Barneclo's Systems Mural Endures

One of the joys of Caltrain, the old-fashioned Peninsula public train system, involves slowly passing by the curved, 600-foot-long Systems mural when leaving or entering San Francisco's 4th and Townsend terminal.



The wildly ambitious mural was painted less than two years ago by Brian Barneclo, and I was curious how it would age in the elements.



The short answer is fabulously.



Barneclo's mixture of whimsy and serious commentary, along with his restrained color scheme...



...is a provoking reflection for its hordes of commuting workers who are cogs in a larger capitalist system.



Most of them hardly notice the mural as the train goes by, wrapped up in their own mobile devices and lives, but Barneclo's gift to San Francisco always manages to brighten my mood.

I Sing The Caltrain Electric

After many years of construction, weekend shutdowns, and political maneuvering, the Caltrain system servicing the Peninsula has finally been electrified.

To celebrate the accomplishment, free rides were offered to the public at all stations last weekend from San Francisco to Gilroy.

According to Philip Rohrbough: "This model is called KISS. I love the German language, and this acronym is a classic: Komfortabler Innovativer Spurtstarker S-Bahn-Zug. They were built by Stadler, a Swiss company, in Salt Lake City."

I miss the old-fashioned funk of the previous carbon-burning trains, but won't miss the slowness and bumpiness and constant breakdowns.

Brian Barneclo's 2011 System mural near the San Francisco station is still impressive, even covered in graffiti.

One thing that hasn't changed are the many passengers immersed in their virtual worlds...

...while ignoring natural wonders like the Brisbane Lagoon.

There was an afternoon celebration near the station in downtown San Mateo, with politicians making speeches...

...to huge crowds looking for giveaways at various booths.

At least it was heartening to see Brian Barneclo's mural from 2017 has fared better at its San Mateo location.

Red Door Coffee Opening with Brian Barneclo

The four corners at the intersection of First and Howard Streets in downtown San Francisco each have their own coffee shops after the opening of Red Door Coffee in a new location on Friday.



There is a Specialty's Bakery outlet on one corner, a Noah's Bagel on another, and a Peet's Coffee and Tea across the street, but they are all corporate chains, and it doesn't say "Four Barrel Coffee, WiFi and hip cafe digs" on a Google Map as it does for Red Door Coffee..



During the Pineapple Express downpour on Friday afternoon, they held a lively opening party with free coffee, beer and wine, food, and live music.



I was invited to the event by my favorite artist in San Francisco, Brian Barneclo above, who had been commissioned to paint a mural for the kitchen.



In comparison with some of Barneclo's monumental murals around town, such as System near the 4th & King caltrain station or his Food Chain mural in the Mission, the Red Coffee piece is a relative miniature.

Marching Systematically to Silicon Valley

Besides the occasional beautiful sunrise, a Caltrain trip south to Silicon Valley takes one by Brian Barneclo's stupendously huge Systems mural near the San Francisco station.



Riding Caltrain is really the only way to see the mural up close since the railyards are fenced off to the public for obvious safety reasons, and even while riding the train, there is no way to see the entire System at one time. It's rather marvelous.