Detail of a Balmy Alley mural inspired by Huichol yarn paintings, by Susan Kelk Cervantes and Mia Gonzalez.
A homegrown mural tradition reveals a San Francisco neighborhood's true colors.
This tiny alley in San Francisco's Mission District has been a focal point for local street muralists since the 1970s. Balmy Alley runs parallel to Treat Ave and Harrison Street between 24th & 25th streets, and today it is covered with more than a dozen murals — many of which have political themes.
Italian photographer Tina Modotti, Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, German painter and sculptor Kathe Kollwitz, African-American sculptor Elizabeth Catlett grace a garage door at 86 Balmy Alley. Mural by Mary Nash.
A Central America-themed mural from the 1980s stands beside a more recent graffiti-style piece, while Tibetan prayer flags wave in the backyard.
In this 2004 mural by Joel Bergner, a Salvadoran village is still haunted by memories of the 1980s civil war.
Some of the great mural art in the Mission District of San Francisco