On Thursday, November 9, public art organization Sites Unseen will unveil Love Over Rules, New York-based artist Hank Willis Thomas' first permanent public artwork. The large-scale text-based neon artwork will be installed on the exterior wall of a private building above Annie Street, an alley in the Yerba Buena neighborhood of San Francisco. Starting at 6PM, Thomas will give a presentation about this project and his practice at a free public talk at the California Historical Society, located at 678 Mission Street, adjacent to the installation. AT 7PM, the public is invited to join Thomas in Annie Street for introductory remarks by former SF Mayor Willie Brown and the inaugural illumination of the artwork.
"I grew up in a family where love overruled," said Thomas. "My cousin, Songha Willis, was murdered in Philadelphia in 2000. A month after he died, I found a recording of the incident, and his last words were 'love over rules.' It is especially meaningful for me to present this work in collaboration with Sites Unseen and the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District because my first outdoor public installation was in the Yerba Buena neighborhood over a decade ago."
ABOUT HANK WILLIS THOMAS
Hank Willis Thomas is a conceptual artist working primarily with themes related to identity, history and popular culture. His work has been exhibited throughout the U.S. and abroad, and is included in numerous public collections including the Museum of Modern Art New York, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among others. His collaborative projects include Question Bridge: Black Males, In Search Of The Truth (The Truth Booth), and For Freedoms, the first artist-run super PAC. Thomas received a BFA in Photography and Africana studies from New York University and a MFA/MA in Photography and Visual Criticism from the California College of Arts. Thomas lives and works in New York City.
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"I grew up in a family where love overruled," said Thomas. "My cousin, Songha Willis, was murdered in Philadelphia in 2000. A month after he died, I found a recording of the incident, and his last words were 'love over rules.' It is especially meaningful for me to present this work in collaboration with Sites Unseen and the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District because my first outdoor public installation was in the Yerba Buena neighborhood over a decade ago."
ABOUT HANK WILLIS THOMAS
Hank Willis Thomas is a conceptual artist working primarily with themes related to identity, history and popular culture. His work has been exhibited throughout the U.S. and abroad, and is included in numerous public collections including the Museum of Modern Art New York, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among others. His collaborative projects include Question Bridge: Black Males, In Search Of The Truth (The Truth Booth), and For Freedoms, the first artist-run super PAC. Thomas received a BFA in Photography and Africana studies from New York University and a MFA/MA in Photography and Visual Criticism from the California College of Arts. Thomas lives and works in New York City.
On Thursday, November 9, public art organization Sites Unseen will unveil Love Over Rules, New York-based artist Hank Willis Thomas' first permanent public artwork. The large-scale text-based neon artwork will be installed on the exterior wall of a private building above Annie Street, an alley in the Yerba Buena neighborhood of San Francisco. Starting at 6PM, Thomas will give a presentation about this project and his practice at a free public talk at the California Historical Society, located at 678 Mission Street, adjacent to the installation. AT 7PM, the public is invited to join Thomas in Annie Street for introductory remarks by former SF Mayor Willie Brown and the inaugural illumination of the artwork.
"I grew up in a family where love overruled," said Thomas. "My cousin, Songha Willis, was murdered in Philadelphia in 2000. A month after he died, I found a recording of the incident, and his last words were 'love over rules.' It is especially meaningful for me to present this work in collaboration with Sites Unseen and the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District because my first outdoor public installation was in the Yerba Buena neighborhood over a decade ago."
ABOUT HANK WILLIS THOMAS
Hank Willis Thomas is a conceptual artist working primarily with themes related to identity, history and popular culture. His work has been exhibited throughout the U.S. and abroad, and is included in numerous public collections including the Museum of Modern Art New York, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among others. His collaborative projects include Question Bridge: Black Males, In Search Of The Truth (The Truth Booth), and For Freedoms, the first artist-run super PAC. Thomas received a BFA in Photography and Africana studies from New York University and a MFA/MA in Photography and Visual Criticism from the California College of Arts. Thomas lives and works in New York City.
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"I grew up in a family where love overruled," said Thomas. "My cousin, Songha Willis, was murdered in Philadelphia in 2000. A month after he died, I found a recording of the incident, and his last words were 'love over rules.' It is especially meaningful for me to present this work in collaboration with Sites Unseen and the Yerba Buena Community Benefit District because my first outdoor public installation was in the Yerba Buena neighborhood over a decade ago."
ABOUT HANK WILLIS THOMAS
Hank Willis Thomas is a conceptual artist working primarily with themes related to identity, history and popular culture. His work has been exhibited throughout the U.S. and abroad, and is included in numerous public collections including the Museum of Modern Art New York, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, among others. His collaborative projects include Question Bridge: Black Males, In Search Of The Truth (The Truth Booth), and For Freedoms, the first artist-run super PAC. Thomas received a BFA in Photography and Africana studies from New York University and a MFA/MA in Photography and Visual Criticism from the California College of Arts. Thomas lives and works in New York City.
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678 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94105
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