Sirron Norris is an American illustrator, muralist, and arts educator.
He is known for his work on the
FOX
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
animated television show ''
Bob's Burgers
''Bob's Burgers'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard that premiered on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox on January 9, 2011. The show centers on the Belcher family—parents Bob Belcher, Bob and Linda Belcher, Linda and t ...
'' and for numerous cartoon-style
public murals, including ones at
Balmy Alley,
Clarion Alley Clarion Alley is a small street in San Francisco between Mission and Valencia Streets and 17th and 18th Streets, notable for the murals painted by the Clarion Alley Mural Project.
History
Originally called "Cedar Lane," the alley's name was chan ...
, and
Mission Dolores Park
Mission Dolores Park, often abbreviated to Dolores Park, is a city park in San Francisco, California. It is located two blocks south of Mission Dolores at the western edge of the Mission District.
Dolores Park is bounded by 18th Street on the nort ...
, and galleries around
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
.
His murals often include political messages, local themes, and his signature blue bear.
He has worked with several local non-profits, including
SPUR
A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse or other animal to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids (commands) and to ba ...
and
''El Tecolote''.
Norris' studio and gallery is based in the
Mission District, San Francisco
The Mission District ( Spanish: ''Distrito de la Misión''), commonly known as The Mission ( Spanish: ''La Misión''), is a neighborhood in San Francisco, California. One of the oldest neighborhoods in San Francisco, the Mission District's name i ...
.
Early life
Norris was born in
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
,
Ohio
Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
.
He is from a Black family, and has cited in interviews how living in the Midwest was a difficult experience.
Norris graduated from the
Art Institute of Pittsburgh
The Art Institute of Pittsburgh was a private college in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Shortly before closing in 2019, it was purchased by Dream Center Education Holdings (in turn a division of The Dream Center, a Christian non-profit 501(c)(3) o ...
and moved to San Francisco from
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...
in 1997.
Career
Murals
Norris began painting murals in 1999 as a means of advertising his work. His first mural is located outside a
corner store
A convenience store, convenience shop, corner store or corner shop is a small retail business that stocks a range of everyday items such as coffee, groceries, snack foods, confectionery, soft drinks, ice creams, tobacco products, lottery ticket ...
at the intersection of 20th and Bryant Street.
Prior to this, he worked in video game graphics and had no formal training in painting murals.
Some works can also be found indoors, such as his murals in the pediatric emergency rooms of the
Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital
The Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG) is a Public hospital in San Francisco, California, under the purview of the city's Department of Public Health. It serves as the only Level I Trauma Ce ...
, funded through the support of the
San Francisco Arts Commission
The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) is the City agency that champions the arts as essential to daily life by investing in a vibrant arts community, enlivening the urban environment and shaping innovative cultural policy in San Francisco, Cali ...
, and SPUR.
Norris was commissioned to paint a Mickey Mouse mural at the
Walt Disney Family Museum
The Walt Disney Family Museum (WDFM) is an American museum that features the life and legacy of Walt Disney. The museum is located in The Presidio of San Francisco, part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in San Francisco. The museum ...
in 2019.
''Bob's Burgers''
Norris was the lead artist on the television pilot of ''
Bob's Burgers
''Bob's Burgers'' is an American adult animated sitcom created by Loren Bouchard that premiered on Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox on January 9, 2011. The show centers on the Belcher family—parents Bob Belcher, Bob and Linda Belcher, Linda and t ...
'' and designed the backgrounds for the show. The exterior buildings were inspired by the homes around him in the Mission District.
Show creator
Loren Bouchard
Loren Hal Bouchard (born October 10, 1969) is an American animator, writer, producer, director, and composer. He is the creator of several animated TV shows such as ''Bob's Burgers'', ''Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil'', and ''Central Park''. He i ...
lived down the street from him and was hiring local artists to work on the pilot, which included the show's character designer
Jay Howell
Jay Canfield Howell (born November 26, 1955) is a former Major League Baseball relief pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds (1980), Chicago Cubs (1981), New York Yankees (1982–1984), Oakland Athletics (1985–1987), Los Angeles Dodgers (1988–1992), ...
.
In 2016, he painted a mural of Bob and Linda Belcher from the show on the outside of the house he resided in while working on the show. It was removed by the homeowner in 2017 due to copyright concerns.
Illustration and design work
Norris designed the poster for the
San Francisco Public Library
The San Francisco Public Library is the public library system of the city and county of San Francisco. The Main Library is located at Civic Center, at 100 Larkin Street. The library system has won several awards, such as '' Library Journals ...
Summer Read SF program in 2012.
In 2013, Norris collaborated on a line of wristwatch bands for an
activity tracker
An activity tracker, also known as a fitness tracker, is a device or application for monitoring and tracking fitness-related metrics such as distance walked or run, calorie consumption, and in some cases heartbeat. It is a type of wearable comp ...
with the now defunct health start-up Basis. In 2017, he was commissioned by
Whistle Labs to paint a mural outside the Dog Eared Books bookstore for a charitable promotional campaign.
Norris was featured in the 2018 collection of
Hearts in San Francisco benefitting the
San Francisco General Hospital Foundation.
Reception
His critics have claimed that since his work is commercial in nature, he is "selling out or betraying the street art tradition" and perceive him to be a "
gentrification
Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and planning. Gentrification often increases the ec ...
" artist."
Some have vandalized his works with
graffiti
Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...
. However, while he has been commissioned by large companies such as Mitsubishi and Sony, Norris is a self-proclaimed commercial artist and doesn't describe his murals as "street art."
His "Victorion: El Defensor de la Mission" mural, painted in 2007, features an anthropomorphized giant robot assembled with
Victorian homes
In Great Britain and former British colonies, a Victorian house generally means any house built during the reign of Queen Victoria. During the Industrial Revolution, successive housing booms resulted in the building of many millions of Victorian ...
tackling the issues of gentrification within the Mission District.
In 2010, he was met with community backlash when he was commissioned to paint over an existing mural in the Mission District. He has also since apologized about repainting the existing mural and has worked with the original artist on a new piece at the same location.
Awards and recognition
In 2000, he was the artist-in-residence at the
De Young Museum
The de Young Museum, formally the M. H. de Young Memorial Museum, is a fine arts museum located in San Francisco, California. Located in Golden Gate Park, it is a component of the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, along with the California Pala ...
. In 2002, he was the artist-in-residence at the
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA) is a multi-disciplinary contemporary arts center in San Francisco, California, United States. Located in Yerba Buena Gardens, YBCA features visual art, performance, and film/video that celebrates local, nati ...
.
In 2005, he spent three months as an artist-in-residence at
Recology
Recology, formerly known as Norcal Waste Systems, is a waste management company headquartered in San Francisco, California. The company collects and processes municipal solid waste, reclaiming reusable materials. The company also operates transfer ...
.
In 2017, he received the "Greater Bay Area Journalism Award" for "Kaepernick" in ''
El Tecolote'', a part of his ongoing political comic series entitled "Cityfruit".
References
External links
Ils Lane profile bySan Francisco Community Land Trust
{{DEFAULTSORT:Norris, Simon
Living people
Art Institute of Pittsburgh alumni
Muralists
Year of birth missing (living people)
Artists from Cleveland
African-American contemporary artists
American contemporary artists
American contemporary painters
African-American painters
African-American illustrators