A Salute to Dain

After months of my Dain-inspired masthead, I decided it was time for a change. The start of this blog coincided with the start of my digital graphics class at school. I was mostly self-taught in photoshop before coming to AAU, but I knew that if I was going to think big I was going to need to know how to execute some of my ideas.

Throughout my first semester I went through a number of designs, eventually settling on a picture I took back in New York. I love this image for several reasons, but mostly because it was from my very first photo stroll. It was when I fell in love with exploring and even more in love with the art I found in the streets.

I took this picture on July 5th, 2007 (I moved to SF on July 5th, 2009. Weird.) while walking the streets in lower Manhattan. I want to say Greene Street because I vaguely remember cobblestone, but I guess I could’ve been on Mercer or Wooster (which would be fitting).

I remember being struck, first, by the colors. Although not as vibrant as it was most likely intended, possibly from the wheatpaste, the colors grabbed my attention. It had a Warhol/Monroe vibe, but I was immediately drawn to her right eye. Why was it bloodied? What was the story?  Aside from my interest in her appearance, I was also curious about the artist.

Little did I know he would be an old man from Brooklyn.

[Youtube = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u32iAcNIE1o&feature=player_embedded]

I will always associate the image above with inciting my passion for street art and photography. And, it will also be remembered as the original face of my blog as I made my transition out west. This image will forever live on as my blog icon, but it’s time to move on and start creating my own work and defining my own unique style.

“Sometimes if you think too far ahead, you won’t do it.” - Dain

Banksy Stroll Recap

I’d say the banksy stroll was a success. When I woke up on Saturday morning I was already nervous about how it was gonna go down. Thanks to the Flavorpill write up (and their email blast) the word had spread to several other sites, including Twitter,  Yelp and SF Weekly. With word of mouth taking full effect I wasn’t sure how many people would show up, or, better yet, what expectations they were going to have (I’m normally very casual with these meetups, as I find that it is more fun to discover cool art rather than set out looking for something specific).

Either way, it was a beautiful day and we were going to take some pictures. Simple and fun.

I met the crowd, I’d guess 40 people, outside of Amnesia and directly below the first Banksy piece. From there we followed this map (which, to my surprise, has been viewed over 1,000 times in a week) to five more locations throughout downtown San Francisco.

The journey came to a close in North Beach at the corner of Broadway & Columbus for the last wall. By that time the group had dwindled to seven people and we were tired. So, naturally, we found a bar and started drinking. A perfect ending to a perfect afternoon photo stroll.

But  now is the fun part. We have a ton of media and it’s time to share. Here is a short video I put together to recap the day.

[Vimeo = http://www.vimeo.com/11614302]

Here is a follow up article and slideshow by Hanna Quevedo for SF Weekly.

In addition, here is the flickr group where I have been directing people to upload their photos (including the hashtags below).

And, finally, if you are reading this and want to find out how to join our awesome group, go here.

(images above by Steve Rhodes)

Lower Haight Art Walk

Tonight! I’ve invited all 86 members of the graffiti photostroll meet up. Hoping for a good turn out, but I’m pretty sure I could go by myself and still have a good time. Plus, anytime I find an excuse to swing by Fifty24SF I’m all for it (they even extended the Will Barras show for this event). I’ll post pics later.

Mission Photostroll Update

Yesterday I hosted my first graffiti photostroll meet up. Four people showed up and we walked up and down several alleys in the Mission (Cypress, Lilac & Osage). I’m having some problems uploading my shots right now, but feel free to check out Susa’s gallery.

It was a great first trip. Everyone was friendly and super into photography. We capped it off with tacos and pacificos. Not bad for a Sunday morning stroll.