City Scapes

I have worked in The Mission District of San Franscisco for the past 30 years and have delighted in the sights, sounds, and smells of the mostly Mexican/ Latin America population. A day trip might include exploring the streets and alleys, camera in hand, capturing the many colorful murals painted on anything that will hold paint. Lunch at a favorite taqueria of course.

Not a lot of my artistry went into making the ATC card for May.  I simply printed one of my images on cloth and accented some of it with thread.  All of the magic happens on the garage door by the  muralist.The pachuco in the zoot suit stands in the heart of the Mission district, in front of one of the many produce markets in the district.

Mission & 24th Street
San Francisco, CA

There were so many images to choose from.  These are some other mural images I have taken over the years, many of them political in nature.  I'm not familiar with the politics of the murals, just taken by the beauty and colors.

Many of the murals over the years have faded, been painted over or disappeared.  The essence of the Mission neighborhood is still there, but it is changing also.  Lots of "gentrification", or rich people buying out property and displacing the renters. Oh, some new murals are happening, edgy, angular,new age stuff, but just not as interesting or soulful.