Photo: Suzanne Ginsburg (All other photos and images courtesy of Sirron Norris.)
If you guessed that the “eyesore” is the very low, extremely unattractive and blotchy cement wall bordering the ball field on Elk Street—the one with the very tall chain link fence hovering above it—you are correct. And it is on that quite low and very long wall, that we may soon be greeted by our new Elk Street mural.
Two Glen Park neighbors are leading the project. Suzanne Ginsburg first came up with the idea and suggested it to Renee Berger, who had just completed the gorgeous Burnside mural and tiled stairway. The Burnside project intersects with one end of the Glen Park Greenway, which is part of the Crosstown Trail, and leads people from the Glen Park BART station towards Glen Canyon Park. Those beautifying projects, along with the proposed Elk Street mural, are literally putting Glen Park on the map, in a most positive way.
First Steps
The Elk Street mural received the necessary thumbs-up from the San Francisco Rec and Parks Department. It was then adopted as a project of Burnside Mural+ in order to utilize the already established fiscal sponsorship of the San Francisco Parks Alliance. With Berger and Ginsburg’s collaborative leadership, a neighborhood survey was circulated which received over 70 responses, showing strong community interest. And amazingly, the mural’s funding is being provided by an art loving, Glen Park supporting, extremely generous unnamed benefactor.
Choosing The Artist
Berger had created a shortlist of muralists for the Burnside project. It was from that list that she and Ginsburg searched out the individual who, first and foremost, could best deal with the particular design challenges of this site.
Berger explained that it was through “…conversations and thinking about styles, approaches, and (the) bottom line” that it eventually became clear which artist to choose. They picked the well known San Francisco muralist Sirron Norris. As Berger explains, “Given the height and who walks by (this wall), it was clear that (the) primary viewers would be children. Norris’ animated, playful style promised to be a good fit…He was enthusiastic, had lived in Glen Park and frequently walked his dogs in the canyon. Essentially, he checked all the boxes…” And the fact that Ginsburg’s daughter had attended Norris’ academy where he teaches art classes for kids was an added bonus.
About Our Muralist
Sirron Norris is a prolific and celebrated muralist, known for his public art as well as for private commissions. His murals are scattered throughout the Bay Area. About his artistic style, Norris states, “I’m a cartoonist. I’m inspired by two artists: Eyvind Earle and Mary Blair. They were both Disney artists who created backgrounds for (the animated films) Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty and a lot of Disney films back-in-the-day.” The “day” he’s referring to is the 1940’s and ’50’s.
Norris has painted murals for the pediatric emergency room at San Francisco General as well as for their trauma center, along with three of the Hearts In San Francisco 400 pound sculptures. And Norris is not only an incredibly talented visual artist, but he’s also involved with, and passionate about theater, as a board member of the San Francisco Bay Area Theater Company.
Community Input
There was a well attended September meeting introducing neighbors to the artist. Folks expressed their hopes for what the mural might achieve, and which images they hoped Norris would include.
The second community meeting took place on Saturday, November 16th, when about 40 Glen Parkers enthusiastically witnessed Norris reveal a full-color draft of the mural, at the same time sharing how much he enjoyed confronting the various design challenges posed by the extreme shape of the wall and the complex subject matter.
The choice of mural images was based on previous community input, as well as from his own experiences in the canyon over the 12 years he lived in Glen Park (from 2008 until 2020), as well as from the recent day he spent there. On that day, Norris explained, Evelyn Rose, founder of Glen Park Neighborhoods History Project, led him on an informative historical tour of the canyon, after which he walked it again alone, with just his sketchbook.
Attendees responded extremely positively to the presentation, which also prompted a number of additional suggestions which were appreciated, and duly noted by the artist, so that he can adjust the design. Norris’ energetic and engaging presentation was well-paced so that the 90 minutes flew by.
Our Mural
The long mural, tapers at its ends, both of which are filled with luscious blackberries, and in between are dramatic drawings. It feels like a mini-hike through the park; highlighting the valleys and the heights, the structures and dramatic views, the plants and creatures that live within—and all from a multitude of perspectives.
Norris included all of the wildlife that he actually saw on the recent day he spent in the canyon. He mentioned more than once that there will be no coyotes included because he has a somewhat conflicted and challenging relationship with our urban coyote population, as many of us do. And besides, he did not see one on his walk.
This mural is not meant to illustrate the detailed history of the canyon, nor is it meant to accurately depict all of its flora and fauna; the nearby Burnside mural does an excellent job on both counts. Norris sees the Elk Street mural “as an opportunity to sell the Canyon” to folks driving by, who may not be familiar with it and its “paths that lead to magical places.” To that end, he supports “anything that we can do to tell a story with an image.”
So the portrayals are bold and colorful, allowing one or another to be noticed while driving by, but to also be appealing to pedestrians. The mural illustrates the park in springtime, freshly green from winter rains, and filled with grasses and blooms bathed in light—using black in juxtaposition to the bright colors “to bring an edge to it.”
Next Steps
Once the mural design is finalized, it needs the approval of SF Rec and Parks Department. And after that, hopefully in December or January the design, along with required documentation, will be presented to the San Francisco Arts Commission for approval. After that, Norris will hold a community volunteer clean-up-the-wall-event to prep it for paint.
A Collaboratively Painted Mural—Kids Invited!
It was at the November meeting that Norris announced that this mural will be the first one in Glen Park that the neighborhood will help to paint. Children especially, are welcome to join in a Community Mural Painting Day, coming this spring. He said about the collaborative experience, “I’m going to turn this into a (paint-by-number) coloring book.”
Soon after the wall has been prepped “we are all going to paint this (mural) together collectively, all on one day,” 4 to 5 hours long, with refreshments of course! “I’m going to pre-mix all the colors (and) I’ll have full color printed designs everywhere, so that even the most novice of painters will be able to…” follow the numbers.
Norris encouraged us to “bring everybody you know who wants to be part of this history.” And that includes really little kids—ones who are not any taller than the mural itself and who perhaps are not yet adept at painting between the lines—since Norris is more than willing to touch up any mistakes. He loves the idea of kids participating because, over the years, every time they walk by, they’ll remember the specific area that they painted, and will perhaps bring their own kids by to view it in years to come.
Volunteer painters will leave once they’ve completed their work, and Norris will add his own design details throughout the mural over the following several weeks. He added, “This is a design that we’ll all work on together, and have collective ownership of…(yet) the detail and quality will not be lost in the process.”
About The Finished Mural…
Norris describes this mural as revealing the unexpected, mysterious and even magical places and experiences within the canyon itself—finding unanticipated paths and stairways while chancing upon a host of creatures. Our Elk Street mural will be “an invitation into and a preview of encounters in the canyon.”
