Everything Must Go, Daniel Doherty, 2015
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Selections from the archives of CAMP and contributions by others 2010 – 2019:
CLARION ALLEY TURNS 20, 2012
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VIVA LA TAMALE LADY! 2013
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THE MAGICAL ALLEY, 2013
by Megan Wilson
This past summer a group of business execs, all clad in expensive black suits rolled into Clarion Alley with a camera crew. As is the case when private tour groups (often part of larger foodie or boutique packages) appear on the alley with little or no connection to the community’s history or struggles, these folks looked ridiculous. Surrounded by murals, most with messages of social and political dissidence (Malcolm X, homelessness, queerness, solidarity for those being forced out by the forces of gentrification, “Tax The Rich”) and standing amidst the strong scent of urine, scattered debris, artists painting, and a small community of homeless vets asking for change, this group could not have looked more out of place. Mesmerized by the space, they were scurrying about scouting for areas to film while excitedly discussing how they’d recently discovered this “magical alley.”
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BEHNOOD MOKRI INTERVIEWS SHAGHAYEGH CYROUS and KEYVAN SHOVIR, 2013
Behnood Mokri interviews Shaghayegh Cyrous and Keyvan Shovir while they painted their mural We Want Peace in 2013.
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THE WALL OF SHAME & SOLUTIONS, 2014
by Megan Wilson, Christopher Statton, and Mike Reger
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NARRATIVES OF DISPLACEMENT & RESISTANCE, May 16 2015
The Anti-Eviction Mapping Project (AEMP) and Clarion Alley Mural Project presented the Mural and Map Launch for AEMP’s Narratives of Displacement Oral History Project in Clarion Alley. AEMP also released its new zine project, We Are Here. On Saturday May 16th, 2015 CAMP and AEMP held the mural dedication on Clarion Alley, honoring the amazing mural painters, oral historians, and tenants fighting eviction that have co-created the AEMP narrative map in Clarion Alley. The event also included music by Adelante and Sin Nombre!
View the video from the mural dedication!
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NO CLEAR-CUTTING OUR COMMUNITY, September 15, 2015:
On September 15, 2015 the South of Market Community Action Network (SOMCAN) and Clarion Alley Mural Project held a community gathering on Clarion Alley to celebrate the mural – No Clear-Cutting Our Community – painted by Christopher Statton with words by Tony Robles created to bring attention to the negative impact that the 5M development is going to have on the South of Market neighborhood, and primarily on the low-income communities of color in the area, as well as San Francisco as a whole.
Video by Joseph Smooke
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RISE IN POWER, José V. Guerra Awe, 2016
“Rise In Power depicts an inverted American flag with black and white stripes to give the impression that information is being put down in black and white. The location of the mural is directly across the street from the San Francisco Mission District Police Station. The names within the stripes are those of a small fraction of unarmed Hispanic and African American civilians that have been murdered by the police throughout the US, over the past several years.
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PRESS CONFERENCE HOSTED BY THE COALITION ON HOMELESSNESS:
San Francisco Campers and Neighbors Speak Out About Luis Gongora Murder and Continued Sweeps of Encampments, April 2016
When: Thursday, April 21st at 2:00pm
Where: Clarion Alley “Housing is a Human Right” mural- one third of the way down The Alley from the Valencia side.
Mural painted by Megan Wilson & Christopher Statton as part of the Clarion Alley Mural Project.
San Francisco, CA- A shooting by police officers of Luis Gongora, a Mayan Speaking man and father of three children from the Yucatan last Thursday, April 7th was met with a response from both Supervisor Wiener and Mayor Lee calling for homeless sweeps city wide. The Coalition on Homeless, with Supervisor John Avalos as our champion, is calling for a humane response to encampments that truly solves the issue. Earlier this year, a recent widely publicized removal of an encampment containing approximately 300 people along Division Street received broad media attention as the City only provided temporary lodging for about half the residents. The Coalition on Homelessness is concerned that the relocation efforts of homeless people from encampments on Division Street and more recently on Shotwell Street in the city have only further de-stabilized the homeless community, have simply pushed homeless people, in most cases, a very short distance away, and in the worst case scenario have resulted in police-involved murders of homeless individuals such as Luis Gongora last week.
