Art - The Streets

Behold the Creation of a Tamale Lady Mural in Clarion Alley

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

Earlier today, a crowd of Twitters, 'grammers, dumbfounded rubberneckers, tourists, and Uptown Almanac bloggers watched paint dry at the mouth of Clarion Alley.  What for?  To take in the creation of a new mural honoring Tamale Lady.

Here's how one of the artists described the project in a press release:

Three Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP) muralists and organizers—Megan Wilson, Jet Martinez, and Roisin Isner—will be painting a mural honoring the legendary Virginia Ramos, aka, “The Tamale Lady.”

Ramos recently had to shut down her Tamale Lady operation, and the Mission misses its Vagabond Abuelita! In response, an Indiegogo campaign has been launched in order to raise enough (beer) money for our Tamale Lady to get back into business. She can't quit, so she's going legit!

As you may recall, back in June, the Tamale Lady was unceremoniously kicked out of Zeitgeist when the Health Department became mean over her famed trashbag tamales.  Fortunately, Supervisor David Campos' office immediately began working to legalize her operation and launched a fundraiser to help her open a brick-and-mortar shop, which has struggled to surpass 20% of its goal.  Now it seems the local arts community is rallying to carry her campaign the rest of the way.

Anyway, based on the outline, it looks like we'll soon be seeing a recreation of the Tamale Lady's 2009 birthday flyer when we walk down Valencia:

In the meantime, you can swing over to Clarion Alley and watch them work.

Previously on Uptown Almanac: 

Photo Booth Truck Takes Over Valencia Art Wall

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

As a city that loves trucks and putting mustaches on things, the Inside Out 11M project took over the Valencia Art Wall earlier this morning, snapping photos of passersby and pasting them high up the wall.

Here's how Inside Out describes the campaign:

Beyond any political debate about 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S., these portraits remind us that behind the numbers are real human stories. Inside Out 11M aims to represent the diversity and unity of people that can call America home.

The project takes part in Inside Out, a global participatory art project initiated by the award-winning artist JR to pay tribute to the power and dignity of individuals by displaying their portraits in public spaces around the world. People share their untold stories and transform messages of personal identity into works of public art.

According to Burrito Justice, the photographers have packed up and made their way to another location, so head over there now to get early dibs on the feast of mustache, devil horn, and googly eye drawing.

[via Burrito Justice]

The Google Centipede

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

Because I'm not a poet, I'm not completely sure I get reference.  That pre-IPO employees feed their butt chum to post-IPO employees who pass it on to Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson?

Anyway, that very confusion might help explain the second stencil just steps away:

Pork: Coming Soon to a Bathroom Near You

— By Kevin Montgomery (@kevinmonty) |

There's lots to love about Muddy Waters, but their bathroom is particularly specular.  Its primary function seems to be giving people a place to scribble the name of the favorite meat product, its second is number two.

But this piece of pork? Beautiful. It's simple and appropriately colored.  And the pig is dead, in case there was any confusion about its origins.

Anyway, now you know I used a bathroom today. Gross.

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