afternoon and welcome to the meeting of the arts commission on friday, september sixth, 2024. i'm going to call the meeting to order and i'm asking our agency secretary, manraj dhaliwal, to call the roll. president collins, present vice president shioda. present. commissioner beltran is absent. commissioner benavidez is absent. commissioner brunzell here. commissioner carney. present. commissioner ferris here. commissioner hakimi here. commissioner liu. present commissioner mosley. present. commissioner rothschild present. commissioner schnurr is absent. commissioner. shelby. present. ex-officio. so present. we have quorum for today's meeting. also

for the record. deputy of cultural affairs ralph remington. deputy director of programs yvonne sean glenn, deputy director of finance and administration sarah hollenbeck. and chief of staff alyssa ventri are in attendance. president collins, are there any agenda changes? no agenda changes. thank you. and now i'd like to give some public meeting instructions. i'd like to welcome all persons here in this meeting to attend in person at city hall room 416. this meeting is airing live on sfgovtv two. comcast 78, astound 26 and at&t u-verse 99. i want to remind us of the policies and procedures for public meetings. at this meeting. we are bound to follow the structure of our agenda and to adhere to the best practices set out in the good government guide. at every public meeting, there will be opportunity for general public comment where members may. where members may comment on any item pertaining

to this body. public comment will be taken in person with remote access provided to those who require an ada accommodation. respectfully, we ask that you keep your public comment on topic. each public comment is limited to three minutes. please understand that the committee does not contribute dialog towards public comments, but each comment will be documented for public records as a courtesy. on the fourth floor, we have a women's restroom located on the northeast side. men's on the southeast side. just outside of this room, and an all gender bathroom on the west side southwest side. in case of emergency. your nearest stair exit is at the southeast corner on the fourth floor, right outside this door. there are stair exits located on each corner of the floor. it is recommended to pull the fire alarm and use the stairs. a fire alarm has a variable tone and strobe sound, and lights will

flash. if strobe lights flash and alarms go off, you must evacuate the building. also, wheelchair access entrances are located on van ness avenue and grove street. please note that the wheelchair lift at the goodlett place and polk street is temporarily unavailable. temporarily unavailable after multiple repairs that were followed by additional breakdowns. the wheelchair lift at goodlett and polk entrance is being replaced and improved operation and reliability is expected. we anticipate to have functioning lifts after the completion of construction in may 2025. there are elevators and accessible bathrooms located on every floor. and now i will turn this over to our commission secretary, manraj dhaliwal, for public comment. instructions for members of the public joining in person who wish to comment on agenda items. once you are called on, then you will be

asked to voice your comment at the podium. you will see public comment cards are located on the podium. you are recommended but not required to fill out this card, which will be included in the minutes. i will start your. i will start your three minutes when you speak using a visual timer. you will also receive a 32nd audible warning when your time is up. i will say your time is up. participants who wish to speak on other agenda items may listen for the next public comment. opportunity. persons who speak during the public comment period at today's meeting of the arts commission may supply a brief written summary of the comments to be included in the minutes. if it is 150 words or less to art info at sfgovtv. the arts commission may reject the summary if it exceeds the prescribed word limit, or is not an accurate summary of the speaker's public comment. persons unable to attend in arts commission meeting may submit correspondence to the arts commission in connection with an agenda item. the commission secretary will post these documents adjacent to the agenda if they are one page in length. if they are longer than one

page, the arts commission will make such documents available for public inspection and copying. please note correspondence submitted to the arts commission will not be read aloud during the meeting. names and addresses included in the submittals will be public. submittals may be made anonymously. written comments pertaining to this meeting should be submitted to art info at sfgov. org by 5 p.m. before the date of the meeting. to ensure comments are shared with the commissioners ahead of the meeting. if you need to request a reasonable accommodation under the ada or need to request language assistance, you must contact the commission secretary at least 48 hours in advance of the meeting at art info at sfgov. org our office will make every effort to accommodate all requests. president collins, please proceed with the meeting when you are ready. thank you very much, and i'd like to start the meeting by reading our land acknowledgment agreement. the san francisco arts commission acknowledges that we are on the unceded ancestral homeland of the ramaytush ohlone, who are the original inhabitants of san francisco peninsula. as the

indigenous stewards of this land, and in accordance with their traditions, the ramaytush ohlone have never ceded, nor lost nor forgotten their responsibilities as caretakers of this place, as well as for all peoples who reside in their traditional territory. as guests, we recognize that we benefit from living and working on their traditional homeland. we wish to pay our respects by acknowledging the ancestors, elders, relatives and others of the ramaytush community by affirming their sovereign rights as first peoples. as the department dedicated to promoting a diverse and equitable arts and culture environment in san francisco, we are committed to supporting the traditional and contemporary evolution of the american indian community. i'd now like to call agenda item number two. i'm calling agenda item number two, which is the approval of the minutes. i would like to have discussion and a possible motion. i'm asking for members to make the motion, but also to

say their name. may i have a motion to approve the august 5th, 2020 four minutes commissioner hakimi. so moved. thank you. and a second commissioner ferris. second. thank you very much, is there any public comment on agenda item number two? the approval of minutes. for those joining in person, please proceed to the public comment podium and fill out the public comment information card. we are currently on item two. as a reminder, your time will start when you begin speaking, you will see a visual timer on the podium and receive a 32nd audible warning before your time concludes. i'm requesting comments from those who are in person. is there anyone who would like to make a public comment on the current agenda items? i see no request for public comment. public comment is now closed. thank you very much, is there any commissioner comment or discussion on this item number two, the approval of minutes. seeing none may i ask for a final motion? all those in

favor say aye. aye, aye. those opposed, please say nay. motion passes unanimously. i'm now going to call agenda item number three, which is general public comment. this item allows members of the public to comment generally on matters within the commission's purview, as well as to suggest new agenda items for consideration of the commission. may i have any public comment on agenda item number three? for those joining in person, please proceed to the public comment podium and fill out the public comment information card. we are currently on item three. as a reminder, your time will start. when you begin speaking, you will see a visual timer on the podium and receive a 32nd audible warning before your time concludes. i'm requesting comments from those who are in person. is there anyone who would like to make a public comment on the current agenda items? i see no request for public comment. public comment is now closed. thank you. i'm now calling agenda item number four. agenda item number four is

the director's report, and i'm introducing the director of cultural affairs, mr. ralph remington. thank you. president collins. good afternoon, commissioners. i hope you all had a wonderful start to your september. and as we wrap up the summer months, great to see, our ex-officio lydia. so here is my first meeting with you. so welcome, before i begin my report, i'd like to share that september 15th to october 15th is national hispanic heritage month, the month celebrates the cultures, histories and contributions of americans whose ancestors come from central and south america, mexico, spain and the caribbean. we have an exciting and busy month coming up. but before i share details about what we have planned, i'd like to start off with this month's report by sharing a few highlights from some recent events on august 17th, i had the

chance to stop by the sixth biennial aerial arts festival presented by zaccho dance theater at at fort mason, it was amazing as usual, and this, the arts commission is proud to support this annual event, just a fantastic and stunning, and definitely saw a number of our staff there, tara was there and, and troika and probably some other people that that that i wasn't aware of, but definitely people were out, on august 25th, i had the pleasure to attend stern grove's, big picnic weekend, which featured the incredible chaka khan, chaka khan, chaka. chaka khan, so, and, we're also excited to share a reminder that the doctor, maya angelou monument, portrait of a phenomenal woman by lava thomas,

will be unveiled at a community celebration event on thursday, september 19th at the main library, the speaking program and unveiling will begin at 11 a.m. at the larkin street entrance to the library, and we are excited to feature remarks from the artist, and city librarian michael lambert and family representatives of maya angelou, performances and readings by youth speaks and african american shakespeare company and caret. auditorium will follow the speaking program. i do want to note that we have also reached maximum capacity for in-person attendance at that event, rsvp, have been maxed out, but we invite everyone to watch a live stream of the event online starting at 11 a.m. and details on how to watch will be posted on the project webpage and shared on all our social media platforms. on september 27th, the arts commission will host

our first constitutional conversations town hall session, which will focus on the theme of freedom of expression. the event will be moderated by paul henderson and myself, panelists will include arts commission president collins. commissioner hakimi, human rights commission executive director cheryl davis, glbt historical society executive director and former president of the arts commission roberto ordenana and chairs of san francisco democratic and republican parties nancy tung and john dennis. the first town hall session will also be part of a national activation led by race forward americans for the arts and the world cities culture forum during the inaugural cultural week of action for race and democracy, taking place september 27th through october 5th, 2024. some other announcements and upcoming community events san francisco arts town hall, mayoral forum on wednesday, september 18th. arts