“Homeless and street-based San Franciscans have been surviving these on-going sweeps for months, and in some cases years,” said Bilal Ali, Human Rights Organizer of the SF Coalition on Homelessness. “Instead of actually addressing the issue, the city is continuing this failed policy of displacement rather than listening to us every single time we state the logical solution to the growing crisis which is: HOUSING. Luis Gongora would not have been murdered had he been inside. Bottom-line.”
Homeless people suffer from sleep deprivation, absent a right to rest, they are woken frequently by police and security. Their voices have been nearly eliminated from the discussions currently before San Francisco elected officials today. We invite press and media makers to listen to the voices of and ask questions directly to those who have been surviving the sweeps, witnessesing the violence, and have sustainable, logical solutions to share.
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UNDER SF: SURVIVAL OF THE ARTIST – EPISODE 4, directed by Jessi Fry, produced by Erica Ramsey Pulley
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CAMP 25th ANNIVERSARY
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CAMP 25TH ANNIVERSARY ZINE
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CAN THE MESSAGE BE GREATER THAN THE MEDIUM?
by Christopher Statton
Cultivating Resistance, SF Poster Syndicate — January 2017
As Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP) celebrates its 25th year, it is only fitting that our first mural of 2017 was entitled Cultivating Resistance, a collaborative project between CAMP and the SF Poster Syndicate. Depicted at the center of the image are communities standing together to support and honor the environment, education, and criminal justice reform. Surrounded on all sides by the current evils of our time, they are insulating the fledgling tree with their activism.
Spending the month leading up to and following the presidential election painting on the cold side of Clarion Alley in San Francisco, the side that never sees direct sun, gave an odd vantage point into the insanity of our time. Painting with the arts collective The SF Poster Syndicate, we were frequently confronted with the gleeful spectacle of selfie sticks, sexy poses, and Uber and Lyft drivers forcing the gathered crowds to part as their GPS would take them down one of the slowest short cut routes imaginable.
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ARISE: THE POWER OF POLITICAL ART
On May 1 – 30, 2018 Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP), Art Forces, and AROC (Arab Resource and Organizing Center) presented ARISE! Power of Political Art, featuring political artworks from artists, collectives, and movements locally and globally over the past 50+ years, addressing the social/political crises of our times. The exhibit makes links between local, national and international struggles and 70 years of the occupation of Palestine.
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BANGKIT / ARISE – YOGYAKARTA
In July/August, 2018 the first phase of CAMP’s second international exchange and residency project with Yogyakarta, Indonesia launched in Yogyakarta.
Bangkit/Arise is designed to foster discussions, understanding, and action on critical social/political issues facing our global and local communities today using art as a point of departure. Subjects being addressed include:
- Community development and the role of art in supporting Civic Design through:
- Creating a culture of creativity;
- Placemaking;
- Community building and networking;
- The engagement of residents and visitors/tourists; and
- Economic growth and livelihood – the creative economy;
- The role of the public commons;
- Environmentalism and the critical need for a call to action;
- Current geopolitical divisions, xenophobia and how we envision a world rooted in social justice, equity, and collaboration;
- The need for radical inclusion and understanding differences and similarities as a means of strength and the goal of collectively dismantling local and global inequities/oppression.
Bangkit/Arise is the first and only international public arts exchange and residency from the San Francisco Bay Area (possibly the United States) developed to include and support families.Bangkit/Arise builds on the relationships that have developed over the past 15 years since CAMP’s first exchange with Yogyakarta Indonesia, Sama-Sama/Together that launched the mural/street art movement in Jogjakarta, a significant contribution to one of the most thriving arts communities in Indonesia.Participating Artists San Francisco: Shaghayegh Cyrous, Keyvan Shovir, Kelly Ording, Jet Martinez, Jose Guerra Awe, Christopher Statton and Megan Wilson.Allison Wyckoff, Associate Director of Public and Community Programs at the Asian Art Museum also traveled to Yogyakarta with her family as part of the residency to assist with the project, meet and connect with members of the arts community in Yogya, and represent the Asian Art Museum.Participating Artists Yogyakarta: Nano Warsono, Bambang Toko, Hari Ndarvati, Muhammad Yusuf (Ucup), Wedhar Riyadi, Eko Didyk Sukowati (Codit), and Vina Puspita
Learn more about the project in Yogyakarta:
Urip Iku Urup – Life is a Flame To Enlighten
Kampung ke Kampus – Kampus ke Kampung
Bangkit / Arise Keluarga Besar
Desa Panggungharjo!
