As part of a multi-year effort to revitalize an intimate but utilitarian alleyway in downtown San Francisco, this artwork and streetscape project creates a distinctive cultural corridor while addressing a long list of functional problems. Working under prominent Bay Area artist Mildred Howard, PROTOinc helped design a series of streetscape interventions that combine sculpture, street furniture, traffic calming & pedestrian safety features, and wayfinding graphics.

A series of twisting bronze “arbors” arch over the roadway and incorporate off-the-shelf street lights, creating a glowing canopy at night.

A strip weathering steel pavers embedded in the sidewalk separates busy traffic from slow-moving pedestrians, becoming a low seat-wall where passers-by can linger.

Lastly, this continuous band expands into an undulating guardrail along the ramp for a parking garage; perforations and internal lighting transform this into a glowing lantern at night, illuminating a pedestrian pass-through to neighboring Jessie Plaza and Yerba Buena arts district.