for a better bay area and a broad coalition of local arts and culture organizations are hosting a forum that will bring, leading mayoral candidates together to discuss issues that are vital to supporting a thriving arts community in san francisco. the forum will be held at sfjazz starting at 4 p.m, which overlaps with the end of our september visual arts committee meeting. that day, staff will share a link with details about the forum to commissioners following today's meeting. if any commissioners are interested in attending, the saturday, september 5th, this saturday, september seventh, the fifth annual african arts festival will celebrate the glorious diversity and extraordinary creativity of the continent's peoples. co-produced by denia dance and drum company and the yerba buena gardens festival from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

also this saturday, edge on the square presents sf chinatown's third annual contemporary art festival, high five the elemental forces of chinatown from 3 to 10 p.m. at 800 great grant avenue, and throughout chinatown, obviously edge on the square is led by our former deputy director of the arts commission, joanne lee. so and she's doing a great job down there. so come check it out. if and if you have the opportunity or inclination, i'll be there and, and i'll be checking it out. both of those things, the african arts festival and edge on the square, opening september 12th through november 9th. jonathan carver, more gallery will present a solo presentation from south african photographer pieter hugo titled californian wildflowers, a portrait series that captures the residents and community of the tenderloin to portray the beauty and

commonality that exists in all humanity, independent of one's housing status. some community investments updates, the community investments team is preparing to release guidelines, this 2025 grant cycle and announces grant opportunities for san francisco based artists and arts organizations. details are expected to be released late next week, and staff would greatly appreciate commissioner's help in helping share these grant opportunities with your networks, so please be on the lookout for details, staff will be sure to tag commissioners where possible to help with sharing, and staff are also seeking grant panelists who are bay area individuals with expertise in the arts and culture field, to participate in our upcoming peer review grant panels, this is a paid opportunity to be part of sfax grant making process to be

considered as a panelist for the spring 2025 panel reviews. applications must be received by november 8th. by 11:59 p.m, some gallery updates coming to the main gallery when unearthed sites collide opens on friday, september 20th and will be on view through december 14th. this two person exhibition features the work of two emerging bay area artists, shirin khalatbari and son park, curated by shirin mirkarimi and the arts commission. and so that's happening. the arts commission galleries and the san francisco public gallery, public library in partnership with the tenderloin museum, are thrilled to announce a new video project by artist in residence dancer and researcher preeti ramaprasad, titled yours tenderly, which celebrates the vibrant south asian immigrant

community of the tenderloin and the greater san francisco bay area. the opening reception of yours tenderly will take place on thursday, september 26th from 7 to 9 p.m. at the tenderloin museum and will be on view through november 2nd, and as a final reminder that a public voice on view at city hall, on the ground floor and in the north light court will close on september 27th, 2024, the gallery team has been working extremely hard, and i've seen them in there all week just killing it and getting this, exhibition up on the 20th, for friday. and so anybody that's available, please come out and, and, attend the opening and join us for the, the festivities, public art updates, public art staff have issued a request for qualifications for the sfo terminal three west public art

project. the deadline to submit applicant qualifications is october seventh, 2024 by 11:59 p.m. sfo terminal three, west arts opportunities include f plaza, skylight, suspended sculpture, sculpture, outdoor deck, sculpture. various opportunities for two dimensional integrated artwork. excuse me. some public art staff will soon conduct a review process to select a proposal for artist design, powder coated panels for the perimeter park fence for 11th and natoma park. artwork. proposals will be on view starting september 16th through september 30th, 2024. and now some air updates. i am happy to welcome evan sean glenn, who joined the arts commission as our deputy director of programs. evan's first day was this past tuesday, september third, he joins sfac

coming to the from the office of economic workforce development, where he served as a project manager since 2023. in this role, he managed a substantial portfolio focused on empowering local nonprofit organizations dedicated to economic recovery efforts in diverse communities. prior to his time at ogd, evan served as the operations director for the african american arts and cultural district from 2019 to 2023, and it is now my pleasure to invite evan up to the podium to say a few words. evan glenn. thank you, director. i was instructed to turn my phone off and that's where my speech was. just a little comic relief. good afternoon, commissioners, i'd like to thank director of

cultural affairs ralph remington for having the confidence in me to shepherd the arts commission's programs and wonderful staff. art is the strongest platform to uplift self-expression, unity and diversity, and it is an honor to support my colleagues in leading the effort in the city and county of san francisco. thank you, thank you, thank you, evan. thank you. commissioners, i just want to invite you to say a few words if you'd like to or if you have any questions you'd like to ask evan. well, i would just like to one. thank you. it's a very important and responsible position, you know, it's where things come together under your responsibilities. are are noteworthy both internally and externally. and in looking. remember this, that the commission does not engage in the hiring process. that is

something that is a very clear line between those matters. so i welcome you on behalf of the commission. but also i've seen you in the community for many years and bringing your understanding of our city also, of how the city works, which is terribly important as we look at the interplay among all the different aspects of the city and where the arts commission's work is really placed. and so i'm thrilled to be able to work with you again. you know, these happen outside of the commission purview. so, there is a clarity about roles and responsibilities, but thank you for accepting this role and this set of responsibilities. thank you. president. thank you. thank you, president collins. yeah, welcome. thank you. hi, evan. i met you a few years ago when i was actually co-chair at the cultural christopher castro. and you had a wonderful event at the bay view. i don't know if you remember that or not. and i've seen you in community, so i'm very happy to have you here. and

i look forward to working with you. absolutely. and i do remember it's nice to see you again. all right. all right. well, thank you, evan. thanks so much. are there any commissioner comments or. i just had one thing that concludes my director's report. now i'm calling for any discussion or comments on the director's report by members of the commission. seeing none. is there any public comment on agenda item number four? the director's report for those joining in person, please proceed to the public comment podium and fill out the public comment information card. we are currently on item four. as a reminder, your time will start when you begin speaking, you will see a visual timer on the podium and receive a 32nd audible warning before your time concludes. i'm requesting comments from those who are in person. is there anyone who would like to make a public comment on the current agenda

items? i see no requests for public comment. public comment is now closed. thank you. i'm now calling agenda item number five. agenda item number five are committee reports and committee matters for discussion. i'm calling first item number five. sub item one, which is the civic design review report. and i am now introducing vice president janine shiota to present a brief report on the civic design review committee. thank you, president collins. this will be, in fact, quite brief, during the august 19th civic design review committee meeting, there was no action taken. so there it is. there's my report. any public comment? well i'll make a comment. it's just one of the most exciting of all the committees, and there is a lot of in that portfolio. so take your breath. don't worry that we don't have a fulsome report today. there's more ahead. thank you very much. is

there any public comment or commissioner i'm sorry, any commissioner discussion or comments on this item number, item five seven. item one. no report. is there any public comment on this item number 5.1 for those joining in person, please proceed to the public comment podium and fill out the public comment information card. we are currently on item 5.1. as a reminder, your time will start. when you begin speaking, you will see a visual timer on the podium and receive a 32nd audible warning before your time concludes. i'm requesting comments from those who are in person. is there anyone who would like to make a public comment on the current agenda items? i see no request for public comment. public comment is now closed. thank you. i'm now going to call item number five, sub item number two, which is the visual arts committee report. and i'm introducing committee chair, commissioner susie ferris to present the visual arts committee report. thank you so much. president collins. i'd like to give the

visual arts committee report for august 21st, 2024, for the september 2024 full commission meeting, we actually had several things that we went over, we always do. and it is also one of the most exciting committees just to add that note, the relocation of the whales was approved at last month's vac meeting. the sculpture depicts two intertwined orcas, or killer whales, and was created by robert b howard for the golden gate international exposition in 1939. after the explosion. i'm sorry exposition different. after the exposition, whales was moved to storage in golden gate park until 1958, when it was installed in front of the steinhart aquarium as part of the academy of sciences. when the academy of sciences was demolished in the early 2000, the whale sculpture was moved into city. into the city college

campus for storage, with the intent of reinstating installing it on the campus, joining other works from the guy already sitting there. now an opportunity presented itself to include the work in the construction of the new student success center, where it would be the centerpiece of the building's courtyard. and you can see the image here, i just want to applaud again, the staff for making this happen and pulling pieces out of storage, which i know doesn't happen very often. and hopefully more pieces from the g that are in public storage can find somewhere in the public to, to for us to enjoy. all right. moving forward, we have the 49 south venice video art program, which was approved as installed after over a year delayed due to technical issues. the video program is open and can be viewed in the publicly accessible room called the pavilion. you can even see it outside as you are passing the

