Margaret Kilgallen was a central figure in the SF street artists, skateboarders, surfers, and musicians who were part of a unique creative culture. She was inspired by walking around the Mission District in SF and seeing handmade vs. neon signs. Her work had its roots in American folk art, traditional typography, shop signs, street murals, underground comics and beat poetry. She was known as the artist that put together words and images into a rhythmic visual narrative. Her work has a nostalgic feel to it. She worked as a book conservator in the SF Library. She played the banjo and her street art was all done by hand without sketchbooks or masking tape. Margaret was one of my favorite artists and I really enjoyed seeing her use of random colors. She would get her paint for free from a recycling center where surplus paint was mixed and she creatively used these mixtures that other artists might cast aside. We lost her in 2001 and her work will continue to live forever.
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