Mel Vera Cruz + SOMCAN: Placemaking in SOMA Pilipinas

Congratulations to Mel Vera Cruz + SOMCAN for being Balay Kreative’s February Artist Grantee!

Mel Vera Cruz is a multimedia artist. He migrated to the US from the Philippines in 1995 and is based in the Bay Area. With a background in graphic design and advertising, he incorporates painting and screen printing techniques along with use of readily available materials. His work has been shown in solo and group shows throughout the Bay Area as well as Manila. He is also part of the Filipino art collective Epekto Art Projects based in San Francisco, California. 

We Are Here is a public realm project in the SOMA Pilipinas District around the Youth and Family Zone where Somcan collaborates with Galingbata and honors the program by commissioning visual artist Mel Vera Cruz to paint ten utility boxes in the aesthetic of "tagalog" bilingual flash cards.

Statement About the Project -- Kim Arteche, Balay Kreative Program Manger

Placemaking is so important for our community’s visibility and the celebration of the families at the heart of our district. We Are Here reminds SoMa’s wider community that we have a strong community of Filipino families and youth, and helps us share and teach language to each other! Mel Vera Cruz and SOMCAN have been integral to advancing SOMA Pilipinas’ presence in the neighborhood, and we are happy to support this project.