building. 11 artists were commissioned to create site specific videos. the works represent a broad range of thought, ideas and a diverse diversity of video art making processes that reflect the work performed at the building. notions about labor, both seen and unseen, as well as san francisco's unique history, culture and people. and again, another reason to applaud. this is one of the first of its kind, in this medium for san francisco. and so hopefully this sets a precedent for more. next, we have the conceptual design proposals for buzz. buzz by haruo sato for the mission bay school public was presented. osawa is a japanese onomatopoeia capturing the essence of many living things, gathering in one spot, and thus creating a murmur. the work explores the diverse marine ecosystem with mission creek and the larger san francisco bay, and serves as a

metaphor for human interconnectivity and community. and with every item, there is another reason to celebrate the work that sfac is doing. this is another, first us collaborating sfac collaborating with sf, usd, and hopefully again, this is a precedent for many more to come. what a better place to add public art than in our schools. and lastly, we had originally approved 2019 suspended during covid. the t3 west modern modernization project consists of the renovation and expansion of the west portion and connector to f concourse of the terminal three facility at the san francisco international airport. the project is located between the secure connector to international terminal boarding boarding area g and t3 boarding area e. the goal of the project is to create a continuous experience of art and terminal three west by commissioning major site identity artworks supporting supported by a collection of purchased two

dimensional artworks that reflect and celebrate the distinct character of san francisco and enhance and contribute to the rich civic art collection holdings at sfo and lastly, i mean, we talk about how amazing our airport is and how it can rival any modern art museum in the country, and so it's just it's amazing the work that we get to do. and i feel so honored to get to do it. another reason the vac rivals all of our other committees in being amazing. so, with that, i would like to conclude my report. unless there is any other commissioner comments or discussion, you should just strike the gavel and yeah, drop the mic. are there any commissioner comments or discussions on the visual arts committee report? yeah, commissioner brenzel, just to lift up the sf, usd arts commission collaboration, i think that's amazing. it's a little, startling to me that it's the first time it's ever

been done. so i hope it's not. i hope it is, in fact, the first of many. and i also wonder if there's a youth art component that could be incorporated in the future. i have no idea how that even came about, but, that's a really exciting potential collaboration with the artists who are learning their craft as as high school students, may i just make a comment? because and i think that probably director pate would know this better, that a part of the of the planning process of the unified school district includes or has included in the past input from the arts commission staff, that linkage is something that i think that you're asking would we look into and see if that link is still there? because it was living within community investments some time ago. the last time they did more of a strategic plan at the school district. the other is that remembering that the school district is a separate jurisdiction from the city, of

course, we have the responsibility of those that are sitting within our and director ibn would understand this too, the airport, the public works commission, the library and such. but the school district is a separate commission, so it's wonderful that you should site that. we are now being able to cooperate and collaborate with them. that's a major, a major. it's wonderful. i yeah. are there any other commissioner comments on this? you know, i would like to also say something else about the video work and the and the pushing forward of that genre. you know, in our strategic plan, we were commissioned to support artists and arts organizations. those are the kind of foundational things. but when we see this, these new genres coming together in major venues, it really does highlight, commissioner ferris the importance of emerging art forms and how we can give them visibility and also support the

artists behind them, because they don't do this for free and it is a part of developing the cultural assets. but also, you know, the flow of the economics and the cultural sector and really helping to use arts, you know, to develop our economy. so i really applaud that that work very, very much. so may i add one thing. so i am so excited to see commissioner ferris presented this digital art work, which will soon to be installed inside. i would assume it's an interior installation is already installed. oh it's it is. where is it really? it's in the very front. it's very front. okay, so i need to visit it more often. it's the building that houses the planning department, plus also dpw and some of the park and rec staff is there and small businesses offices there. it's a highly foot traffic building, so i would bring more of my

planning staff to see it and would take a picture at the very front. so you walk into the desk and then you actually take kind of a you to the left, to the left and go all the way down. yeah yeah, that is really nice. i believe if you actually drive by, you will see at nighttime, if i'm not, because that's a building. i'm also in that little glass box. yes exactly. oh. in front if you drive by, you see it. that's great. and this is, commissioner shioda and i love that the whales are restored and or will be back installed. that's a lot of mone. it's a good case for a restoration. and storing and for budget for artworks within the civic collection, because it takes a lot of money to do those things and to keep them stored and then to redeploy them and make them shine again. so then the staff works very hard on that, on a very small budget. so congratulations on finding a home part of all of our childhoods. yes, we grew up in

san francisco. yes, they were important to us and they told us that the oceans mattered and that whales mattered. you mean all those early impressions that you get it also fits really beautifully into the narrative that is developing at treasure island, and really seeing, you know, how this this work is coming together. so there's more stuff in storage and more stuff may be coming out of storage as we see the evolution of t. are there any other commissioner comments on the visual arts committee seeing none. is there any public? i would just want to comment on commissioner brendel's comment. we weren't told of any interaction with the students as part of the project with sf usd. i know on a lot of our other projects there is that kind of built into, you know, the commission that the artist gets, i might ask mary, is that an opportunity? is there an opportunity for that? is that part of. i commissioners, we can

look into it. okay. it's not currently part of the opportunity, but we can look into that. okay. great. thanks, mary. are there any other commissioner comments or discussion on the visual arts committee report? seeing none. are there any public comment on the visual arts committee report for those joining in person, please proceed to the public comment podium and fill out the public comment information card. we are currently on item 5.2. as a reminder, your time will start when you begin speaking, you will see a visual timer on the podium and receive a 32nd audible warning before your time concludes. i am requesting comments from those who are in person. is there anyone who would like to make a public comment on the current agenda items? seeing no request for public comment. public comment is now closed. thank you. i'm now calling agenda item number six. is that correct? five, six. yes right. thank you. this agenda item number six is the san francisco arts commission gallery's winter 2025 exhibition

discussion. and we have a presentation of the upcoming winter 2025 exhibition in the san francisco arts commission main gallery. and i'm now introducing the director of galleries and public programs, carolina aranibar fernandez, who will make her presentation. thank you. good afternoon, commissioners. happy friday. i'll be presenting the artist of our upcoming exhibition, winter 2025 at the main gallery. in june, i presented the curator of our art of our upcoming exhibitions, and i'm thrilled to present the artist for our first exhibition in 2025. ceremonies. the exhibition is inspired by the writing of writer, editor and activist essex hemphill. hemphill is best known for his

deeply uncompromising writing on their interactions of race and sexuality, informed by his experience as an open, openly gay, black man. the works in the exhibition explore the inner world of queer desire, kingship, romance and possibility. where we're missing some slides, but carry one of the artists is carrie johnson. riggs is a new jersey based artist and athlete who creates intricate, exuberant scenes from paper construction, painted in shellac ink and watercolor, his work explores fellowship, engaging act and fiction, and poetry to capture moments with with kith and kin that feel loving. he asked himself, what is what it means

to make a family, community, friendship when the world is so precarious? the next artist is jade rivera panza, j. rivera panza is an oakland based artist working in sculpture, installation and performance. their work utilizes objects to narrate the potential agency of the inanimate of those predominantly seen as a secondary or the often overlooked. their work seeks to showcase the possibility of individual authority for actions through spaces. okay the next artist is andre singleton is an oakland based social justice, civil rights and human rights activist and a multidisciplinary artist and teacher. their work is rooted in celebration of the

african diaspora. they have performed at the de young museum, the new museum in new york, moma ps1, afropunk festival, and other venues. i'm going to find that one. and then the last artist is jerry called de la rose is a queer, queer, filipinx, multidisciplinary artist and educator. through her work, she uses her brown body as an amulet against the plaque of forgetting within a postcolonial world that reinforces collective amnesia through performance, video, sculpture, and fiber works, she attempts to challenge the objective truth proposed by the ethnographic anthropology process. the cultural exchange between the philippines and its colonizers, and demystify demystifies the heritage claimed

by colonialism. those are the four artists coming to the ceremonies, our first exhibition in the main gallery. thank you. any questions? thank you for your report, now i would like to commissioner comments or discussion on this report. well, i would say that there's a lot there that we just can't miss. you know? and what a curating a show like this, you know, really requires a lot of really digging and research. but also, i applaud you for raising identity and the importance of us really expressing our true selves in a very, very public way. and the daring of the artists that you were bringing forward. so any other comments, especially from artists, about vulnerable, this makes you feel. no. may i just

