If you've passed by the corner of Olive and Polk lately and wondered when the fading mural on the backside of the O'Farrell Theater would be replaced, rest assured. A new piece is on the way courtesy of a renowned European artist. But funds are needed to help make the mural possible.
This time last year, local artist and O'Farrell Theater doorman John Vochatzer put the finishing touches on a 3,000 square-foot mural on the back of the building along Olive Street. Unfortunately, the experimental collage created with paper, wheat paste, paint and varnish did not last as long as he had hoped, Vochatzer said this week.
With some remnants of the former mural still hanging on and graffiti starting to appear, the wall is ripe for a new look, and Vochatzer says he's been offered the task of curating. However, the O'Farrell Theater is unable to contribute any funds to the project.
Thanks to a quick call to FIFTY24SF in the Lower Haight, Vochatzer now has Italian street artist Ozmo (Gionata Gesi) signed up to transform the wall. Ozmo—known for graffiti and large-scale street art as well as fine art in Italy—is in town ahead of a July 1st exhibition, titled "Ferro e Oro" (Iron and Gold), at the gallery. Before he begins work on his Olive Street mural next Monday, Vochatzer hopes to raise $2,000 via GoFundMe to cover renting a lift, purchasing paint and other supplies.
Before describing his vision for Olive Street, Ozmo explained that his work mixes traditional and iconic imagery with modern pop icons and references—eliciting "power through the muse." While he's not a religious fanatic, much of his work does feature religious imagery in an attempt to "find out how much power those images still have."
One example of his large-scale public art, and how it affects viewers, is 'Holy Mother and Child with upside down heads,' located in Ancona, Italy.
While painting this public mural, Ozmo said a young Italian woman walked up and began screaming at him from below. In her opinion, painting the Holy Mother with an upside head was disrespectful to the beloved religious icon. Later that same day, an elderly Italian woman walked up and began screaming as well. While he expected to hear more of the same, Ozmo said he was surprised by the praise she offered. Unlike the young woman, she saw hope: the Holy Mother turning her head toward the heavens praying for the city, as evil approached.
For Olive Street, Ozmo plans to reimagine the 19th century painting 'Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe' ('Luncheon on the Grass') by Edouard Manet.
In addition to being controversial at the time due to nudity and sexual suggestiveness, the image it's based on—the Greek myth 'The Judgement of Paris'—is one of the most copied images in the world, Ozmo said.
Through his work on a mural in Chicago recently, Ozmo said he's aware that nudity in public art makes many here in the states uncomfortable. But given the location—on a historic strip club—and the relationship between gender and nudity—with the females nude and males clothed, it's the perfect subject for the place. All doors are left open for interpretation, he assured. The women could be prostitutes or "pure," as artists 700 years ago used nudity to represent. And yes, parents walking by with their children may be compelled to discuss the images.
So far, the GoFundMe campaign has collected 30 percent of its goal and donations of all sizes are appreciated. Work on the mural should begin Monday, and be completed within a week.
