Haight St is a sub-cultural paradise with slight changes between generations. Our hippies are now replaced with oppressed 18 year old boys talking about how they were deprived of their mother’s nipple post middle school and how I need to give them funds for their molly habits. I mean at least take some proper drugs dude. I want to see rotting teeth and protruding bone structures! What remains still is the genuine spirit of what Haight St has always embodied. You have coffee for the brewers, bikes for the transporters, records for the diggers, beer gardens for the chuggers, skate decks for the thrashers, clothing for the hipsters and of course bongs for the stoners.
New to the scene is HoodLab SF. Part clothing company, part hemp enthusiast (well duh) and part gallery with their first show displaying works by local artisan Sam Flores.
It’s truly a pleasure to see Mr. Flores develop into the painter that he is today. He was the first artist I knew of from the Upper Playground alumni (others being Mike Giant, Jeremy Fish and Dave Choe) back in college during my graphic design days. Known for his large hands and nicely nestled objects on top of character’s heads, the shop featured a vast variety of works that he’s done within the last two years.
