San Francisco Street Art Hunt
Once you collect your photographs, you can enter using our online form. If you start a submission but don’t finish it right away, that’s fine, you can go back and edit it later.
Haga clic aquí para esta página en español.
San Francisco is filled with all types of street art. What have you noticed?
We want to know what young people in San Francisco think about the art we see in our city.
Thank you to everyone who played in time to be part of our Spring 2023 raffle. There are no prizes available now, but we do welcome new submissions so we can learn more from you.
Anyone in San Francisco aged 18 or under could participate. Each completed entry we receive by ̶J̶a̶n̶u̶a̶r̶y̶ ̶2̶0̶, February 21 2023 was entered into a raffle for a $50 gift card. Winners were chosen randomly.
Follow the directions on our online form (para la versión en español, haga clic aquí) to upload a picture of street art you see in San Francisco and answer a few questions.
You can also use this worksheet to play. Instead of taking a photograph of the art, you can draw a picture of it and describe it with words.
Explore your neighborhood and take pictures that fit any of the categories:
You can also use this worksheet to play. Instead of taking a photograph of the art, you can draw a picture of it and describe it with words. Haga clic aquí para ver la hoja de trabajo en español.
Most beautiful art. Look for the piece that you just like the most.
Tell us why like this art so much. You can talk about the subject, the colors, the technique... try to put into words why you chose this art instead of another mural.Best art for the neighborhood. Notice how different street art you see makes different people in your neighborhood feel.
How does this art make you feel? How does it benefit the neighborhood it is in?Art that I have the most questions about. Sometimes art makes us think and wonder.
What questions do you have about this piece of art?
Keep track of where the art is and always check if the artist has signed their work with their name or Instagram handle. For each street art image you upload, be ready to write:
Where it is located,
Who painted it (if it is signed),
Why you chose that piece.
Frequently asked questions
Can I find my street art online?
Yes, you can use Google street view or other websites to search for street art, but we are most interested in the art you see in your neighborhood in San Francisco.
How many times can I enter?
You can enter as many times as you want! See if you can add photos for each of the categories.
Google forms are difficult to use with the device I have. Is there another way to play?
Yes. Teachers can contact us to see about submitting entries using Google Classroom or another method.
How will you choose the gift card winners?
For every complete entry we receive, we put your name on a list. Then we’ll use a random number generator to pick a winner.
Where can winners use their gift card?
The gift cards can be used in any store or website that takes credit cards or debit cards.
Learn more about street art in San Francisco
We made a slide show about the types of street art you will see in San Francisco. View this as a class and discuss your different opinions.
Here are some submissions we received:
Amenah and Ethan sent pictures of street art they believe is the “most beautiful.”
Ethan says about this piece by Nychos at 600 Ashbury St,, “I like this art piece so much because it basically is showing how complex just one small body can be, but is also showing the audience all of the small little details in just one shape.”
Amenah chose a painting at a 43 Bus Stop in the Inner Sunset and says, it is a, “Beautiful piece, calling for women freedom + cool [Persian] lettering.”
Anthony and Emmett each submitted pieces for the “best for the neighborhood” category.
Anthony submitted pictures of the murals on Leonard Flynn Elementary School. They believe this street art benefits the neighborhood because, “It's very beautiful to me and shows love which all neighborhoods need,” and, “It shows people from all different backgrounds coming together.”
This diptych is called “Family Life and Spirit of Mankind.” It was created in 1976 by Susan Cervantes and Judith Jamerson. You can learn more about this mural from Precita Eyes Muralists.
Emmett argues that these graffiti pieces by Mesiah, Post, Woah, Kurat, and Serph benefit the neighborhood, “because it shows local graffiti writers such as mesiah and post filling the void of boarded up windows.” He’s also proud of the photo. “There is also a contrast between the woman in the pink shirt and the brown boards behind her. Also, the no parking sign dead center helps tie the image together.”
Amenah also submitted a photo of street art that they have questions about.
This is a photo on the highway right next exit for C Chavez St East. Amenah wonders, “How did they get on the highway to do this piece?? Who did this?”
We often hear questions about when street art is painted in hard-to-reach locations. We asked artist Nancy Pili Hernandez about it. You can see here answer here in the video below.
Nancy Pili Hernandez of Trust Your Struggle Collective talked about her art with Where Art Lives during a June 10, 2021 workshop and what she is willing to risk to get her message into the world.
“Cheers” and “Jinks” burner graffiti paintings at the Cesar Chavez highway exit. Photograph by Amenah.
Last year, Mateo submitted a picture of this mural by Eli Lippert and Mel Waters to the Street Art Scavenger Hunt.
He said, “I like it because it has 3 famous music artists, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jerry Garcia. It’s special to me because I walk by it everyday. When I see it I feel like I’m home. It benefits the neighborhood because it can help start a conversation about the history of my neighborhood.”
Mateo celebrates winning a $50 gift card from the Where Art Lives program.
Most Beautiful
For “Most beautiful” street art, Victor submitted a picture of Tauba Auerbach's mural '2020’ at 455 Eddy Street because, “beacuse I always see it when I go home from school I always wonder how did they do that.”
Best for the Neighborhood
Daniel chose a mural called “No Ceiling" by BIP at Jesse and Mission Street as their choice for the street art that is best for the neighborhood. Daniel wrote, “The art is telling me that kids also are strong and sometimes can be stronger than adults.”
Most questions about
Oscar tells us that this x-ray painting of a wolf by Nychos is the street art they have the most questions about. Oscar wants to know how they did it. Nychos uses spray paint to create his murals. You can tell he has a lot of practice with painting and also that he has also spent time studying biology to be able to paint so many details of the insides of an animal!