Semangat Bangkit/Arise!
Bangkit/Arise Yogyakarta Begins
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BANGKIT / ARISE – SAN FRANCISCO, CA USA
In September/October, 2018 the first phase of CAMP’s second international exchange and residency project with Yogyakarta, Indonesia continued in San Francisco.
Checkout the interviews with the artists from Indonesia conducted with the Asian Art Museum:
Wedhar Riyadi:
Vina Puspita:
Harind Arvati:
Nano Warsono:
Ucup:
Bambang Toko:
Learn more about the project in San Francisco:
Bangkit / Arise San Francisco: Gotong Royong
Bangkit / Arise San Francisco Semangat!
Bangkit/Arise Yogya Departure – San FranciscoArrival/Introduction
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International Solidarity w/ Palestine – Celebration of 3 Murals and Our Communities
On Sunday, October 14, 2018 our communities celebrated three new murals by Art Forces, AROC (Arab Resource Organizing Center), and CAMP’s international exchange/residency with Yogyakarta Indonesia Bangkit/Arise on Clarion Alley:
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CAMP VIGIL & CELEBRATION OF COMMUNITY
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1zdox5DyV0]
On September 21st CAMP hosted a Vigil & Celebration of Community on Clarion Alley. The event was a beautiful reflection of how our diverse communities can come together to support one another and honor a space and project that serves as a public commons, a community, and a tapestry of narratives told through the mural works of artists and organizations, representing many who have been marginalized, disenfranchised and often silenced.
The event began with a ceremonial blessing by Xitalli Aztec dancers.
One of the primary forces for calling the Vigil was a spate of 15 attacks of hate crime vandalism October, 2018 – August, 2019 against CAMP’s five murals in support of Palestine: 1) The Will To Live, 2) Bangkit Palestina, 3) End Apartheid BDS; 4) Ahed Tamimi; and Justice, targeting all five murals. This act of violence and Islamophobia against our Palestinian community was alarming and rather than backing down in fear, our community rallied together and continued to repair all of the murals after the attacks, allowing CAMP to also engage with visitors to the alley and discuss the murals, the lack of attention to these attacks, and their targeting. The support from the visitors we have engaged with has been overwhelmingly supportive.
Following the blessing, we heard from Sharif Zakout of the Arab Resource Organizing Center (AROC) with Khalid from Arab Youth Organizing, trans-activist Shane Zaldiver, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, Robert from HOMEY, Mike Reger from the DOPE Project, and Christopher Statton, co-director of CAMP.
The Vigil and Celebration concluded with CAMP Co-Directors Christopher Statton and Megan Wilson being presented with Certificate of Honor from Supervisor Hillary Ronen’s office by legislative aide Amy Beinart.
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IN HONOR OF IRAN’S PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE
Project by artist, curator, and CAMP Board Member Shaghayegh Cyrous
October 1st – 31st, 2019
Clarion Alley Mural Project & Artists Television Access (ATA)
Opening Reception October 6th, 2019
In Honor of Iran’s Prisoners of Conscience is a multi-faceted project of art, literature and performances, in remembrance of hundreds of men and women who have been taken as prisoners of conscience in Iran in recent years. They have fought for social justice, civil liberties, and worker and environmental rights. Today, they are behind bars for wanting to speak freely, practice their faith peacefully, join a union, receive fair wages, or protect the environment. The Iranian regime, however, has continued to deny them this voice and freedom.