Ocean Bloom Utility Boxes
Ocean Bloom Interdisciplinary Utility Box Mural Project
Black + white photography and silkscreened images were collaged and reproduced on vinyl wraps for a series of utility box murals along Ocean Avenue. The project’s first phase began in 2018 and second phase will continue with the design and installation of additional boxes anticipated in 2023.
Dimensions: 11 utility boxes that are approximately 36” wide, by 17” deep, by 60” tall
Year Completed: 2018; extension to be completed in 2023
Partnering Agencies: District 7 Supervisors Norman Yee + Myrna Melgar’s Participatory Budget Process, the Ocean Avenue Association, the San Francisco Arts Commission, SFMTA
YAX faculty and students researched native plants and flowers of the area to better understand the physical makeup and history of Ocean Avenue, while photography students took community members' portraits using black-and-white film, then developed them in the darkroom. The printmaking students then translated those portraits into silkscreened pieces with collaged native plants, to reflect Ocean Avenue “then and now." The final images were digitally transposed to vinyl and installed on the utility boxes by Clean Slate Group. The pieces also include statements about the project in English, Chinese and Spanish. The 2023 extension of this project will include additional murals and repair to the original murals with updates to the text and graphics as needed.
