Clarion Alley
Day 16
Neighborhoods Covered: Castro, Inner Mission
Streets Completed: Reservoir, San Carlos, Sycamore, Lexington, Clarion, Wiese, Caledonia, Julian, Woodward
It's true that the Mission can be scruffy, scuzzy, sketchy, creepy, dirty, call-it-what-you-will. Caledonia, for example, is currently tops on my list for Alley Most Teeming with Human Misery, and it forks right off of the lights and crowds and action of 16th Street. And let us not even discuss the stretch of Mission from Division to 18th.
But for all of its roughness at times, the neighborhood does have an insane number of amazing murals, many of which you'd be unlikely to see were you not to duck down a few of those less-than-inviting streets. (Even Caledonia has murals, though I didn't study them in too much detail.) I was especially blown away by what I found on Clarion Alley.
Clarion runs between Valencia and Mission and 17th and 18th. I literally can't count the number of times I've walked past it--that stretch of Valencia is one I walk all the time, and have for years--but yesterday was the first time I actually walked down it.
As with Berwick South of Market, pretty much every inch of every wall on Clarion is covered with art. Each panel is by a different artist, so no matter what your preferred style (or even, to a certain extent, medium), you're bound to find something interesting. (And if you don't, well, perhaps you have better things to do with your time than meander down random alleys and check out street art.)
Somewhat surprisingly, the murals are relatively tag-free, whether because taggers are satisfied with mailboxes, blank walls, and street signs, or because they actually have some respect for the amount of love and effort put into these works, I wouldn't know. But it's refreshing nonetheless, as it's not unusual to see even the most beautiful and elaborate murals elsewhere in the neighborhood and throughout the city defaced with unrelated graffiti.
Awesomely, it appears that Sycamore Street--one alley over--is headed for the same mural-rich fate, although there are a few houses that front it, so perhaps there will be a few gaps in the action. In my book, that's such a great thing to see, and if you go during daylight hours, take your time, and watch where you step, alleys like these make for some pleasant strolling.
Neighborhoods Covered: Castro, Inner Mission
Streets Completed: Reservoir, San Carlos, Sycamore, Lexington, Clarion, Wiese, Caledonia, Julian, Woodward
It's true that the Mission can be scruffy, scuzzy, sketchy, creepy, dirty, call-it-what-you-will. Caledonia, for example, is currently tops on my list for Alley Most Teeming with Human Misery, and it forks right off of the lights and crowds and action of 16th Street. And let us not even discuss the stretch of Mission from Division to 18th.
But for all of its roughness at times, the neighborhood does have an insane number of amazing murals, many of which you'd be unlikely to see were you not to duck down a few of those less-than-inviting streets. (Even Caledonia has murals, though I didn't study them in too much detail.) I was especially blown away by what I found on Clarion Alley.
Clarion runs between Valencia and Mission and 17th and 18th. I literally can't count the number of times I've walked past it--that stretch of Valencia is one I walk all the time, and have for years--but yesterday was the first time I actually walked down it.
As with Berwick South of Market, pretty much every inch of every wall on Clarion is covered with art. Each panel is by a different artist, so no matter what your preferred style (or even, to a certain extent, medium), you're bound to find something interesting. (And if you don't, well, perhaps you have better things to do with your time than meander down random alleys and check out street art.)
Somewhat surprisingly, the murals are relatively tag-free, whether because taggers are satisfied with mailboxes, blank walls, and street signs, or because they actually have some respect for the amount of love and effort put into these works, I wouldn't know. But it's refreshing nonetheless, as it's not unusual to see even the most beautiful and elaborate murals elsewhere in the neighborhood and throughout the city defaced with unrelated graffiti.
Awesomely, it appears that Sycamore Street--one alley over--is headed for the same mural-rich fate, although there are a few houses that front it, so perhaps there will be a few gaps in the action. In my book, that's such a great thing to see, and if you go during daylight hours, take your time, and watch where you step, alleys like these make for some pleasant strolling.
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