The works of local artists Shrey Purohit, Allison Smith and Ciccio Boles are popping up on the street lights up and down Ingleside’s stretch of Ocean Avenue.
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Each artist was given free rein to create something that would express the culture and character of Ingleside through a project of the Ocean Avenue Association.
“I made a fresh painting that I felt represented Ingleside in my memories and my nostalgia and my viewpoint but also try to make it a little bit universal to the neighbors and people that transverse Ocean Avenue,” Purohit said.
Purohit, who’s created many paintings of the neighborhood’s streets, also wanted to pay homage to three entities in Ingleside that have supported his art practice in monumental ways and chose to focus on the corner of Plymouth Avenue and Ocean Avenue looking toward Go Go 7, Ocean Ale House, Ingleside Presbyterian Church and K Ingleside light rail streetcars during sunset. He used shades of blue, green, red and yellow to depict the scene.
For Smith, a student at the City College of San Francisco studying digital art, designing something for this project required stepping outside her comfort zone and creating digital art pieces using the Adobe Creative Suite to fit the printing parameters best. She already has painted work displayed in the neighborhood: the logo inside WestWood Produce.
Neighborhood artist Ciccio Boles designed evocative banners. | Anne Marie Kristoff/Ingleside Light
“I wanted to capture just the fun-ness that I see around Ocean Avenue,” Smith said. “There's a lot of kids who hang out there. A lot of people go to restaurants and I feel like a lot of times I see a nice, playful vibe. A welcoming neighborhood that I like to be a part of so I tried to design something that was kind of light hearted.”
Smith created a design for the banners with a two-part oceanic display of various fish from the ocean like clownfish and hammerhead sharks on a light pink backdrop and iridescent-like bubbles.
Ciccio Boles, who was not available to be interviewed, created a light blue banner with icons of the sun, waves, palm trees and the words “Ocean Ave” in his unique style.
Allison Smith's banner designs. | Courtesy Allison Smith
The Project
The Ocean Avenue Association, a nonprofit tasked with cleaning and beautifying Ingleside’s stretch of Ocean Avenue, started placing 50 vertical banners, from Fairfield Way to Harold Avenue a few weeks ago. It’s the second time it has placed banners featuring local artists along the avenue. The first time was under a program called "Arts Alive Ingleside."
The installation was originally projected for around the first week of February but OAA’s Small Business and Marketing Manager Rosendo Betancourt said the delay was due to the weather. The banners are another art project courtesy of the association, joining the mural on the neighborhood’s Walgreens.
“This project was in the 'talks' phase when I joined the organization,” Betancourt said. “The present board then was enthusiastic about getting banners in the district so I wanted to accomplish the task. Due to scheduling conflicts, pole reservations and other city campaigns, we could only secure the banners now but we're excited things are coming to fruition.”
San Francisco-based flag and banner company A3 Visuals was hired to produce the printed designs costing the association $9,000.
The association is committed to building the “vibrancy and safety of the retail district.”
“We hope these banners introduce a new yet familiar feeling of expression and culture to the already close-knit community of Ocean Avenue,” Betancourt said.
The banner installation is expected to be completed by late March.
Update: This article was updated with final designs by Allison Smith.
Anne Marie Kristoff (she/her) is a recent graduate from San Francisco State University's journalism program. She enjoys writing about the arts, entertainment and nature.
