFAI Students, Sirron Norris, Xylor Jane
http://www.meganwilson.com/related/clarion.php
Submarine Building
"The 'submarine building' is a long metal shed near the water that is sometimes rented for filming, and has been used for other events such as the Survival Research Lab performances.
from "Back to the Bay" by the Center for Land Use Interpretation
Kate Pocrass: Portable Exhibition Venue
Each exhibition by Kate Pocrass is worn on and hidden inside normal and modified clothing (the entire exhibition is worn by one person): Turn red hat inside out, Unzip sides of back pockets, Unsnap pouch from the inside of jacket, Kick up feet - reveal sole of shoe, Take out wallet - shuffle through, Press play on portable CD player.
She calls this project the Portable Exhibition Venue. . and it "is created specifically for the individual artist. Artists are chosen either on the basis of their previous work or perhaps in part to an interesting conversation we may have had. There are no slide submissions, no resumes, and no ass-kissing."
"Each Venue circumvents the usual gallery process and creates an alternative to traditional art spaces. This makes the artwork readily available and accessible to a non-gallery-hopping audience. "
"The Venues are about everyday attire, casual settings, mundane & unspectacular surroundings, and people being able to interrupt me while I am out doing my daily activities."
http://www.silentgallery.com/pocrass/pev/index.html
Playshop
Playshop can be described as an open-access laboratory which encourages the free flow of ideas. It presents projects, workshops, seminars, art installations and a web site that collectively question or challenge the role of technology and propose alternatives to the cultural social and economic systems we live in. Playshop is where the energy of art production, education, curatorial practice and social interaction fuse to create a vital public space and an environment of exchange.
Organized by Futurefarmers, Playshop is an extension of their studio practice. Through their Artist in Residency program, Futurefarmers have collaborated with a wide range of talents since 1995 to explore the relationship of concept and creative process in the development of work in new media. Futurefarmers artists and friends; Amy Franceschini, Michael Swaine, Elmar Trefz, Stijn Schiffeleers and Richard Mortimer will be on hand in the Playshop several days a week to host a series of projects and workshops. The projects include: the Fingerprint Maze, a physical interface turns individual fingerprints into a 3D maze to wander through on screen; Community Connectivity, a workshop which presents instructions for building one's own wireless antennae; Botanical Gameboy, an installation of custom Nintendo gameboys powered by a network of lemon trees; and an interactive installation centered on the video game paradigm created by the student collective Artech. Transport, the online component of Playshop, will serve as a resource and window to the events and projects within the space consisting of a mailing list, database and gallery.
Futurefarmers use the metaphor of a mothership to characterize Playshop as a free-floating and open-source system of activities. The mothership has landed at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts [in the former cafe space] from January 17 through April 4, and will seek out another destination in which to open shop after this date.
http://www.futurefarmers.com/playshop/
Phantom Galleries
Temporary art exhibits occupying vacant storefronts in downtown San José. "The project aims to provide local artists with an opportunity to exhibit their work, while fostering economic development by drawing attention to available retail space. Our vision is to prove the importance of collaboration between the city and local artists, creating a future of support between both."
http://www.populuspresents.com/main/pg/
Musée d'Honneur Minuscule
In addition to the visual artwork shown in the gallery, New Langton Arts runs the Mus�e d'Honneur Minuscule . . which presents artworks in a street level window, allowing passers-by to view the work of an emerging artist even during non-gallery hours. Stop by 1246 Folsom Street (between 8th and 9th streets) and have a look.