Ah, yes. Now, this is the kinda of graffiti we like: bold with a dash of guilt and a hint of self-awareness. Friend of SFist Pete Cat came across this gem while lollygagging in the city's Mission District Friday night. Some rapscallion wrote on a brick wall (a canvas notoriously difficult for building owners to erase), but left such a cheeky (and French, if we may say) spray of graffiti that one can't get that mad at it. Adorable, really. Adorable.
Friday Night Graffiti: Who's Sorry Now?
Facebook IPO: Graffiti Artist David Choe Stands To Score $200 Million
When Facebook stock publicly trades later this year, scads of people will turn into billionaires and millionaires seemingly overnight. One person who stands to gain an estimated $200 million is graffiti artist David Choe, who, in lieu of payment, was given shares of Facebook after his work adorned the walls at the first Facebook headquarters back in 2005. According to Fast Company, "In 2005 Sean Parker commissioned Choe to paint more provocative art, in the form of graphic sexually-themed murals on the walls of Facebook's early Silicon Valley HQ, and in 2008 Mark Zuckerberg asked him to paint more restrained ones on the new HQ's walls."
Photo du Jour
Top-to-bottom by Nemel and Geso (found at 16th & Carolina in Potrero Hill). Photo by Troy Holden.
Threatening Sticker Diverts SFO Flight to Germany
A United Airlines flight from SFO to Frankfurt, Germany needed to make an emergency stop in Chicago on Sunday. It seems that a crew member discovered a "sticker with a threatening message in a bathroom," so the plane was diverted as a precaution. After the plane was emptied and searched, wherein nothing dangerous uncovered, the flight then continued on to Germany.
Sidewalk 'Star Trek' Etching Found on 7th Avenue
Chase Tingley came across this sharp piece of Star Trek sidewalk art along 7th Avenue, between Irving and Hugo "in some guy's driveway," in San Francisco. The etching was created by David Fisher. Impressive stuff, yes? Yes.
Levi's Markets Dockers On Valencia Street Using Sidewalk Graffiti
Allan Hough at Mission Mission broke some startling fashion marketing news today: Levi's made a return to Valencia Street to pimp "their Dockers brand via some ugly typography and a Facebook URL." What's more, they're doing it with nasty sidewalk graffiti.
Classes Canceled, Campus "Quiet" After Threat Of Violence At UCSC
A threat of violence, via graffiti sprayed on a bathroom wall, prompted some classes cancelations at UC Santa Cruz today. According to Santa Cruz Sentinel, here's what happened: "On Jan. 11, UCSC administration announced in a campuswide e-mail that graffiti found in a men's bathroom in the Social Sciences 2 building contained a threat of violence to be carried out today."
Banksy's Identity On Auction Block
According to Valleywag, the identity of "Banksy," the artist(s) responsible for creating some of the most talked about "street art" in recent years, is up for sale. For how much, you ask? At least $3,000. (Or, better yet, you can buy it now for $25,000.) How one can verify such a claim is beyond us, but there you have it, folks.
Porsche-driving Midwesterner Appointed S.F. Graffiti Vigilante
Mayor Gavin Newsom recently appointed a new, possibly sanity-estranged person to the graffiti task force in San Francisco. Her name is Paula Mulhall, a real estate who, according to C.W. Nevius, "jumps out of her Porsche with a paint roller and cleans up graffiti." Just how exactly did Mulhall turn into an anti-graffiti warrior? She explains to Nevius in her own words, ''I was raised in Indiana. And it was just this barren wasteland. We didn't have real beauty. So that's why this offends me." Well then. [Chron]
SFist Gift List: Adam Infanticide's Stickers To Decorate Your Neighborhood
Sure to ruffle quills come Christmas morning, Oakland artist Adam Infanticide's stickers have been seen on the streets of San Francisco (as well as New York and other fancypants European cities) and have "entertained, enlightened and offended" millions. Delightful. Now you too can slap a few of his witty, sticky gems across your neighborhood. Simply email woostercollective[at]gmail[dot]com your mailing address and he'll send you a load of hand-written stickers featuring such words to live by as "God bless our brave stockbrokers," "Please don't take this sticker down," and "God must be mad at you or something."
(Updated) What's Going On Here, Tagger?
This brave soul tags a wall in broad daylight -- presumably somewhere in the Mission, where street art is still relevant -- while getting caught in the lens of Mission Mission's Andrew Sarkarati.
SFist Tonight
ART: Artist Mark Warren Jacques will exhibit a new series of work, I’m Here Now, which unveils a new direction in concept and theory in Jacques' work, inspired by his newly acquired love of San Francisco.
Automatic Teller Machine Turned Into Art
While we're not the most ardent fans of graffiti, we're huge fanboys of ATMs (they give us money!), and here we have one in Hayes Valley, which has been turned into a piece of (dare we say it) street art.
Angry Resident Spraypaints Open Letter to Neighbor On Alamo Square House
Oh wow. An angry resident on Alamo Square spraypainted an open letter to a perturbed neighbor on the side of the former's house...
Swastika Graffiti Stains Jewish Community Center
Known, admitted Jewess Eve Batey of SF Appeal has word that the Jewish Community in the on Presidio Street fell victim to hate graffiti this week. "SFPD spokesperson Officer Boaz Mariles tells the Appeal that JCC security discovered what appears to be a swastika drawn in an alcove on the Presidio-facing side of the building at 3200 California Street. Mariles says the graffiti was about 3 inches by 5 inches, and appeared to have been drawn with a purple marker."
Photo du Jour 628
"I Feel So Down" by Troy Holden. (Side note: this is downright gorgeous, people.)
Chinatown Building Owners Lovingly Clean Banksy's Doctor
The Banksy pieces scattered throughout the city have been continually altered by other graffiti artists and taggers during the past week.
Esta Noche Vandalized with Swastikas
We missed this completely earlier this week, so...here it is today. This past Friday, Latino gay nightclub Esta Noche was defaced with several Nazi swastikas. The bar's manager, Edgar Lopez, "came to work, saw the swastikas, but then quickly painted over them," notes AKA William.
Photos: New Banksy Pieces In SF
On Thursday, SFist told you about two new graffiti pieces noted British street artist Banksy created on several walls in San Francisco. We now have a third, at least according to Uptown Almanac.
Two Banksy Pieces Spotted in SF?
Local street art aficionados are abuzz today after two Banksy pieces were spotted in San Francisco: one in the Mission, one in Chinatown. Erin Archuleta spotted this fresh piece on Valencia between 19th & 20th above Little Otsu. And caughtyouhoney snapped this piece in Chinatown.
San Francisco Conceit Realized On Mission Wall
SFist reader Emmanuelle sent us this shockingly accurate witticism that popped up recently at 20th and Harrison, just across from Flour + Water and Cafe Gratitude.
Racist Street Art Found at Oakland Church
The Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Ascension on Lincoln Avenue in Oakland was vandalized with hateful graffiti over the weekend. A giant swastika, dirty words and "other racial epithets" were, according to CBS 5, found spray-painted on the exterior walls and ground. Police are treating it as a hate crime, "examining photos of the graffiti to see if it may be linked to local gangs."
Meanwhile, In Berkeley...
Jim Sharp, Berkeley's anti-graffiti vigilante. (Check out more images of Sharp in action at vigilante vigilante.)