on a personal account, i just wanted to thank you. since you have been doing this work, i want to acknowledge the diversity of representation and your intentionality in who gets to be in our galleries. i really want to thank you and applaud you for the work, because i can imagine you do a lot of research to do that. so thank you for the work that you're doing. i appreciate that. thank you. are there any other commissioner comments or discussion on the this report seeing none. is there any public comment on the report? for those joining in person, please proceed to the public comment podium and fill out the public comment information card. we are currently on item six. as a reminder, your time will start. when you begin speaking, you will see a visual timer on the podium and receive a 32nd audible warning before your time concludes. i'm requesting comments from those who are in person. is there anyone who would like to make a public comment on the current agenda item? seeing no request for public comment. public comment

is now closed. i'm now calling agenda item number seven. agenda item number seven is shaping legacy san francisco monuments and memorials work for discussion. we have an update on the shaping legacy project, and i'm now introducing senior. now i'm first introducing the director of cultural affairs, ralph remington, who will lead the discussion. thank you, president collins. and before we have our presentation, i'd like to just like to highlight some some key information about this work that will be expanded on in today's presentation, shaping legacy continues. the agency's ongoing work to holistically assess the monuments and memorials in the civic art collection. the work is critically important and a key focus for the arts commission to ensure our city's public art reflects the diversity of san francisco and corrects the imbalance of who gets to be

remembered and commemorated in public works of art. from increasing the representation of women in art to having hard conversations of reckoning with the legacy of white supremacy, patriarchy and colonialism, this work needs to and should be done. our aim with conducting the equity audit is to recommend ways to make sure all stories of san francisco's many communities are represented and honored. this is not the work of any one individual, but of the agency overall. building on the work and recommendations of the 13 member monuments and memorials advisory committee made up of art experts and community leaders, we are able to move this work forward with support and funding from the mellon foundation that helps us take one step further towards establishing equity in public art. and so with that, i invite

our president of the arts commission, president collins, to make any remarks that he might have. well, sure, one of the i think great honors of any of us is being able to really help to shape a set of a set of policies, what was important, i think, about the work of the task force was one it was really beautifully constituted across a range of opinions, we had very, very difficult conversations. sometimes they were, deeply emotional because what we memorialize and what we make monumental means different things to different people at different times. and one of the big distinctions that i was always keen on was differentiating what is a monument from what is a memorial and looking at the pioneer monument behind us that was

called a monument. right. but in fact, it memorialized some histories that were extraordinarily painful for people to have to endure as they watch what the dominant society would call a monument. right. so there's a lot of deconstruction of language that goes into something like that. monuments, if you think about you know, the washington monument, it was a monument to a new country. right across from it is the lincoln memorial. the memorial of the civil war, the civil war that was fought on the backs of enslavement and of genocide, of indigenous humans. and so, you know that that distinction between a monument and a memorial is something that we always have to carry inside of. that also is what is our civic responsibility, because there is an authority that comes with a city and saying that we decide to do the following. you know, this is how we want to represent

ourselves. so there was a very, very big discussion about our values as a city and also our histories as a city and how we carry those things forward. now, i don't want to get deeply involved in that because we're still in the process, but from being on that, on that task force over the months and years that we have really had this discussion, it really then moved into the ability with the mellon foundation to continue the work, which was a validating point of one, how difficult the conversations are and how the difficult they remain. but also the mellon foundation saying, stay behind this because now the work is really ahead of us. and so i just wanted to add that as a comment, insofar as this work is incomplete and the language that is formed around this is extremely important because it is going to shape in the future, you know, how we decide to tell

the story of where we are, and also to address things that are in our history that we have to yet address? the report is not finished. right. and so we have not gone into what is implementation. and therefore i would really like to turn it over to angela carrier for the monuments memorials update. thank you, director remington. and thank you, president collins for that context. good afternoon commissioners. i'm pleased to present a project update on shaping legacy san francisco's monuments and memorials. if you recall, i was brought on in january to implement the goals and deliverables of a program grant that we received and were awarded funding from the mellon foundation. while i'm stewarding this project in this present moment, it's building on the momentum and the legacy of many people and communities before me. and i just have the unique opportunity to be part of that continuum. i'll begin and ground us in the art commission's racial equity statement with a focus on the last sentence of

the statement, quote, this work requires that we focus on race as we confront inequities of the past, reveal inequities of the present, and develop effective strategies to move us all towards an equitable future. end quote in the image here is juana alicia's soon to be installed nopal de la mision for the mission branch of the public library. beginning with some background and context of this work, i always start with this map that overlays the objects and the arts commission's care with the city's cultural district, the civic art collection is comprised of over 4000 objects that include historic monuments and memorials, gifts to the city, commissions and so on. this map just shows the objects that are within the arts commission's care. they don't include the other artworks, the arts organizations, and the artists in the city that would grow this. the image in this map exponentially. and when we move to this map, we can it begins to

tell a different story. this is showing the locations of the 98 plus works that have been identified as monuments and memorials. as stated in the executive summary of the monuments and memorials advisory committee's final report. i quote like many communities across the country, san francisco is reckoning with the legacy of white supremacy, patriarchy and colonialism reflected in public spaces specifically, and monuments and memorials that are part of the san francisco civic art collection. many of the monuments and memorials in the collection do not reflect the diversity of san francisco, ignores stories of communities of color, and reinforce inequities and race, gender, and culture. end quote. so a brief review of some of the recent milestone moments with monuments and memorials. in 2018, after years of community advocacy and through a public and open process adhering to the sfc's policy and guidelines for public art and civic art collection,

the arts commission removed the early days sculpture from the pioneer monument and fulton plaza, as seen in the image on the left. the arts commission then organized community public programing, the continuous thread and the american indian initiative. in march of 2020, during a global pandemic and lockdown and the murder of george floyd by police in may of 2020 that led to worldwide protests against police brutality and racism. june 18th of 2020, the arts commission was made aware of circulating communications that the columbus statue was going to be toppled in the center. here pictured, in the interest of public safety, the arts commission removed the columbus statue from its plinth at the base of coit tower the following day. on june 19th of 2020, there was the toppling of three monuments in golden gate park by demonstration demonstrators. francis scott key and the bottom center junipero serra. on the top right, and the bust of ulysses s grant in the

lower right. following these events on june 20th of 2020, mayor london breed issued a directive that called on the san francisco arts commission, the human rights commission, and recreation and parks department to lead a community process to evaluate the public monuments and memorials in the city's civic art collection. the arts commission then worked closely with our city partners to establish a plan, and by january of 2022, had identified and selected the community representatives that formed the monuments and memorials advisory committee, or edvac for short, which was comprised of 13 community advocates and arts and cultural leaders that worked through june of 2023 to make recommendations and updates to our public art policies and guidelines. as the committee's three co-chairs from the arts commission, the human rights commission, and the recreation and parks, rec and park department, state. in their open letter to the final report, i quote and max charge was to

examine the history of the monuments in the public realm in san francisco, the individuals, events and the ideals that they venerate, and how the narratives associated with these monuments align or do not align with san francisco's values today. end quote. so some high level findings from the report and recommendations, which the full report can be found online on our website. the guiding principles that drove the committee were power, complexit, justice and representation, and the broad category for recommendations were to rectify power imbalance, engage and build awareness, review and evaluate, and sustained future engagement. the agency's strategy post report was to seek funding to support putting the recommendations of the report into action in june of 2023. san francisco was one of nine municipalities nationwide that received this mellon foundation grant as part of the monuments project initiative. the $3

million grant will be, will fund and support the arts commission's monuments and memorials initiative. over three years, the president of the mellon foundation, elizabeth alexander's leadership, propels this significant investment, investment driven by the inquiry. and i quote how can we transform our commemorative landscape so that it accurately conveys the complexity of our history and the inspiration that is possible in public spaces? end quote. moving forward to continue our work based on the recommendations of the final report. and after securing this grant funding, we present shaping legacy, shaping legacy is a multiyear, equity focused commitment to critically examine the monuments and memorials in san francisco's civic art collection. the arts commission will engage communities that have historically been excluded from discussions, produce an equity audit report, and create opportunities for artist led activations and public space, and support temporary

installations that reimagine future monuments and memorials in our city. the agency goals of the project are to enable the arts commission to shift the narrative of monuments and memorials to reflect more equitable stories, to create vibrant and inclusive landscape that prioritizes equity, justice and reflects the complexity of our histories and communities confronting past and current harms will require humility, transparency, and accountability, and we believe that artists, cultural workers can bring their visual, visionary interventions to our process and the public realm. so a brief project overview going into the phases of the project. we've started phase one. we're in the project launch. we've hired project staff. we're beginning the audit. we're bringing on artists, advisors and community engagement. the next phase will include the final report coming out. continued engagement and the artists activations, rfp and selections. and the final phase will have a festival continued

