Grief not included.

We know Kickstarter burn out and mistrust is at an all-time high, with Zach Braff and other doubtfully desperate artists pleading for money they already have.  But this isn't that; this is The Secret Alley—the ever-necessary and adored workshop and community space sitting at Capp and 17th.  Certainly you already familiar with their ping pong parties, movie nights, concerts, and halloween shows, and now they're looking to give their ground floor gallery some much needed love.  Our friend and Secret Alley co-founder Ariel Dovas fills us in on their plans:

TSA has recently started a fundraising campaign on Kickstarter to renovate its downstairs gallery, The Galallery. This space, separate from the upstairs studio and workshop, has been host to many local talents over the years. In addition, the Galallery has been the home of TSA's annual Halloween-themed art shows and installations. 2012 saw a 12-foot-tall interactive deathray built by TSA members and hosted a surrounding art show with a doomsday theme. In 2013, TSA installed the crashed wreckage of a life-size flying saucer accompanied with creature sculptures, conspiracy paraphernalia, and alien animation and sound installation.

These renovations will include the installation of a new wood floor, custom designed to add to the already unique aesthetic sensibilities of TSA; a new, energy-efficient lighting system to allow for better, more professional lighting of artist works; and an overall patching and resurfacing of the existing walls and ceiling. Most all of the work will be done by current and past members of TSA. TSA is hoping that the humble fundraising goal of just over $6000 will be met within the next few weeks so construction can begin. This will allow the Galallery to open it's doors once again, to continue hosting some of the best, innovative, and underexposed artists, musicians, videographers, performers, and others the San Francisco Bay Area has to offer.

If this sounds like your kind of project, you can toss them a few bucks on Kickstarter.  But do it quickly, because there is only a day and a half left.

[Kickstarter | Photo by Ariel Dovas]

I know I've sung praises of Justin Hager's work in the past, but his latest round of pop pun sketches have been the best thing on my Instagram feed for the last week or so.  And if you demand a real world inspection of his talents, you can catch the tail-end of his show at Benny Gold this weekend.