The Mission – 23

 Posted by on May 2, 2012
May 022012
 
Mission and 23rd
The Mission District
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23 in Binary Code
23 in Roman Numerals
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Mission 23 by Rigo23  –  2003

Mission 23 is a multi-part mosaic tile art piece embedded in the north-east and south-west sidewalks of Mission Street at 23rd Street. On each one of the white squares is a sentence painted in green that provides a fact about the number 23. Each of the large rectangles is a graphic symbol of the number 23, in white against a green background, to mimic a standard street sign, all of 1-inch mosaic tile.

The number 23 holds a special significance for the artist known at the time as Rigo 2002. In addition to being the number of the street where his artwork is located, it is also the street number of his studio and the age at which he moved to the United States.

Rigo noted the importance of the number 23 in natural systems and these facts formed the basis of the four sentences, rendered in English and Spanish, in the sidewalk: “A healthy human being gets 23 chromosomes from the mother and 23 from the father.” “The planet earth spins at a 23 degree angle from its north/south axis.” “The Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn are roughly 23 degrees north and south of the Equator.” “The number 23 is only divided by itself or one.” The number 23 is described in the giant mosaic as symbols in the six large rectangles. They are shown as Binary code (10111), 23 dots, Roman Numerals, cursive, cross-hatching, and as “= + =” .

Rigo has work all over san francisco.

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Rigo’s work sits on both sides of Mission at 23rd.  This is the north-east side of the street.  I find it appalling that the City of San Francisco’s Art Commission can not at least maintain what art they do know they have. They know of this damage as they have noted that fact on their web page where I found a description of the piece.

This first photo below is upside down because a garbage can is sitting where I would have like to have stood to take the photograph.  It also explains why it is so filthy.  The others are so badly damaged as to either be missing or completely illegible.

As a huge fan of Rigo23, I find it a  shame that this work has been allowed to fall into such complete disrepair.

Potrero Hill – Cars and Birds

 Posted by on December 27, 2011
Dec 272011
 
16th and Bryant
Potrero Hill, San Francisco

This mural at 16th and Bryant is by Rigo and was done in 1997.  Rigo has been in this website many times. was born and raised on the Portuguese island of Madeira. He later established himself as an artist in San Francisco, earning a BFA from San Francisco Art Institute in 1991 and an MFA from Stanford University in 1997. From 1984-2002, Rigo used the last two digits of the current year as part of his name, finally settling upon “23″ in 2003

 

SOMA – One Tree

 Posted by on December 20, 2011
Dec 202011
 
SOMA
10th and Bryant

This mural is by Rigo.  This piece was done in 1996.  Rigo has been in this website many times before.  He was born and raised on the Portuguese island of Madeira. He later established himself as an artist in San Francisco, earning a BFA from San Francisco Art Institute in 1991 and an MFA from Stanford University in 1997. From 1984-2002, Rigo used the last two digits of the current year as part of his name, finally settling upon “23” in 2003.

The Tenderloin National Forest

 Posted by on July 12, 2011
Jul 122011
 
Steel Gate by Kevin Leeper
I stopped short when I saw this beautiful gate. It is the entry to Cohen Alley off Leavenworth, near Eddy.  This is the Tenderloin, an area of town that starts many a conversation.    It has a fascinating history,  if you are interested, head over to wikipedia.  I was amazed at the things I learned about this area.
What most people think about the Tenderloin is high crime, but at the same time the high concentration of apartment buildings in the Tenderloin gives it the densest population (people per square mile) in the city, and also the highest proportion of families and children.
It is also one of the poorest, with a median family income of around $20K, a figure that is less half the overall city average. The area has a large number of immigrants from Asia, Southeast Asia and Latin America, and the 2004 demographic summary stated that the Tenderloin is home to the city’s entire Cambodian population.”

Kevin Leeper is a San Francisco Art Institute graduate and part time teacher at Diablo Valley College. He designed and fabricated the gate in 1993 in response to the local residents wish to have a more secure area at night.  What this door opens onto is “The Tenderloin National Forest”.  In 1989 a group of artists formed the nonprofit Luggage Store Gallery. The artists annexed the 25 by 136 foot alley and began slowly transforming it. The idea to build a forest was sparked when the group covered the area with rolls of sod as part of one of its many public events. The forest consists of cherry, cypress and Japanese maple trees plus a pair of redwoods, the tallest of which is four stories high. Edible plants and herbs grow in raised boxes, and aloe, cactus, ginkgo and ferns are scattered throughout.

I was unable to find the artist that did this mural.
The site is now officially sanctioned by the city, which charges the gallery a symbolic annual rent of $1. It is left open for visitors daily between roughly noon and 5 p.m.
 
These “Guardians” are by Johanna Poethig.  We have seen her work in Tutubi Plaza
 
This is the bottom half of Woon Socket.  The top half can be seen over the fence in the first photograph.  This is by Ricardo Richey and Andrew Schoultz.
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These amazing mosaics are entitled cultural geometry by Rigo 23 a Portuguese muralist, painter, and political artist.
I borrowed this from the San Francisco Chronicle, I just really needed you to see the entire mosaic. This was obviously taken during the installation, the greenery is so much more lush and the trees so much bigger, you would not get this shot today.



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