The Art of Shopping

Mall stores be damned… I want to shop where the people paint. A recent trip to San Francisco reminded me how absolutely colorless our shopping experience has become. Stores like Wasteland (a sea of vintage clothing) on Haight Street; Paxton Gate (taxidermy, jewelry, and other oddities) and Viracocha (where anything including a metal steamer and a helium canister can become a lighting fixture) both on Valencia Street… ooze personality and one-off stuff. And the cement walls of the buildings in these areas are loaded with more personal expression. Here is a smattering of what I saw.

Love the cement cracks that appear on her face

The alley off Valencia Street where every wall section is a canvas

A canvas of corrugated metal

Like a Remedios Varo painting (right Char?)

So real you need to touch it

A detail of the elephant painting including the metal bolts on the wall

This one is layered with different contributions..the beauty of street art

Bubbly details include a metal door handle