Art Installation Pays Tribute to the Corner Market
Earlier this week, we called attention to Noe Valley SF's recent blog post on the subject of decrepit corner stores, a.k.a. "shitty little markets." This blogger once wrote a short piece for the late Onion A.V. Club about corner stores. "At first glance, all corner stores seem to sell the same stuff: Kettle chips, bumpy green potatoes, low-grade pinkish cold-cuts originating from indeterminable beasts, and uncomplicated wines of a variety matched only by the assortment of rolling paper options available at the front counter," began the third paragraph of the article's long-forgotten draft. ![]()
Okay Mountain But where's the rack with the titty mags?
We went on to highlight some of the unique characteristics of our neighborhood's most notable bodegas, suggesting that loyalties can be forged in lazy, down-the-block-in-slippers searching for what Noe Valley SF calls "everything you can't get at Whole Foods."![]()
Elizabeth Jones/Eat Me Daily Mmm, wolfy.
Okay Mountain, a group of artists from Austin, Tex., are also considering the corner. Over the weekend at Art Basel Miami Beach, the collective presented "Corner Store," a PULSE prize-winning installation: a realish-looking mini mart boasting a motley array of oddball "treats" inspired by the eclectic wares peddled at independently owned (and recession-torn) convenience shops in Texas. Wolf Meat, Kool Zesty Ranch Zest, Floppy Dogs, and dice-shaped Craps Candy remind us of Barbasoil, Boreo's, and other vintage Wacky Packages. These are lean times indeed, but wolf meat? Really? Ask the Canadians; they might know.
































