FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media contact:
Kate Patterson, San Francisco Arts Commission
Tel: 415/252-4638 Email: kate.patterson@sfgov.org
Photos available online at http://www.sfartscommission.org/primages/binh/
NEW ART ON MARKET STREET KIOSK POSTER SERIES PRESENTS PORTRAITS OF SAN FRANCISCO COMMUNITY GARDENS AND THEIR CARETAKERS
Artist Binh Danh’s photographic series, Leaves of San Francisco, introduces six local green thumbs and reveals what inspires them to garden.
Leaves of San Francisco © Binh Danh, 2010. Digital photo collage with leaf print. Image courtesy of the artist and the San Francisco Arts Commission.
SAN FRANCISCO, March 22, 2010 – Director of Cultural Affairs for the San Francisco Arts Commission Luis R. Cancel is pleased to announce a new Art on Market Street Kiosk Poster series by artist Binh Danh. Leaves of San Francisco is a series of photographic posters created in collaboration with six local gardeners from diverse backgrounds who participate in the Recreation & Parks Department’s Community Garden Program. Combining a portrait of the gardener tending to his/her garden, a “leaf print” and an inspirational quote, the posters reveal a range of motivations for tilling the earth, from family traditions to public service. On view April 5 through July 1, 2010 on Market Street between Van Ness and the Embarcadero, the posters will mark the beginning of spring and offer thousands of pedestrians some moving thoughts about life and gardening.
“Binh Danh’s beautiful posters provide an intimate look at San Francisco’s community gardens, many of which are off the beaten path,” said Luis R. Cancel. “The posters bring a little color to Market Street’s stark urban landscape, and we hope that they will inspire passersby to appreciate the city’s green spaces and maybe even participate in a community garden.”
The artist began each poster with an interview in order to get at the heart of why each participant gardens. The “leaf prints” were created using a technique invented by Danh. First, the artist worked closely with each of his subjects to select the image that represented his/her connection to gardening. Then he created a digital negative of their photographs and pressed it onto a leaf from their gardens. He placed both the leaf and the negative between two glass plates and exposed them to sunlight for several weeks. After making the leaf prints the artist returned to the garden to take photographs of the gardeners at work.
According to Binh Danh, “Gardening has always been the center of my studio practice. I grow plants to use in my artwork and when I complete a work, I share the work with my community. I believe community gardeners are artists too, sharing their practices and work with the rest of us. For this project, I was interested in the community gardeners and what got them started. Everyone has a reason to garden. My hope is that people would appreciate the pleasure of gardening after taking a walk down Market Street.”
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