FILE - A view down Clarion Alley, where four murals were painted over.
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A public arts institution in the heart of San Francisco’s Mission District is “heartbroken and furious” after three of its murals were recently painted over and one was “partially destroyed,” according to a Thursday letter from Veronica Torres, co-director of the Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP.)
The grassroots organization is responsible for the colorful assortment of panoramic wall paintings stretching a city block wide from Community Thrift on Valencia Street down to the intersection of 18th and Mission Streets. Established in 1992 by a volunteer collective of six artists who were inspired by the mural movement born out of Balmy Alley in the 1970s, the focus of its works range from labor issues to housing rights, memorials and more. More than 700 murals have been created at the site from local artists spanning all ages and levels of experience, according to the organization’s website.
Clarion Alley
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Mission Local first reported news of the erasure last week, noting that on Aug. 24, artist Doug Rhodes, who has a studio on Clarion Alley, saw a man painting over one mural after another. He had reached the fourth when Rhodes spoke up and told him to stop. “My boss told me to,” the man replied, according to Mission Local.
At the time, a representative from the Clarion Alley Mural Project reached out to Makras Real Estate, the company that manages the building, and were told the property owner ordered an employee to paint over reported “graffiti,” Mission Local reported.
“We’ve tried to approach what happened assuming there was no ill intent,” Torres of CAMP wrote in the Thursday letter. “Still, after nearly 35 years of stewarding this alley, we have to ask: How does the erasure of four longstanding community murals happen without any communication with CAMP or the artists involved?”
Mission Local reported impacted murals included “We’re all in this together,” John Viola’s 2016 memorial for activist and artist Kirsten Brydum; “Everything Must Go,” Daniel Doherty’s 2015 tribute to Adobe Books; Floyd’s tribute to local graffiti artist Chloe, also known as Marfa; as well as a mural created by students from Graffiti Camp for Girls this spring. The latter was restored with a new piece painted by the organization’s muralist and teaching artist Nyia Luna a few days after the incident.
“For a small, community-based organization already navigating diminished arts funding, this erasure creates a real and additional burden,” wrote Torres, adding that CAMP plans to fundraise to replace the rest of the murals and sustain the future of Clarion Alley.
Acknowledging that the organization had also felt its community coming together in support, Torres later added, “...We will keep seeking answers, keep advocating for our artists and community, and keep working toward solutions that honor the artists, the memories, and the history held within these walls.”