Retrospective 2025 Art on Market Street Poster Series Celebrates Over 30 Years of Cultural Expression

SAN FRANCISCO, March 20, 2025 – The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) is thrilled to present the 2025 Art on Market Street Poster Series, Overlapping Histories: Art on Market Street Poster Series, 1992–Present, a retrospective showcase commemorating over three decades of artistic commissions.  

"For over 30 years, the Art on Market Street Poster Series has transformed San Francisco’s main thoroughfare into an open-air gallery, making contemporary art created by local artists accessible to the public," said Ralph Remington, Director of Cultural Affairs. "The 2025 poster series is a powerful retrospective that allows us to not only honor the artists who have helped shaped this program but also uplifts the stories and voices that have come to define our city."  

The curated selection of archived commissioned works will be presented in three groupings throughout the year, based on the themes of "People, Places, and Things.”  

The posters reflect on historical events, notable individuals, art, and architecture significant to San Francisco's evolving landscape, and intersects with the continued work of SFAC's ongoing Shaping Legacy program, calling attention to underrepresented communities and overlooked histories. 

The first group of ten posters is focused on the theme of “People” and will be displayed along Market Street between 7th and Steuart streets at 15 SFMTA transit shelters through June 2025. 

• *Rigo 98 (1994): Chess Players from the series "Market Street Tales."  
• *Kara Maria (2003): "Boom Town" depicted bold, graphic designs of pedestrians and objects typically seen on San Francisco’s main thoroughfare. 
• *Felecia Carlisle and Jessica Hobbs (2005): "The Wedding Portraits Series" honoring the first anniversary of gay marriages held at City Hall. Del Martin and Phyllis Lyon were a lesbian couple, who were politically and socially active in San Francisco beginning in the 1950s and were the first couple married by Gavin Newsome in 2004. 
• Maria Forde (2005): "The Pick Pocketers" – A historical exploration of 19th-century female pickpockets who operated along Market Street, drawing from mugshots and personal histories to illuminate their struggles in underground economies. "Rose Cady," 2005. "One of the old Grant Ave. pickpockets; her victims were all married men."  
• Helena Keeffe (2007): "Muni Maps" – A collaborative project with Muni drivers that highlights their personal experiences and landmarks along their routes, offering a unique perspective on San Francisco’s transit system.
• *Owen Smith (2008): Homage to Dashiell Hammett and the pulp fiction classic "The Maltese Falcon," which helped define San Francisco as an iconic American city in the noir tradition. 
• *Jonathan Burnstein (2010): "Meet Market: Portraits of the Street" were intricate collage portraits of the visual environment of Market Street and its intersections of San Francisco’s social, cultural, and economic strata. 
• Deborah Aschheim (2017): "The Zeitgeist" – Revives the vibrant spirit of the 1967 Summer of Love, capturing the era's cultural revolution. 
• Kate Haug (2017): "Summer Love Trading Cards" – Reimagines the iconic trading cards from the 1967 Summer of Love, blending nostalgia with contemporary art. 
• Sofia Cordova (2018): "A Body Reorganized" – Explores themes of refuge and belonging within urban spaces, and reflects on How the Meaning of Sanctuary Has Evolved Over Time. 
• Lukaza Branfman-Verissimo (2019): Renders the Unheard Stories of Market Street. The San Francisco Arts Commission’s 2019 Market Street Poster Series examines 24/7 life on the city’s largest and most colorful boulevard. 
• Marcel Pardo Ariza (2020): “Kin-Streets” explores intergenerational kinship in San Francisco queer communities. The 2020 Art on Market Street Poster Series Highlights San Francisco’s Queer Culture for the 50th Anniversary of Gay Pride. 
• Win Mixter (2020): "Pride is a Protest" – A series honoring the roots of Pride celebrations, emphasizing resistance and community activism. 
• Kimberley Acebo Arteche (2021): "It Wasn't Only a Hotel" – Pays tribute to the women of San Francisco's Manilatown and their fight against displacement. 
• Skywatchers (2021): "The Opulence Project" – Invites Tenderloin community members to envision and embody their boldest aspirations through striking portraits.

*not reprinted for this installation but shown here to highlight the breadth and depth of the over 30 year history of the Art on Market Street Poster Series. 

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About the Art on Market Street Poster Series 
The San Francisco Arts Commission has commissioned new artworks from artists on an annual basis since 1992 in partnership with the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) and Clear Channel. Now in its 33rd year, the program has partnered with over 130 artists since its inception, commissioning over $1.2 million worth of art, showcasing a wide breadth of artistic styles, themes and topics centered around San Francisco. Up to four artists are commissioned annually by the Arts Commission to create a series of at least six unique works of art that responds to a theme specific to San Francisco. To learn more, visit sfartscommission.org/artonmarketstreet 

About the San Francisco Arts Commission  
The San Francisco Arts Commission is the City agency that champions the arts as essential to daily life by investing in a vibrant arts community, enlivening the urban environment and shaping innovative cultural policy. Our programs include: Civic Art Collection, Civic Design Review, Community Investments, Public Art, SFAC Galleries, and Art Vendor Licensing. To learn more, visit sfartscommission.org.