Moving Art House
2015-2017
Moving Art House was the first Book and Wheel project to ask the question:
Can we come together to build a united, vibrant cultural life together, here, in southeast San Francisco?
Book and Wheel collaborated with the Mexican Bus to create Moving Art House, a mobile cultural space with dynamic programming for southeast San Francisco, operating from 2015-2017.
More than a dozen artists—musicians and composers, poets, visual and other performing artists—created new work presented on The Mexican Bus and at sites in Southeast San Francisco.
Two Events and Two Tours
Book Mo/Biblio Guagua
We celebrated the kick off of Moving Art House at Neighborhood Block party & Open House on Saturday, July 25, 2015, when we celebrated the 6th Anniversary of the Portola Branch Library with poetry by SF Poet Laureate, Alejandro Murguia, Jessie Whiley and Richard Talavera. Participants designed their own adventure in their copy of the silkscreened book, Book Mo Book. Book Mo Book inclues the work of Charles Dabo, Emory Douglas, Juan Fuentes, Sarah Torres and Book and Wheel Works. We printed close to 300 of this limited edition!
At Book Mo you could make your own book, your own button, pick up free maps of Portola Cognito/Maps by Book and Wheel and listen to Las Hermanas Peña-Govea. Belle and Hannah Yan led participants in writing Chinese poetry in sand.
On board The Mexican Bus Edris Cooper-Anifowoshe led Story Building and pariticipants played with homemade neighborhood cootie catchers. The library served up delicious food from San Bruno Avenue restaurants and cafes.
The Nite Life
The Nite Life celebrated the musical history of the El Toro Night Club site with musical storytelling, a new mural on The Mexican Bus, a live concert, a cakewalk with edible prizes from San Bruno Avenue and dancing. We heard ukulele, guzheng, sax, bass, flute and more float from the stage at El Toro, a site with more than 80 years of musical history. The evening ended with Banda Universal, El Toro’s house band blowing big brassy notes! Participants included a true kaleidescope of southeast San Francisco’s culture.
Musician/Storytellers: John Calloway and José Cuellar
Musicians: Adeyemi Demetrius, Familia Peña-Govea, The Kapalakiko Hawaiian Band, Mireya Leon, Shura Taylor, Trio Pizzicato
Mural and graphics: Oscar Melara, Game: Kate Connell (Book and Wheel Works) La Torera: Cynthia Vazquez
Thank you to Homer Perez, Jorge del Toro and Miguel and Juanita of El Toro. Gracias, Moy, sound engineer extraordinaire
The 5.5 Mile Road House Tour
Art En Route Tour
Art en Root started at the Building the Art House exhibition at City College of San Francisco, continued to City Arts and Tech High School, on through Visitacion Valley, stopping at the Vis Valley Greenway, continuing through the Portola to the Bayview and then back to City College, passing the former INS site on Silver Avenue. At Arts and Tech, artist Matt Christiensen introduced young artists, on the bus Trio Pizzacato sang songs of working class Italian immigrants and La Familia Peña-Govea sang their signature brand of Latinx music. Artist Juan Fuentes and curator Michelle Mouton welcomed us at their studio and home in the Bayview and on our way back, Johnny Escobedo/El Guajiro sang his composition “Cada Uno Tiene su Cuento” to the former ICE station on Silver Avenue. The song, commissioned by Book and Wheel, is a tribute to those held at the station from 1940-1942.
Thank you to generous funders who made this project possible!
In order of receipt: Zellerbach Family Foundation , Fleishhacker Foundation , Southern Exposure/Alternative Exposure , California Federation of Teachers, Friends and Family, Friends of the San Francisco Public Library.