engagement, evaluation and integration. and the project will sunset some other high level updates of where we've been over the last several months, using the headers and from the recommendations from the mac report to rectify power imbalance, we've engaged the justice collective to lead trauma informed system trainings and workshops to the expanded project team. through the duration of the project, we're also convening artist circles of advisors and community collaborators to guide and inform our process to engage and build awareness. we've designed a unique shaping legacy visual identity and logo, and we've presented prioritized presentations and outreach to the cultural centers and the cultural districts under review and evaluate where we are now. we've hired h, r, and a advisors to lead the equity audit, research, public meetings, and analysis. the findings will be synthesized and presented by hr and advisors, and an equity audit final report with the research, analysis and recommendations. currently, the

research we're currently in the research and preliminary analysis phase, preparing for workshops later this fall and plan to release the final report to the public in early 2025 for sustained future engagement. we've created a dedicated shaping legacy web page and an email list offering ongoing moments for the staff of the arts commission to be educated and engaged, and we're pursuing integration with our existing programs and collaboration with related initiatives at our partner city agencies into a bit more detail on the equity audit, the work plan review this timeline shows our our plan for the audit we're currently in. the analysis of the current monuments and memorials of the civic art collection to identify the inequities in the collection and will result in recommendations on the monuments and memorials to remove, relocate or contextualize and the stories of the community and the narratives that need to be included in future commemorative

projects. these serve only as recommendations as the removal, relocation and contextualization of any monuments or memorials will require. the arts commission's approval through an open public and transparent process as defined in our guidelines for the public art and our civic art collection. management and a recent example of this type of work done at scale, which i would recommend if you have not seen already, is the national monument audit that was done by monument lab and the mellon foundation. so as we venture into this ongoing work of reckoning, repair and healing, we trust artists and their communities to guide us towards a future where monuments are spaces of inclusion of belonging, and a recognition of our shared humanity. some upcoming invitations to engage as director remington has already shared the long awaited unveiling of thomas's monument honoring maya angelou portrait of a phenomenal woman at the public library, main branch. in a couple of weeks now and later

this fall, we will be holding our community workshops led by the equity audit consultants with the dates and locations still to be still pending and pictured there to the left, you'll see mildred howard's monumental promissory notes at the southeast community center. so we encourage you and the members of the public who are interested in staying engaged with our work and shaping legacy. to sign up for updates on our website or follow the link here. thank you. thank you. everybody should take a deep breath and you should take a deep no. thank you for your report. i'm now asking for any commissioner comments or discussions on the report on monuments and memorials. may i please, mayor commissioner hakimi, thank you. i said this at the visual art committee and i. i thank you and your team for incredible, intentional work, so it's i wanted to raise one

issue, and that's because as i work with the equity council for the city, for the planning department, and in partnership with other city, you know, departments that come and we try to bridge the situation as i don't know if you know, i as one of the one of the 11 equity council within our communities, one issue that has come up and i raised this with aauw last week, is that the nature of the way we do business in san francisco is that if we want to do funds or call into community, we go through our organizations. funding is through that. the representation through these organizations, while we have a fabulous, wonderful partners in these organizations out on the field, on the ground, the reality of it is, there are communities that do to being later immigrants in this country due to a lot of issues that have

to do with their not necessarily yet civically engaged and understand the policies of the city, they do not have representative organizations and examples of those are the bipoc, queer women, the swana community. and i say that it emphasis on women in particular, so one issue that we're discussing is how do we be mindful in engaging these organizations that we're also engaging the public that is not actually part of these organizations. so i just wanted to ask you, how are you planning? are you have you thought about that? i'm sure you have. and because they don't they're not organized. like, you know, we have you know, i work with a fabulous communities and those who are organized get represented. and there's a lot who don't. and as we're talking in this world today, while there are certain communities that we, have to take care of for the

harm that we've done, we continue to harm new communities. and so as we talk about equity, we have to be realistic that in 20 years from now, the communities that we are focusing on today are not going to be the harm communities of 20 years from now. so i'm asking and inviting and i would love to know, how are we addressing that and making sure that that's addressed as we do a very important historical work? thank you for that question. commissioner hakimi. i'm with you there. and i think part of it is this exchange we're having now to know, to hear from those what we need to be looking for. i think about what do monuments of belonging look like? what is really our base humanity and our collective liberation look like. and in that case, we need to serve everyone. so i think we start with what we know, but we can always learn and we can always add. this is one project among many of the agency. it certainly is an opportunity. it is an opening. it is a calling, as was mentioned earlier, that we must respond to. so i think

along the way we'll we'll find who we need to be in community with and who we need to represent. and i think that's part of this exchange, this process. we have a way for the public to communicate with us what they what they would like to see and what they hope to see. so that's where we're at right now. yeah. i just just a point of clarification. the funding, if we had not gotten this grant, we would have not been able to move forward in this way because we wouldn't have had the funding. and the funding has helped us move this project along. and the funding lasts through 2020 6th june of 2026. that's that's awesome. are there where there's a will? there's a way. no, but i yeah, i think it shows the ingenuity and the determination of our staff who sort this out. and to create a flow of work that is not, alone. i mean, they came together across many cities in order to form and also the leadership of the mellon

foundation in seeing how these deep histories really influence who we are and what we venerate, and there's a reparation within the mellon foundation, isn't there? i, i'm genuinely really happy to see that we really live up to what we say. when i was part of the memorial and monument committees and yes, director remington, we did go through and hear a lot of hard, emotional conversations. but i remember we repeatedly remind ourselves in the committee that this is a live document. it is enabling more input and inclusive for other communities that might not have the same resource to or ability to reach out. and i'm just happy to see that we really is doing it and continue and continue to fund this. and, hopefully if we will have continue to fund, well, not

hopefully we will continue to fund this. we'll find we'll find ways to do it. but thank you for doing this work. and i just really appreciate the update. and we are getting into a very organized and operational project to continue to, identify and track things with data. and i think i remember i brought that up to do we have some backup data and workshop, which because education is the key to understanding. thank you. thank you, commissioner mosley. yeah, i had a quick question, and thank you for the work. good to see you. you mentioned that it was based on a national model. there are other audits being done across the nation. the national audit national monument audit was done by the monument lab in partnership with the mellon foundation, that did an assessment across the nation of monuments. so that's one example of a of a process that's

underway. pittsburgh the city of pittsburgh has also done an audit. portland many of the other cities that are also received this funding are undergoing this work as well, but yeah, that's where we're kind of we're also taking the lead on this work as we have very, established guidelines for our collection. this allows us to work from that and build, you know, add to that with an audit that has, again, as commissioner so mentioned, data, evidence for what's driving our decision making. okay. yeah, i was just interested because, you know, we have very unique circumstances. i suppose, when it comes to monuments as opposed to maybe in the deep south where they may be dealing with confederate monuments or whatever you want to call them. and, and how we might learn on how, best practices and things like that if there's something we can reflect on or, or but it sounds like we're taking the lead and

there's a lot of simultaneous work going on in this area. yeah. one of the things that i will thank you for that question, the mellon foundation has also set us up as a cohort with the eight other cities that receive this funding. so we've been able to connect with those in the east coast in the midwest and the south, in the west coast as well, with la and portland. so we have had these moments to share and to have thought partnership with the other cities doing this work and learn from each other. so that's certainly something to build from, and yeah, we are a unique city, a unique place, but we doesn't mean we can't learn from the other other work that's been done across the nation. thank you, commissioner mosley, actually, i was just what commissioner shelby was talking about. is there communication between all the different cities which i think i know we're taking the lead, but it's also just been amazing to that. you guys are communicating and getting knowledge from other groups. and that could also

perhaps cover other, communities that maybe, you know, what commissioner hakimi said, maybe that helps us draw from that also because some areas are, you know, every city is different. and so i think this is a great step forward. thank you for the report so far. thank you. you know, i would comment, and you referred to this that we're sitting within a latticework of, of opportunity and we should not be bereft that we don't have funding streams in order to bring this alive. i mean, the very work that we do with the public works department or with the department of recreation and park, every time a major capital project comes up, our visual arts committee works, or the work that we're doing at treasure island, all of these are activating opportunities. and so what we're finding are the criteria that we then base decisions moving forward. a

perfect example is that we did not have to wait for the report to do the lava thomas work, right? i mean, that was inherent in the value system and in working through that to take something that is, is a very, very important story. and to make it and to monumentalize it. right. so you know, again, you say, well, we're going to get it at the end of the report and then we're not going to be able to do anything. we're doing things all the time. and so when we are looking at especially our major capital budgets, because the percentage for arts really matters and, you know, and, and you see this in the flow of the civic design committee report, which is looking at the opportunity. and then often those opportunities translates into the amount of money that will be allocated towards artwork and then filtering through, you know, the various opportunities for expression at the same time is that we're trying to encourage young local artists and arts organizations.

