October 1 - Feb 28, 2018

Combining both analog research methods and Google Street View technology, artist Kelley O’Leary mapped the Outer Sunset in a way that fused physical, digital, and psychological geographies and re-inserted the emotion and personal experience that maps never capture. At a time when the neighborhood, the city, and the nation were experiencing rapid transformation, Collective Geographies provided an opportunity for reflection, dialogue, and a glimpse of the innumerable layers of community and connection shared through place.
 
For Collective Geographies O’Leary invited the public to contribute memories associated with a street address in the Outer Sunset, loosely defined as west of 19th Avenue, north of Sloat Blvd, and south of Golden Gate Park. Each locale was added to a large-scale collage in the gallery, and each memory was transcribed in a set of corresponding cards for visitors to explore.

Public programming included opening and closing receptions, open hours for drop-in visitors to participate, a movie night featuring historical footage collected by O'Leary from the Prelinger Archive, the Western Neighborhoods Association, long-time residents of the Outer Sunset, and online research, and a "Discover Your District" event with District 4 Supervisor Katy Tang.

Collective Geographies was supported by funding from the Zellerbach Family Foundation and was included in the INTERSECT SF Series, funded by San Francisco Grants for the Arts and Intersection for the Arts.

Kelley O’Leary is a San Francisco-based multi-disciplinary artist working in collage, painting and video. She holds a BA from the University of California, Santa Cruz in Art and Anthropology, and currently works as a textile designer and as an art educator. Kelley has taught workshops and classes at various organizations in the Bay Area including Root Division, Southern Exposure, Facebook, Breakthrough Collaborative, Case for Making, Khan Academy and Little Artistas.

photos courtesy the artist and Irving Street Projects