Alvord Lake Bridge (value)

 Acrylic paint and marker on 18”x24” fabric paper

Visitors walking from Golden Gate Park into the Haight Ashbury need to cross Kezar Drive. They can walk over it at many points, or they can choose to pass under Kezar by going through the Alvord Lake Bridge tunnel. Built in 1889, the rather unremarkable looking bridge has the distinction of being the first bridge built from reinforced concrete. Tucked in the spiritual home of one of American’s strongest counter culture movements and now known as a place to buy drugs, this bridge was a first experiment in a method of engineering that became the almost literal backbone of the contemporary built world. One hundred thirty-two years later, it’s still holding up Kezar Drive.

This piece was inspired by 99 Percent Invisible.