remove this angel
Posted February 25, 2009
Mural on the stairway wall, Hamilton Methodist Church on Waller Street in SF, home to the Haight Ashbury Food Program.
The dedication (located near the top of the stair post) reads: I wish to thank Judy Woods “She made sure even angels had shoes” – RJA. The painting is signed by R.J. Allison. The Judy Woods referred to is the former graduate of the HAFP’s job training program who ran the organization for 14 years. She was let go early in 2008 before the program itself closed it’s doors in April due to lack of funding. Find that story here.
Just below the dedication is a notice from the City of San Francisco, dated the 20th of February 2009, requiring the Church to remove “the graffiti” within 30 days. The irony here is that many of the shops on Haight Street, a mere block away, are brightly colored and decorated with graffiti and murals and doorway paintings of everything from Tibetan fables to lurid green skulls. (Personally, I really dig the green skulls as well, but I don’t see why angels can’t have equal exposure!)
Part of the City’s problem, might be the fact that the painting extends onto the sidewalk in the form of a pool of water watched over by the angel .
08/18/09: Turns out there wasn’t a problem with the mural (the City loves murals as they tend to discourage tagging) – the issue was with some spray can graffiti around the doorway to the left. The mural is still in place.