so there is a framework and what this work is important to do is to give it a rational framework, as opposed to kind of a distributed set of, of hopes and, and objectives. the other one that is grounding us is our and you introduce the conversation talking about racial equity. right. so that is work that really precedes the monuments and memorials work. and we have every quarter we have a report on what we do, how we're spending the money and who's getting it and how it how it results in impact. so it's very important, i think, that we all understand that this is a lattice work, and this stream of activity will also be further articulated in our strategic plan. so i'm sorry if i'm going on a lot, because the work of this task force means a lot to all of us. and i had the opportunity of sitting in on it, and i can't thank you enough for where you've taken it. are there any other comments, commissioner? president collins, i'd like to say one thing, i think that also it's important

to remember that, first, angela carrier, thank you for your presentation. and angela and i had had the privilege to attend the monument lab conference. this this summer in philadelphi. and, you know, it was it was a powerful, expression of all of this work that's being done across the nation. i mean, it's a pact across the nation. we're not the only ones. we're not just out there like, hey, look at us, san francisco. no, this is happening across the nation in many, many cities from coast to coast, including san francisco and los angeles. and it's important to remember, too, that there was there's probably more public process going on with this right now in the evaluation of these monuments and seeing how we could recontextualize them or how we could replace them or remove them. there's probably more public process now than was done when the monuments were originally put up, because those monuments that were put up were put up in the name of white supremacy. many times. because

if you look at the south, if you look at jim crow and all throughout the south, and how these confederate leaders and, and jim crow bosses were all venerated throughout the south and these monuments were just placed, just plopped in, plopped in, plopped in with hardly little or very little public process at all. it was just in the name of, we're going to show people their place, and we're going to put them in their place and keep them in their place. and that was what jim crow was all about. and so when, when extrapolated across the nation to the west, then ours is a different reality, right? we have indigenous populations, latinx populations, other populations here that are have a different experience. but that experience is also translates to the same thing. was power kind of asserting itself over those populations and telling them how to stay within the guardrails of the supremacist ideologies that they were trying to perpetuate. so i think it's important to

remember those things. even the idea of race itself was created on the east coast and then moved across the west. so. right. and so the subjugation of black people and then all of the populations in the country were in line behind that, because whiteness was created in the commonwealth of virginia, in jamestown. i mean, we know that that's where whiteness was created in the book on the books. and so then they had to determine who was white. so some people were white and other people were not white. if you were white, you got a bunch of stuff. if you weren't white, you didn't get a bunch of stuff. and those monuments were put in place to kind of address that and to uphold those ideals. and so what we're trying to do is just evaluate, reevaluate, take it, take a breath. as president collins said, take a breath and look at these monuments with fresh eyes, with what we know now, and try to deliberately and intentionally be rational in our

approach, responsive to our present communities. thank you. commissioner. comment is now closed. is there any public comment on agenda item number seven? shaping legacy? i believe we have another commissioner carney. do we have another comment from a commissioner? oh yeah. commissioner carney here, i agree with you that it's important to tell our story and accurately portray our history. but our art, our art sometimes shows how harmful and hateful our society has been. and we mustn't sweep that under the rug. we must confront our past. so i think the term that you, you and ralph use recontextualizing is so important. we need to use this harmful, hateful art as educational tools in some way, maybe put it in storage, but bring it out occasionally or show photos of it. otherwise the hatred of the past will come

back again. for 30 years i've done a giant pink triangle up on twin peaks for that very reason. it's giant, it's supersized. it's in-your-face, so everyone can see it because we must remember the hatred of the past and actually throw it in people's faces. that's how we remember what actually happened. and so this artwork, such as the well, there are various pieces. ralph knows them better than i do, but they mustn't be hidden and just or destroyed. you know, that's what the taliban does. we need to use them to teach people what? how horrible. we have been. so anyway, that i'm sure that's what you mean by recontextualizing. i hope that's what you mean. but you know, if you bring it out and say, yes, we have this piece of artwork, but this is what it means. this is what that artwork is representing. some of those horrible things like ralph mentioned, that were just thrown up. to, to say who's who's in charge. you know, those need to

be brought out as teaching lessons anyway. that's somehow, if you could not, let us forget how horrible we've been. with your permission or discretion and ask for public comment on this agenda. for those joining in person, please proceed to the public comment podium and fill out the public comment information card. we are currently on item seven. as a reminder, your time will start. when you begin speaking, you will see a visual timer on the podium and receive a 32nd audible warning before your time concludes, requesting comments from those who are in person. is there anyone who would like to make a public comment? hi, welcome. we are on item seven. you will have three minutes to state your public comment and the time will begin. when you start speaking. okay, great. good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. my name is erica sandberg and i'm an independent local journalist covering politics, crime, culture and business. but today i'm here as

a proud san franciscan and an art history major from good old san francisco state university with an emphasis on women's art. and i'm going to deliver this message, we, the people of baghdad, by the bay, will not permit our majestic artwork to be censured. the monuments and statues under scrutiny live in our public spaces. they illustrate not only this city's foundation, but also its future. you see, real san franciscans, we don't hide from history. we know it. we remember it, we learn from it. we laugh at it, and we love it. purging imagery that a tiny few find offensive is for tyrants. those who do join the nazis, the taliban and chairman mao as they also tried to erase and rewrite the past by

annihilating politically inconvenient art. the shameful insanity that led to the removal and destruction of such statues as christopher columbus, junipero serra, ulysses grant, and francis scott key, is actually over today. you cannot operate in darkness, nor can you make unilateral, ignorant decisions about what stays and what goes. in fact, we demand the aforementioned works of art to be repaired and replaced in their original locations. and i understand your motivation is because i read all the documents i quote to rectify power imbalance. this, this everything about this would do absolutely nothing of the sort. instead, it

is an obscene waste of millions of dollars in san francisco. that is currently suffering with true injustice. walk through the tenderloin. you'll find it. this is a waste of every single penny and an affront to rationality. every one of you should have rejected this ludicrous project. you should have said no, this is unethical, embarrassing, and i won't have any part of it. but you didn't. you took the money and now we are here. it's 2024. times have changed. and if anything should be toppled, it's the monuments and memorials advisory committee, if not the entire arts commission. power to the people. viva la san francisco! any additional comments? hi, and your time will begin. once you begin speaking. ladies and gentlemen, i hope,

representative remington doesn't laugh at me like he was laughing at erica samba. my name is karina velasquez, and i stand before you today as a proud venezuelan immigrant, a survivor of the oppressive chavez and maduro dictatorships. i fled my homeland in search of freedom, democracy, and the opportunity to live in a society that values history and the lessons it teaches us. what i see happening here in san francisco, the calls to take down monuments and erase symbols of our shared past. it

strikes me deep and a troubling court in venezuela. we witness a similar strategy used by those in power. they tore down statue, erased names and rewrote history in an attempt to control the narrative, reshape national identity and consolidate their grip on the people by erasing the past, they silenced debate and suppress dissent. slowly suffocating democracy. here, in a free society, i believe we must tread carefully. monuments

memorials. however controversial, are pieces of our collective history. they represent a complicated and imperfect past that we cannot ignore. if we start erasing history, we are no better than the regimes that seek to control the truth. instead, we should confront our history, learn from it, and engage in open conversations. democracy drive. when we acknowledge our mistakes or the mistakes of the past and strive for progress, let us not follow the dangerous path of delete that i witnessed in my home country, venezuela. we are

removing monuments was a precursor to silence. the voices are erasing erosion. freedom. thank you. any additional comments? your time will begin once you start speaking. thanks good afternoon commissioners. my name is alan braddell and i'm a district eight resident, i feel like our arts community is in good hands here with you all. i'm encouraged to hear a lot of the comments i've heard today, i don't know how i'm going to follow this last speaker. i hope all of you listen carefully to that later. maybe on a recording later. but i'm here today because of an article i saw in the chronicle, and it was the white supremacy, patriarchy and colonialism behind sf's $3 million plan to cull its

monuments and memorials. and i had to look up the word cull. right. we all kind of know what it means, right? but sometimes we like to look up a word to get the real gist. right. so i looked it up to reduce or control the size of something by removal. so we're talking about removal. and i read through the article and there was someone who's a professor from stanford and he started to channel me, okay, this stanford professor nailed it for me. so i want to read from you for you from from this. his name is james campbell. he's a stanford professor, and he says historical memory is inevitably political. he said he went on to say the debates over monuments and memorials often serve as proxy wars for other disputes and grievances. right the debates over monuments and

