In 1992, Mission District artists Aaron Noble and Rigo 23 were residents on Clarion Alley, the 15-foot wide, 560-foot-long throughway running between Mission and Valencia Streets (between 17th and 18th Streets). They didn't like the look of it then, so the two invited friends to start painting.
24 years later, more than 700 murals from the experimental to the expressly political have graced the walls of the alley. Nowadays, CAMP, the Clarion Alley Mural Project, estimates over 200,000 visitors to the alley each year.
But that number, digitally at least, is about to spike. As Curbed and KQED report, CAMP has launched a website with a digital archive, bringing you to Clarion Alleys of past years.
The archive is searchable by year, artist and location, and with it, one can take a dive into the movements and messages that have animated local artists for years. When possible, artists statements or quotes are included.
Of course, some murals have remained over many years: The earliest one still visible dates to 1994. But as more are painted over to make way for new artists and ideas, it's good to know there's a place they'll all be preserved.
