Alhambra S.R.O. - Solo show at Ramon's Tailor Gallery

Ramon's Tailor Gallery
628 Jones Street @Geary
The Tenderloin, San Francisco

December 7, 2017 - February 1, 2018

Opening Reception and First Thursdays Art Walk: Thursday Dec 7, 2017, 6 - 10 pm
Closing Reception and First Thursdays Art Walk: Thursday February 1, 2018, 6 - 10 pm


Alhambra S.R.O. is a multidisciplinary art project that consists of a site-specific installation and a gastronomical experience drawn from a local immigrant community of the Tenderloin in San Francisco. This project not only playfully engages with the architectural features of the gallery but also comments upon the cultural and social dynamics of this neighborhood.

Inspired by the landmark “Alhambra Apartments” on Geary St, I call attention to the irony of the cultural appropriation of Arabic architecture in the early 20th century and the contemporary stigmatization of islamic people in what is perhaps the most culturally diverse neighborhood in San Francisco.
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The “Alhambra Apartments” is among several buildings in the Tenderloin that are categorized as a Moorish Revival Style of architecture. This exotic style  flourished after the 1906 earthquake, when the formerly residential neighborhood of single family homes was rebuilt as multistory buildings often with dramatic facades of the Exotic Revival style. Many of these buildings have become S.R.O. (Single Occupancy Room) Hotels.​

As a native Spaniard from Jerez de la Frontera, I am aware of the profound influences that Arabic culture left in Andalucia, the Alhambra of Granada being the most important example. In fact, the name “De La Frontera" alludes to the border between the Christians and the Moorish Kingdom of Granada.

This Site-Specific installation consists of a geometric patten found in The Alhambra Palace in Granada, Spain, made of hand-cut pieces of recycled carpet from a hotel in the Tenderloin. The pattern will be repeated through the gallery, including floors emphasizing the decorative style of Arabic tiles.

Parallel to the artwork, in collaboration with the local community and chef Tomas Marconi, I will create a pastry with influences from Yemeni cuisine and from the Arabic-Andalusi desserts of my home town Jerez de la Frontera. By transgressing the bounds of fine art and invoking gastronomy, we move from spectator to companion, literally one we share bread with. The food serves as a bridge from xenophobic stereotypes to conviviality. 
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The installation also engages the storefront window of the gallery, that will have a postcard featuring the stereotypical Moorish buildings facades of the Tenderloin. Guests are invited upon leaving the space of the installation to take a tour, guided by a copy of a hand-drawn map of buildings, restaurants, markets, and mosques—All features of a neighborhood, full of neighbors to meet as well.

Learn more about Tomas Marconi phd here