memorials often serve as proxy wars for other other disputes and grievances, he went on to say to me, the real danger of these kinds of exercises is not so much the historical erasure, but the self-congratulation, the self-congratulation that happens with all of us pointing fingers. we're pointing fingers at the unenlightened ancestors and patting ourselves on the back with our own superior moral wisdom that packs a punch. and i think we all need to have the humility to absorb what this person is saying. this is not a nobody. this is a stanford professor. now, the good part of this article is coming. and it's that there's a phase that we're in now where we're going to have, a artist to, look at the

future. and the article goes on. but my time is about to end. so in closing, let's keep our monuments and memorials. let's add more monuments, memorials, and then the best way to achieve equity for art in the public realm is to add art in the public realm. thank you. thank you. any additional comments? hi. and your time will start when you begin speaking. okay, so hi commissioners. my name is charlotte wooster, san francisco native. my favorite monument is the pioneer woman and child in golden gate park. i love her. she i relate to her. i jotted down a bunch of notes here because i almost didn't expect to be here today. it's kind of news to me that this was happening, but i do want to be

involved. to be sure that all san franciscans heritage is honored and not denigrated as it was during the kind of out of control hysteria back there in 2020. it was pretty. it was pretty crazy, it was violent. it was. i mean, the for photographs of those statues that we saw earlier really indicated to me violence. and i just it was disturbing. so as alan just pointed out, i think we should add, add to monuments in the city and not pull away. compromise. that would be a compromise. it's the best solution to kind of keep our social fabric healthy and strong. you know. yeah. in 2001, in afghanistan and unesco world heritage site was destroyed, because the taliban leader felt

that he didn't or he didn't, no one would be able to worship or respect those things in the future. and so just be careful with the power that you have, because it can be abused. humans are humans, and you're all human regardless of what your outward appearance might be, i'd like you to really keep that in mind that you actually, you hold the power. i don't, and i'm white, and most of you are not. and i really would like you to be careful about how you speak about white people, because it's pretty clear to me now that it's open season. de rigueur. so just be aware that, like anybody of any skin tone or heritage, it's not okay. i learned that in the san francisco public schools. okay. so i guess my that gets me emotional. my last thing is that

i looked up the definition of equity and it's justice according to natural law or. right. and we're all under natural law specifically freedom from bias or favoritism. okay. so be careful with your own bias and favoritism, and last but not least, san francisco values. what are they? where have they been defined? is it official who declared them? when was there consensus? so before you start saying that, i want to know what they are specifically. thank yo. thank you. any additional comments? see no more requests for public comment. public comment is now closed. thank you, president collins, just to, remind commissioners to we

stated this before about our process with the miami of memorials. the united states is really behind in this process. rectifying, you know, equality and equity in the public sphere. and when you look at germany, for instance, you can't. i lived in germany for two and a half years. it's against the law to put monuments and memorials to nazi generals or soldiers or whatnot. so germany was way ahead of everybody else. so we're just united states is just trying to catch up. so i just want to tell you that's what the process is about. thank you. you're okay. thank you. this item is now closed, may i now move to agenda item number eight, which is the consent calendar. i'm asking commissioners if they have any withdrawals or recusals at this time. and, i'll read the consent

calendar. thank you very much. and now we will take all of the consent calendar items. i'm calling for any commissioner discussion or comments on the consent calendar. and also for a motion, this commissioner showed i did have a question on item 17, which is the contract with the aag conservation services. so it's, it was for as needed, fine arts services, including conservation of various large scale works, is that as a kind of retainer or is that for specific? project or earmarked for anything, i just wanted to. yes. thank you. thank you. thank you. commissioner. so, this is part of our pool of as needed contractors that we use for

installation and for conservation. so we did an rfp a number of years ago, created this as needed pool, when we enter into contract for an amount that exceeds $500,000, we need to come to the commission for review and approval, we are anticipating that there is a lot of conservation work that is coming up. and so this consent calendar item that we put on is for approval of the aag contract. beyond that 500,000. does that answer your question? it does. and that it includes installation, which is very expensive for any piece of artwork. it's i understand the number. thank you. thank you. thank you so much. are there any other commissioner questions or comments on the consent calendar? may i have a motion to approve the consent calendar as presented? so move to second commissioner musil. thank you.

is there any public comment on the consent calendar? for those joining in person, please proceed to the public comment podium and fill out the public comment information card. we are currently on item eight. as a reminder, your time will start. when you begin speaking, you will see a visual timer on the podium and receive a 32nd audible warning before your time concludes, requesting comments from those who are in person. is there anyone who would like to make a public comment on the current agenda item? i see no request for a public comment. public comment is now closed. thank you. i'm now calling agenda item number eight. new business and announcements. could we have a. oh. i'm sorry. may i have the final motion, please? all those in favor? i opposed motion carries unanimously. thank you. i'm now calling agenda item number eight, which is new business and announcements. current administrative. budgetary ledge. i think it's number. oh, sorry. item nine. yes, apologies. that's sorry. we've gone. all right. this is a number thing, right? it's where we are on the

agenda. yes. it says eight on mine. so it's i mean nine. all right. number nine, which is new business and announcements, budgetary, legislative and programing, developments and announcements. are there any commissioner comments or discussions on agenda item number nine? i would like to invite everybody out to the fillmore. this saturday we're going to be doing art walk sf. there will be over 60 artists represented, represented over 30 businesses and six musical performers in three different locations. so you are free saturday 12 to 5. it is on fillmore street between bush and washington. please join us. are there any other? i had a commissioner for carolina. if i may, for the exhibit that's opening on the 20th, is that the opening night? is that going to

be a reception for it, or is that. sorry yes. the 20th at 6:00. is that from 6 to 8 remarks 630. fantastic. thank you so much, i do have an announcement, and that is that this is the time of year that we name a nominating committee. and i have asked for commissioner brunzell to chair the committee and for commissioners shelby and ferris to be the other members of the committee. as you recall, this is the time of year that we engage in who are going to be the leaders for the following year, and we really, truly leave it with the nominating committee to engage in a diligence process. so when they call you, please know that they need your input. i've also asked for the committee to speak to staff members to ensure that we get a well-rounded view of where we're headed, and any comments that you have, any way that you would like for it to be conducted. filter them to me and i will

then ensure that our our committee chair, seth brunzell, will distribute those responsibilities accordingly. but this is very important because it's really almost the only time of year that we do a self audit. all of us are subject to this. you know, whoever the leaders are, are accountable to the commission and to the public for what we d. so be, candid and really honest and frank in your discussions with your fellow commissioners so that we can receive that feedback and the nominations will move accordingly. any other questions about that in advance? i want to thank them. i've been on that on that committee and i understand how important it is to be able to get that information in how to filter it, how to process, and then really bring it out so that we learn from it. and we're not just perfunctory, you know, moving names along because they sit in a certain place. so i have to

answer that call. yes, please. you definitely have to answer that. i hope that you you can, by the way, anybody can talk to anybody on the committee. you know, the chair allocates this, but, you know, if you have something that you feel more comfortable in speaking to a particular commissioner about, it's all all good. it's all good, any other, on agenda item number nine, new business announcements or things such as that, this is a, i'm worried i'm announcing something that you can't go to, but the san francisco symphony has three more concerts of the music from studio ghibli, which is the totoro film and the hall last night was absolutely packed, and i think you can't actually purchase a ticket in the city of san francisco, but there might be some tickets online. if you

are really love those movies and you love that music, it's amazing. i would encourage you to go. it's a kind of a once in i, you know, it's not the show is not going to come around again. so anyhow, it's a really wonderful way to kick off the symphony. the only other thing i wanted to say is that this is the kickoff of all of the big performing arts season, all the performing arts seasons. the opera gala, i think, is tonight, i think there's, you know, there's lots of things going on, so go to some performing arts. we'd love to see you as our audience members and commissioners. any anything else? nope is there any public comment, on this agenda item number nine? no. public is present. public comment is closed. well now i'm calling for agenda item number ten, not nine. and that's adjournment. thank you.

