District 7 Supervisor Myrna Meglar hosted an open house and art reception Thursday at her office in City Hall.
The event which highlighted purchasable work from members of San Francisco Women Artists, a historic nonprofit that supports and promotes creators in the Bay Area. Fifteen artists have work on display and prices for each piece range from $250 to $2,500.
“I want to support artists but also women artists because it’s not usually encouraged in terms of a business, on the business side and these guys have made it a successful business so I’m very happy to support them and give them the publicity and the exposure,” Melgar said. “It’s a big asset to the district and to the commercial corridor on Irving.”
Pam Borrelli, president of artists group, said they are excited to have their work on display in City Hall. They also maintain a physical gallery on Irving Street and were added to the city’s Legacy Business registry last year with help from Melgar.
“I think it's really exciting because the work I have displayed is part of District 7,” Borrelli said. “I just think it's great and we're so thankful to the supervisor for it.”
Marin Sarah Mohr, a featured artist who works as a drug and substance abuse counselor, was personally grateful to Melgar for putting the nonprofit’s work in her office.
“I paint because I love to paint,” Mohr said. “I’m a social worker. I work full time in drug and alcohol counseling so something like painting, on this, is a way for me to process and think about it and get some relief. It’s cool that what I’m doing for relief, for my joy and for my personal happiness, is in a place where other people get to benefit, too.”
The exhibit will be available for the community to see for the remainder of the month and includes fine art photography, mixed media, acrylic and more. Emma Heiken, Melgar’s legislative aide, said that the office wants to display more art in the coming months to showcase more artists and businesses throughout District 7.
“Right now there's tension in the air with the national elections and a lot of hate and toxicity and the political discourse and this is about beauty and creativity and just the positive vibes that come from humans and their natural gifts so I think we need to do more of that,” Melgar said. “More celebration, more looking at beauty and celebrating each other.”
