Illuminate SF

Dazzling Light Art in San Francisco's Mid-Market, Civic Center, Hayes Valley, and Castro Neighborhoods

!melk, 2022

Permanent

The iconic wind baffle structures that anchor The Parks at 5M—a new, vibrant community connected to the surrounding SoMa District by a cohesive network of public spaces—are the brainchild of !melk, an award-winning urban design and landscape architecture firm. Built to mitigate wind, the baffles (or “wind breakers”) are artfully illuminated from the outside and complemented with a soft glow that radiates through the perforations in the upper zones. Though made from steel, a material associated with heaviness and industry, the baffles are often referred to as “flowers” for their stem and leaf-like design elements. Come nightfall, they transform into breathtaking sculptures and suddenly seem to float.

Best Viewing: After dark along Mary Street between Natoma and Minna streets.

Ivan Navarro, 2020

Permanent

Ivan Navarro’s use of everyday architectural elements, from neon lighting and water towers to ladders, have been a recurring symbol in his artwork. “The Ladder (Sun or Moon)” subtly penetrates both the public space and the public imagination. It merges familiar visual languages iconic to urban architecture in the United States, whose structures adorn facades but whose functions are long buried beneath their nostalgic beauty. The charged combination of these two forms provokes a conceptual and material dislocation that is the essence of artistic subversion.

Best Viewing: Anytime after dusk.

James Turrell, 2007

Permanent

Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez/SF Chronicle/Polaris

Using neon as his only material, James Turrell created “Skygarden” within a three-story opening in the south facade of the San Francisco Federal Building, designed by Morphosis. During twilight and after sundown, Turrell’s work comes to life, saturating the space with colored light. Seen from the exterior, “Skygarden” creates a luminous, singular beacon from myriad vantage points. The three-story void appears as a glowing block of color set into the building; a ribbon of neon extends diagonally from the terrace up the façade of the building, following a seam in its perforated metal skin. Another band of light is embedded in the plaza at street level, completing the geometric figure that begins high up on the facade. “Skygarden” is lit from dusk until 10 p.m. for exterior viewing. During daylight hours, the space provides views of the sky and surrounding cityscape from its terrace and a pair of suspended walkways. To visit the San Francisco Federal Building you will need to show an American ID or international passport. “Skygarden” is accessible by taking the elevator to the 12th floor; a convenient self-guided tour is available from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.)

Best Viewing: At night, stand on the south side of Mission Street long enough to see the colors transform. Enter the courtyard below “Skygarden” for a more intimate glimpse of its street-level band of light running up the façade.

Brian Goggin and Dorka Keehn. 2014

Permanent

"…and my room still rocks like a boat on the sea" (Caruso’s Dream) features 13 pianos created from materials that draw on the history of the area, including vintage chicken-wire glass and pilings from the old Transbay Terminal. This permanent site-specific artwork dangles from the 17-story residential high-rise AVA 55 Ninth Street in SoMa, and is inspired by the moment when opera star Enrico Caruso was awakened by the San Francisco earthquake of April 18, 1906 while staying at the Palace Hotel. He did not know if he was awake or still dreaming as he walked to the window to see the results of the ongoing earthquake. By tuning into short-range broadcast 90.9 FM from 4 p.m. until 10 a.m. (within a block of the artwork), discerning listeners may be serenaded by the Caruso recording that inspired the light visualization dancing through the pianos. Commissioned and funded by developer Avalon Bay through the City's one-percent-for-arts program.

Best Viewing: Stand on the sidewalk below the artwork or across the street to see the warm light emanating from the pianos from dusk to dawn. Tune into short-range broadcast 90.9 FM to hear accompanying Caruso recordings.

Nayland W. Blake, 1996

Permanent

“Constellation” is inspired by the Beaux Arts tradition, with origins in the Bibliothèque Saint-Genevieve in Paris (a model for San Francisco’s former Main Library), on which authors' names were inscribed on the facade according to the location of their works inside. Artist Nayland Blake revisits this idea with an index of authors’ names etched into mirrored glass shades and individually installed with fiber optic lighting to create the illusion of floating stars. This impressive artwork is 54 feet high and weighs 5.5 tons.

Best Viewing: Stand inside the San Francisco Main Library and look up. Walk up to view the inscriptions on the glass panels, or take the elevator up and then walk down.

Joseph Kosuth, 2019

Permanent

This mural presents the etymology, or “Word Family Tree”, of "civic" and "auditorium" in white neon. Through the use of language, Kosuth’s artwork reflects the historical significance of the Auditorium while also demonstrating how words reveal relationships to cultural and social realities.

Best Viewing: Anytime after dusk.

Jorge Pardo, 2022

Permanent

Redefining the conventional notion of public sculpture, Jorge Pardo's lighted sculpture at the Geary Street Muni bus stop thoughtfully considers both the site and its audience. With its engaging use of color, form, movement, space and light, the sculpture is at once playful and sophisticated.

Best Viewing: After dark along Van Ness Avenue between Geary and O'Farrell streets

David Normal, 2023

David Normal’s Cathenge, which is currently on display at Patricia’s Green in Hayes Valley, is a collection of “Catoliths” with interractive harmonic “purrburations” of Holofelity. Cathenge is 3D printed, and is imagined to be a Cat Temple dedicated to Extraterrestrial Spacecats. It is one of the main artworks that is currently bringing attention to large scale 3D printed art and startues, and are a multi-media fusion using 3D printed plastics and iridescent clearcoat finish. Before it came to San Francisco, Cathenge was featured at Burning Man, which hosts a collection of spectacular art every year. They were also featured at David Normal’s “Institue of Crazyology,” located at 1000 Van Ness.

Matthew Passmore/MoreLab, 2014

Permanent

A playful re-imagining of the pedestrian traffic signal, “Handsignals” creates a meditation on community symbolism. Marking the entrance to the plaza, as well as signifying the McCoppin Hub neighborhood, “Handsignals” references the well-understood vocabulary of theater marquees and signs prevalent in the Mission District to “advertise” a new public space. "McCoppin" is spelled out in bright yellow, cast aluminum lettering on the north-facing side of the piece. The work's south-facing side replaces familiar “red hand” and “walking figure” symbols with ones designed to represent themes embedded in Mission District culture. The modules blink on and off in a slow, irregular pattern during the day and at night, creating new combinations of symbols whose meaning and relationship to the neighborhood will change as the neighborhood continues to evolve.

Best Viewing: Stand on the Valencia Street sidewalk to get a close-up view of the art work, then walk up the terraced steps of muliti-level McCoppin Hub plaza for a higher view.

Aphidoidea, 2017

Permanent

“The Seed” is a collection of six abstract LED dandelions that tower 13 feet over Jane Warner Plaza. Created by the art, design and architecture collective Aphidoidea, the work is a symbol that represents how a single wish that is blown away can carry enough weight to inspire a movement. The luminescent installation draws from the wishes many people have to be able to freely love and be themselves.

Illuminate , 2017

Permanent

“Hope Will Never Be Silent” immortalizes the words of Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected official in the history of California. The white neon message glows over Harvey Milk Plaza as a permanent greeting to all those who call the Castro home. The art is designed to honor the life and legacy of Harvey Milk through light’s power of attraction.

Best Viewing: The inspirational illumination can be seen from dark 'til dawn, atop the curving crown of the SoulCycle building. View it from the top of the Castro Muni Metro Station escalator and vantage points in Harvey Milk Plaza.