Union Square and The Tenderloin:

WEEK 6:

For the first time in our San Francisco signage class, we travelled to the downtown area. This was a change of scenery from some of the other places we have travelled over the last few months. Downtown is filled with people, tourists and a different atmosphere from other places in San Francisco. As a class, we hopped on the MUNI, to Market Street/ Union Square area, continued down to an area of the Tenderloin, then over to the civic center, and public library. These destinations fall into a theme I have seen notably around the city. That is that the atmosphere, lifestyle, and people that inhabit that area can change within one or two blocks of another district. 

The first of a few destinations was Market Street, an area around Union Square. We entered Westfield Mall, through Bart Station to begin. The Bart Station is full of commuters and people traveling around the Bay Area. The signs are very informative to help direct people, for example there were signs leading to where to buy tickets, informational booths, and how to get to the certain tracks. We exited the station underground, into Westfield Mall where the atmosphere and audience changed instantly. A upscale mall such as this one, is targeted to the consumers of San Francisco. Interestingly enough, not only does the mall target a certain audience, but each individual shop targets its own audience. Stores such as Abercrombie & Fitch and American Eagle target young adults and teenagers, while stores such as J. Crew and Bloomingdales is targeted to adults mostly. Union Square is a area full of tourists, business people, and a completely different economic class. The signs are visually appealing, colorful, and detailed to these types of people. I always love visiting this area. 

As we continued our walk, the areas were transformed within a few short blocks. Signs we saw in Union Square, that were brightly lit up began to disappear.  Only a few blocks away the signs began to start falling apart, be hand written or painted onto the wall. Much of the signage looked as if it needed to be updated or completely demolished and rebuilt, however, this area lacks money so this is not an option. The atmosphere began to change, the area was full of people from a much lower economic class. Many people approached us asking for money and there was a lot of homeless people that found the streets as their home. These people were the audience of the signage in the area. The purpose of this signage is to inform people about things such as homeless shelters, where to get cheap food, how important clean drugs are and signs for liquor stores. I found interestingly, that there was signs for San Francisco State University at one point in this district, flying high on lamp posts. These signs typically don’t apply to the people in this area, so it was interesting to them on the streets. I figured because it was on lamp posts in the streets, it could be targeted to people driving through as it would be in their eye view. 

Finally we visited the public library, a massive beautiful white building. This was our final destination on our trip. We explored around the library, and found the photo archives highlighting the history of San Francisco. The library is a place for the whole community to visit, and use as a resource. I saw many signs advertising, not only the different sections of the library, but that it was a public space. For example, the restroom signs explained that they were public restrooms.

Through looking at historical photos from these districts I found some interesting pictures. Though it isn’t as historical as some of the other photos, the picture below depicts a sign in The Tenderloin. The sign says “Ask: Are you choking? This is the universal choking sign.” This sign gives us a picture into the environment around The Tenderloin. Something as well known as the choking symbol, isn’t known by the people of The Tenderloin. In addition, the sign includes a picture of the symbol, in case people looking at the sign cannot read. 

  In San Francisco, a matter of blocks can change everything from the people that reside in the area, the economic class, the atmosphere and the signage. The Tenderloin is not a district I can see myself revisiting for the fun of it. However, I very much enjoyed being downtown and in the Union Square area. I’m glad we got to see another side of San Francisco, such as The Tenderloin, and were able to make our first trip downtown.

Ocean Beach

WEEK 5:

The Indian summer has finally arrived in San Francisco, and we were fortunate enough for it to come along at the time of our day trip to Ocean Beach. The weather was in the high 80’s with minimal wind breeze, something rare to the San Francisco climate. We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful day to be able to walk along the long sandy beach, looking near the calm aqua blue water. We were also able to enjoy the beach chalet that houses historical art works along the walls. 

Ocean Beach is at the end of Golden Gate Park. The sand dunes that were referred to as the “Outside Land,” still can be seen on the beach. This destination is absolutely stunning. It played a significant part in San Francisco's history, because it was created to help America after the Great Depression. The beach chalet is filled with amazing murals. The artists of these amazing pieces of art were hired as a part of the 1936 Works Progress Administration project (the WPA). The WPA project provided thousands of jobs for otherwise unemployed artists throughout America. The job creation played a big role in the development of this area. Without it, many people would have never been able to showcase their artwork and would have had a tough time finding employment. As highlighted by a radio broadcast about the preservation of WPA murals, the art work is threatened by time, lack of money and neglect. It truly is a tragedy. 

The murals depict life in San Francisco in the 1930’s. “San Francisco Life” is the title of the murals in the Beach Chalet. In the murals you can see areas such as Fisherman's Wharf, Golden Gate Park, and the Marina. The people that are depicted are high profile people, because during the time of the 

Great Depression such activities represented wouldn't have been done by most people.  The room of murals is now a visitor’s center. Unlike other famous murals, such as the ones in Coit Tower, the murals are in good conditions. They were restored in 1988, but problems have occurred with money that would allow continuing to keep the murals in pristine conditions. Weathering, water damage and the wear and tears of touching can be problems for such massive pieces of art work. 

Compared to other districts we have visited, the signage was lacking in contrast to places like the Haight or the USF campus. It lacked signage, just as Golden Gate Park did. There were no signs present on the beach. Once I stepped foot onto the sand, the only type of signage I saw was graffiti on the cement walls. Along the road way that leads to the beach there are signs that warn people about what can and cannot happen at the beach. I saw signs explaining that there was only to be fires in the designated fire pits, what time the beach closed, and warnings about swimming in the oceans. The other sign I saw was recognizable to anyone pretty familiar with San Francisco. This was the 49 Mile Scenic Drive Sign. This drive was opened in 1938 as a promotion for the Golden Gate International Exposition, and highlights many of the city’s major historic structure. The lack of signage allowed people to not be overwhelmed with advertisements and signs, so you could simply enjoy the view of the Pacific Ocean.

Inside of the Beach Chalet, the signs I saw present were explaining the art and history of the murals along the wall. These signs help to inform people about what was being depicted in the art. Another type of signage I saw while in the chalet was with souvenirs. Clothing was designed with Ocean Beach logos, cups were imprinted with these same types of logos. The signage in the Chalet was much more apparent than outside, near the beach.

I very much enjoyed exploring this area. Each trip I begin to love this city more and more. With the sun beating down on us, and the beautiful blue water crashing on the sand, the beach was the perfect place to spend the day. I add this to the list of places I will return to, maybe for a bonfire, a beach day or a dinner at the Beach Chalet.