“The Silence of The Good” Outdoor Art Show About Voting

Submitted by the Event Organizer

The Haight Street Art Center will open an outdoor and on-line exhibition on October 10 to consider the history of voting in America and encourage voting in the 2020 election. The Silence of the Good is free of charge and will remain on exhibit through November 15.

The exhibition is located in the Alchemy Community Garden at 155 Laguna Street in Hayes Valley, San Francisco, which is open daily from 7:00 am – 9:00 pm. Visitors to the outdoor exhibition will be required to maintain social distancing and wear face coverings. An online version of the exhibition can be found at have removed the links to pages we’re still working on. You may now share with the public: haightstreetart.org/silence

The Silence of the Good features the work of 10 artists including Micah Bazant, DOMO, Emulsify, Alexandra Fischer, Gary Houston, Hundred Storms, John Mavroudis, Julio Salgado, Chris Shaw and Mari Tepper. The exhibition is shown in conjunction with posters from the HSAC’s previous exhibition on voting, 19th Amendment: 2020 Vision.

The title to this exhibition is taken from the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”: We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people.

In the lead-up to the election, participating artists were asked to consider the meaning of the silence of the good in the context of voting. Perhaps more importantly, artists considered the silencing of the good: the people who have been and are unjustly (but often legally) denied their right to vote and participate in the political process.

In addition to promoting the importance of voting, this exhibition also takes a careful and critical look at the history of voting in America, and points to past and present injustice in who has access to the right to vote. The exhibition considers who is still left out of voting, and what work must take place in society for everyone who makes their home here to have full participation in the political process. Inspired by Dr. King’s vision of a future that centers equality and justice, this exhibition poses the question of what is lost in silence and silencing, and what true repentance for past and present injustice would look like.

Alongside the exhibition, the HSAC is proud to include a music video, “The Silence of the Good”, also inspired by the immortal words of Dr. King, featuring Dr. Clarence B. Jones, Dr. King’s speechwriter, legal counsel and personal advisor. The lyrics were written by the former Governor of Delaware, Jack Markell, Ann McNamee, and Eric McFadden. The music was composed by Ann McNamee, Jason Crosby, and Eric McFadden.

On November 3, Americans will vote in one of the most consequential elections in the country’s history. As a nonpartisan and nonprofit organization, HSAC is proud to support get-out-the-vote efforts, and hopes that the posters in the exhibition, for sale as high-quality prints and available for free download as black-and-white drawings online, will encourage Americans to vote. The posters are for sale individually, or as a set, at www.haightstreetart.org.

The Haight Street Art Center promotes advancement of poster art and artists to enable poster/graphic art and artists to thrive and continue to enrich American popular culture. Drawing upon the influence of San Francisco’s counterculture history, the Art Center provides educational and engaging experiences through art, music, exhibitions and public programs to create community, encourage personal exploration and inspire action toward positive cultural change.

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Disclaimer: Please double check event information with the event organizer as events can be canceled, details can change after they are added to our calendar, and errors do occur.