SFUFF proudly introduced YBCA’s inaugural neighborhood commission, City is Alive, in collaboration with Imprint City and Young Community Developers in October 2020. This one-of-a-kind event, both digital and in-person, celebrated the everyday heroes of the Bayview who have fought for resources and brought joy to the community. Taking advantage of one of San Francisco’s early shared space permits during the pandemic, City Is Alive metaphorically and literally brought light into the streets during those dark times.
Transforming Egbert Avenue, the original home of BayviewLIVE, the event featured projections of musical performances and community stories onto the neighborhood’s signature murals, accessible on YouTube and Facebook. Simultaneously, a lucky group of 50 guests gathered at a pop-up space in Laughing Monk’s Brewery to experience the live show and enjoy food and drink from local vendors.
City Is Alive integrated Imprint City’s signature event, BayviewLIVE, the only festival in San Francisco dedicated to urban arts and culture. The BayviewLIVE segment of City is Alive showcased musical performances by Bay Area artists Footz da Beast, LB, RobWoods, Xpress, and more. This unique hip-hop concert watch party was presented in tandem with the dynamic transformation of Bayview murals, brought to life through Crux, an XR movement founded and centered on Black technologists. For more details, explore our blog.
Bayview Is Alive
Serving as a dynamic platform for community dialogue surrounding City is Alive, Bayview is Alive was a virtual watch party and panel discussion. The program kicked off with the screening of four new short documentaries on the Bayview’s historic murals directed by Susannah Smith, followed by a video replay of the one-night City is Alive event directed by Shantré Pinkney.
The screening was followed by a panel discussion featuring Bayview community leaders Meaghan Mitchell (Former Acting Executive Director, Imprint City), Nate Watson (Executive Director, Public Glass), Divali Ramkalwan, (Director of Housing and Anti-Displacement, Young Community Developers), Felipe Riley, (longshoreman; son of the late Lenora LeVon), Marissa Bergmann (art teacher, MLK Middle School), and Amita Graham (certified nurse midwife; daughter of the late Santie Huckaby). In conversation, these community leaders discussed initiatives needed to ensure the vitality of the Bayview, and connected the neighborhood’s historic and current importance to the city’s social, economic, and cultural landscape as a whole.
Key Partners