>> [music] art withelders exhibiting senior art work across the bay for 30 years as

part of our traveling exhibit's program. for this exhibits we partnered with the san francisco art's commission galleries and excited show case the array of artist in historic san francisco city hall. >> [inaudible]. call me temperature is unique when we get to do we, meaning myself and the 20 other professional instructors we are working with elders we create long-term reps i can't think of another situation academically where we learn about each other. and the art part i believe is a

launching pad for the relationship building:see myself well. and if i don't try when my mom again. she may beat the hell out of mow if i don't try >> seniors, the population encounters the problem of loneliness and isolation even in a residential community there hen a loss of a spouse. leaving their original home. may be not driving anymore and so for us to be ail to bring the classes and art to those people where hay are and we work with people in all walks of life and circumstances but want to finds the people that are isolated and you know bring the warmth there as much as art skill its personal connection. men their family can't be well for them. i can be their fell and feel it. >> i don't have nobody.

people say, hi, hi. hello but i don't know who they are. but i come here like on a wednesday, thursday and friday. and i enjoy. >> we do annual surveys asking students what our program does for them. 90 plus % say they feel less alone, they feel more engaged. they feel more socially connected the things you hope for in general as we age. right? >> and see when i do this. i am very quiet. i don't have anybody here talking to me or telling me something because i'm concentrating on had i'm doing and i'm not talking to them.

>> not just one, many students were saying the program had absolutely transformational for them. in said it had saved their lives. >> i think it is person to support the program. because i think ida elder communities don't get a lot of space in disability. we want to support this program that is doing incredible work and giving disability and making this program what supports the art and health in different way bunkham art as a way of expression. a way of like socializing and giving artists the opportunity also to make art for the first time, sometimes and we are excited that we can support this stories and honor their stories through art.

we hope the people will feel inspired by the variety and the quality of the creative expressions here and that viewers come, way with a greater appreciation of the richness what elders have to share with us. [music] ♪♪ >> san francisco! ♪♪

>> this is an exhibition across departments highlighting different artworks from our collection. gender is an important part of the dialogue. in many ways, this exhibition is contemporary. all of this artwork is from the 9th century and spans all the way to the 21st century. the exhibition is organized into seven different groupings or themes such as activities, symbolism, transformation and others. it's not by culture or time period, but different affinities between the artwork. activities, for example, looks

at the role of gender and how certain activities are placed as feminine or masculine. we have a print by uharo that looks at different activities that derisionly performed by men. it's looking at the theme of music. we have three women playing traditional japanese instruments that would otherwise be played by men at that time. we have pairings so that is looking within the context of gender in relationships. also with how people are questioning the whole idea of pairing in the first place. we have three from three different cultures, tibet, china and japan. this is sell vanity stot relevar has been fluid in different time

periods in cultures. sometimes being female in china but often male and evoking features associated with gender binaries and sometimes in between. it's a lovely way of tying all the themes together in this collection. gender and sexuality, speaking from my culture specifically, is something at that hasn't been recently widely discussed. this exhibition shows that it's gender and sexuality are actually have been considered and complicated by dialogue through the work of artists and thinking specifically, a sculpture we have of the hindu deities because it's half pee male and half male.

it turns into a different theme in a way and is a beautiful representation of how gender hasn't been seen as one thing or a binary. we see that it isn't a modest concept. in a way, i feel we have a lot of historical references and touch points throughout all the ages and in asian cultures. i believe san francisco has close to 40% asian. it's a huge representation here in the bay area. it's important that we awk abouk about this and open up the discussion around gender. what we've learned from organizing this exhibition at the museum is that gender has been something that has come up in all of these cultures through all the time periods as something that is important and relevant. especially here in the san francisco bay area we feel that it's relevant to the conversations that people are having today. we hope that people can carry

that outside of the museum into their daily lives. >> here is great wall hardware, 3500 square feet of retail space. we carry about 22 thousand items in here and countingfelt it never stops because i have a thing. when a customer says, do you have this and i don't have it, it bothers me. i won't have it. so, it is just one of those things owning a hardware store, people expect you to have everything and you try to if full thill fulfill that

need. native san franciscan. born in chinatown, same as bruce lee, chinatown hospital. my family moved to the sunset in the late 70's, so my mom and dad thought, we are already doing construction, why don't we open a hardware store? it is nice dove tail to each other, so that is how that got started. we started this store in 1983, and we have been going every since, so now it is 40 years. i like serving my neighborhood. i fealt a hardware store is different from other businesses. most businesses you want to buy this or that and eat this or that. a hardware store is different. people come in and usually have a problem and need a solution and looking for you to navigate them through that problem and offer them products that help them get to where they need to go. the people are great. i love this neighborhood. there is different etnisties and cultures here. we all intermingle and mix together and

get along fine and i like that about this neighborhood t. is nice place to be. it is near the beach and beautiful and near the zoom and park and stern grove. great schools and parks. what's twl not to like? i am always looks around the corner the next thing to and crank it up more and make it safer and more enjoyable. bringing in new businesses. support them. great wall hardware, open 7 days a week, monday-friday 8 to 6, saturday is 10 to 6 and sunday is 10 to 3.

[music] so, can you tell us what it was like for you during your first encounter with the san francisco fire department? >> yep. it was super cool! i got to learn about the dry standing pipe correction. it is actually called, dry sand piper just stand pipe. tomato. you know. yea. >> so, what is coming up next for what is that for?

>> oh , firefighter backsterinvited mow to a fire station to see the cool stuff firefighters use to put out fires. you have seen the had doors open like a space ship from out of nowhere. i close my eye its is like i'm there right now! wow! whoa. watch out, man. what is that for? >> what is this? these are fire engines they might look alike they are both red. white top and red lights on top. this is a new 2021 fire engine and this is an older 2014 fire engine. if you can't tell, this one is

shorter and narrower than our older fire engines. they have cool things like recessed lights. roll up doors. 360 degree cam ares and more that is important as the city is moving toward slower and safer streets adding parklets and bulb outs and bike lanes we need to decrease our footprint to keep us and the community safer on emergency scenes. >> what's back there? >> when is not guilty fire engine. great question. i want to see, sure. >> let's go back and look at the equipment and the fire pump on the fire engine. >> this is a fire pump. it is cool all the colors and all that. this fire pump and this engine holds 500 gallons of water that is a lot. >> a lot of water. >> it is push out 1500 gallons a

minute of water. we can lose our 500 gammons quickly. why we use hoses like this to connect to a fire hydrant and that gives us unlimited amount of water to help put a fire out temperature is important we have enough fire engine in san francisco to put fires out. so we can reduce the injuries and minimize loss of life and minimize property damage. [music] >> mr. will. mr. will. will! >> oh. daydreaming. thanks, everybody for watching! bye! [music]

i'm anthony i'm owner of scoop ice cream in the bayview. >> the environment sit down environment to enjoy a bananasplit. root beer floot. shake, et cetera . just creating that environment for people to come and enjoy. they can experience this is cultural driven. we pretty much replicate what our culture means in the bayview. >> a back story me and my siplings my aunt took us out for

ice cream all the time. spend hours eating ice cream and talking and catching up with friends and family of came with an idea. why don't you bring the ice cream shop back has not been one here in a time since the 90's. i thought it would be good to bring something back to a community where i grew up and something with me in business community. my fate is the apple pie flavor made from french cashew milk it is vegan. homemade cashew milk and cocoa nut milk. apples upon cinnamon and nutmeg and create a great desert. my great grand mother made it from scratch. made ice cream for kids in the

neighborhood and made different flavors. sugar free and dairy free. got passion to do it being here in the community and from my family. >> here is great wall hardware, 3500 square feet of retail space. we carry about 22 thousand items in here and countingfelt it never stops because i have a thing. when a customer says, do you have this and i don't have it, it bothers me. i won't have it. so, it is just one of those things owning a hardware store, people expect you to have everything and you try to if full thill fulfill that need. native san franciscan. born in chinatown, same as bruce lee, chinatown hospital. my family moved to the sunset in the late 70's, so my mom and dad

thought, we are already doing construction, why don't we open a hardware store? it is nice dove tail to each other, so that is how that got started. we started this store in 1983, and we have been going every since, so now it is 40 years. i like serving my neighborhood. i fealt a hardware store is different from other businesses. most businesses you want to buy this or that and eat this or that. a hardware store is different. people come in and usually have a problem and need a solution and looking for you to navigate them through that problem and offer them products that help them get to where they need to go. the people are great. i love this neighborhood. there is different etnisties and cultures here. we all intermingle and mix together and get along fine and i like that about this neighborhood t. is nice place to be. it is near the beach and beautiful and near the zoom and park and stern grove.

great schools and parks. what's twl not to like? i am always looks around the corner the next thing to and crank it up more and make it safer and more enjoyable. bringing in new businesses. support them. great wall hardware, open 7 days a week, monday-friday 8 to 6, saturday is 10 to 6 and sunday is 10 to 3. d happy to be here. good to see all of you. oh, now you're getting quiet? okay all right, even though there's names, let's move on up a little bit more. they should have been here. they lose their seats. i don't even know