A walk around Pedernales Falls State Park...

View from above:

View from the ground:

So many little things...

....along the pavement's edge (inspired by the last post)

Steve Wheen, Guerilla Gardener (a.k.a. the Pothole Gardener)
and
Slinkachu here and here.

Cement Eclipses

Just discovered Issac Cordal's work....thought I'd make a post about it here, because a lot of the photo's context is the pavement under our feet....

See/read more about him:

unurth.com

visuall.net

placebokatz.blogspot.com

Holiday Trip Home to the Bay Area....

gum on a manhole cover, in front of the Cliff House, SF, CA.
moth stencil at 19th and Valencia, SF, CA

imprinted sidewalk in santa cruz, CA

a pedestrian solution that involves removing sidewalks....

On London's Exhibition Road, thoughtful planners have opted to erase the once distinct boundary between cars and pedestrians...

Read more about it here in this week's GOOD.

Vintage Sidewalk Photo

I recently came across this as I was sorting through old photos. It's circa 1994, taken in Eugene, Oregon. The dorms at the U of O had frozen yogurt machines and everyone seemed to abuse the privilege. Splattered and melting cones could be seen all over campus during and after meal times...this was just one of many, caught in mid-melt.

Recently came across this local blog...

http://footpathmath.wordpress.com/

so if you see numbers on the sidewalk....

Traces of The Rapture on the Sidewalk

Took a walk around Lake Merritt this a.m. and came across this (and a few other installations)...in honor of the day.

Austin made it into the Atlantic's most walkable cities list...

Somehow, Austin made it into the top 11, with a bronze rating. I find this interesting, because in my own experience, Austin isn't terribly walkable. Of course, I grew up in San Francisco, where walking was a valid form of transportation to and from work, as well as to social events, and grocery shopping, etc. So I have high standards. Now, even though I live in central Austin, I can't do as much productive walking. Instead, I find myself walking for pleasure. It is usually too far, too hot, and too torn up (at least currently, as I live a block from the east 7th street construction project).

But I am still happy it made it on the list....

Read more details here, on walkfriendly.org.

Photos of the ground....by others....

In the process of doing a bit of research on Chris Taylor and his land arts program, I came across one of their recent projects called Ground Sourcing Documentation. Folks in Lubbock had a 12 hour window in which to participate/submit. If I knew this was happening ahead of time, I'd have driven the 6 hours to Lubbock to participate! oh well...

To learn more about Land Arts of the American West, visit their website.

Or read this recent article from the new york times.

Evening Walk

It's March 1st and it feels like spring. The blossoms have started to bloom, leaves are starting to reappear on deciduous trees, and, it was a beautiful evening for a walk. Here are the resulting finds... a beautifully worn and faded sock, an old typewriter ink ribbon, a puffy jacket, and the remnants of a popsicle.

Valentines Eve find...

Not surprising considering the nature of the holiday...























Found at the intersection of East 6th and Navasota, Feb. 13, 10 am.

Buuurrrrr!

We had a little bit of snow blanket Austin last night, so I got up this morning, put on as many layers as possible, and took a stroll. I wish I could have gone further afield to capture more photos than I did. Alas, the cold won out. Most all of the photos are of tracks... Click here to see the whole (short) album.

Abstract

This photo was taken on the ground floor of the Visual Arts Center on the UT campus. It is the residual paint that leaked out of the David Ellis painting project.

Lauri Apple's Found Clothing

I believe Lauri's original blog www.foundclothing.typepad.com is now defunct, but the idea is still relevant: why not consider wearing clothes you find abandoned on the street/sidewalks? Read more about her project here and here.

It's not surprising that some folks cringe at the idea...I always cringe a little myself before picking something up off the ground. But in my case, curiosity usually wins out...

Only a couple things have ever actually made it into my permanent wardrobe--my favorite of all time was an orange Oreda potato shirt. I wore it out to the point where I actually had to throw it away... that was a sad day, mainly because I gained so much value and joy out of a mere found object.

More sidewalk / clothing photos here.

A Fun Collective Walking Project Called:

"Walking to Work Today"

You can see some of the resulting photos from around the globe here. Or read more about the idea behind the project on Micheal Surtees Design Notes blog.

Sidewalk photos from NYC!

Spent nearly 6 full days walking all over NYC and Brooklyn and beyond. See the full album here.

Walking and Art

Came across this Walking and Art blog today.

It doesn't look like it has been updated lately, but it has a GREAT bibliography page, as well as references to mainstream walking artists and their work.

Crawfish in the sun

From Food on the street

Came across this the other day one the sidewalk at the intersection of Webberville and Oak Springs Rd.

Finally, a post!

Last June I moved to a neighborhood that had very few sidewalks, so the sidewalk project naturally tapered off. Until last week that is--when I photographed something I'm deeming relevant...

Side Walks on the Wall

This month at Diverse Arts Gallery. Stop in. Or better yet, take the walk!

Link to KUT Interview with Julie Moody

Fifth of July

I can only imagine what this looked like the night it was lit...




















Taken July 5, 2009 near the intersection of Comal and Garden St.

Austin Sidewalk Masterplan

via the Austin Contrarian.

Admittedly, this is a little late, as it was posted back in January, but the topic is still relevant. Read more on the state of Austin Sidewalks in the Contrarian here.

Toys

Toys are pretty common to find on walks...but some are more striking than others....

You never know what you'll find on a sidewalk

In this case, it was a snake. A Texas Rat Snake to be specific. One of the larger snakes that lives in the wild around here. I was actually in my car driving through the parking lot of the mini-mart across the street from my house when I took this photo, hence the bad focus, unusual angle. But I'm glad I wasn't walking the dog when I came upon him...he was BIG. Over 4 feet - at least.

Making up for lost time...

I've been keeping up with my photos...but haven't been able to post. At last, I found some time to upload. Following are some photos from April:

Spring!




















Bulk Pickup - April 2009



































Glass / Glint

Tree Portraits

I was thumbing through the May issue of Dwell in the check out line today and came across Emma Livingston's tree portraits. Of course I was drawn to the sidewalks around the street trees! See more of her work at www.emmalivingston.com.

Mapping

Here's a little podcast about mapping from NPR's This American Life. Apparently--and not surprisingly--cracks in the sidewalk in NYC can be a very litigious business. (yes, business)

Thanks to Craig for the tip!

SXSW con't

sxsw-an event where the streets become sidewalks!

SXSW

More bleary-eyed abstract photos coming soon.

Slick

At last, Austin is getting some much needed wet weather! hopefully there are more rainy days to come. In the meantime, some reflective photos:

From March 12, 2009 Walk

Of course, a little rain allows the photographer, the sky, telephone pole wires, or whatever else hovers above to enter into the picture....

Cracks

From Cracks

Some older sidewalk photos

From a trip to SF a year or more ago.

Participate

....even if you don't live in Austin, you likely own a camera (or a pencil, recording device, etc) and tread upon interesting surfaces daily. So why not share? Credit will be given, along with a link to your site if you have one. (or not....if you prefer anonymity...we respect that).

And thinking longer term...more analog and less digital, Austin Sidewalks is hoping to curate a group show. M i x e d media for sure. Jury and Location TBD. More details to come.

Email your submissions/ideas and/or inquiries to austinsidewalks@yahoo.com.

Thanks,

Ann

Marfa Sidewalks