Jet martinez oakland mural jack

What do you think makes Oakland unique?

Oakland is not one thing to all its people.

Otra Vez”, San Francisco, CA

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“Rosa Salvage”, Oakland, CA

North Oakland Community Charter School, Oakland, CA

“Rosas Azules, Oakland, CA

“Cangrejo Kiwi”, part of the Sea Walls mural festival, Napier, New Zealand

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“Temple Children”, Hilo, HI

“El Unicornio de la Mission”, San Francisco, CA

“El Armadillo,” San Francisco, CA

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“Queens Fuscia,” New York, NY

Cherry Creek Bike Path, Denver, CO

1AM Gallery, San Francisco, CA

“Casa de las Rosas,” Casa Tajin, Colonia Narvarte, Mexico DF, Mexico

“El Unicornio de la Condesa,” VDM Agency, Mexico DF, Mexico

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“La Rosa,” Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico

“Cultura de la Mission,” Mission District, San Francisco, CA

Leo’s Club, Oakland, CA

“Roses are Red/Violet,” Oakland, CA

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“Alcatraces,” San Francisco, CA

“Yes Deer,” Vynil Cafe, San Francisco, CA

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“Geometrics,” Dogpatch District, San Francisco, CA

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“Mission Dolores Mural,” recreation of oldest mural in San Francisco (1791), San Francisco, CA

“Mas Flores Tehuanas,” Tenderloin District, San Francisco, CA

“Amate Mission,” Mission District, San Francisco, CA

“Burbank Gardens/Maple Ave.

Project,” Santa Rosa, CA

“Flores del Tehuanderloin,” commissioned by the SFAC/SF Dept. Oakland is dangerously welcoming. Like the craftspeople

who integrate life into the creation of ceramics and textiles—nothing

less than a certain form of magic—I embrace the imperfections of the

hand-made, the organic forms and vibrant colors which have the

power to remove the individual identity of the artist in favor of a more

universal expression of “folk art.”

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By uniting the imagery of traditional Mexican folk art with the vernacular

of urban contemporary art, I’m trafficking in the nuanced relationship

between artistic tradition and global influences, in the process finding

the relationship between community and culture.

To some, it is the core of their identity.

Oakland is fresh walks in the redwoods. I was

convinced from an early age growing up in Cuernavaca, Mexico that

communities can be sustained through art making. Sur

“Rosas en Verde,” Nopalito Restaurant, San Francisco, CA

Brown Roses/Electric Frog, San Francisco, CA

“Tejido,” 836M mural Gallery, San Francisco, CA

“Blossoms,” mural for Acala Studios, Oakland, CA

Oyster Development Company, VIDA SF, San Francisco, CA

Embroidered Flowers, GoDaddy.com Corporate offices, Mountain View, CA

Spacepop, Berkeley, CA

John Fluevog Shoes, San Francisco, CA

Various Projects, Giant Creative Strategies, Austin, TX; New Orleans, LA; San Diego, CA

“Florals,” Taco Diner/ M Crowd Restaurant Group, Fort Worth, TX

2013

“Make Your Mark,” commissioned by Giant Creative Strategies/ONYX Pharmaceuticals for

the American Society for Hemoglobin Studies, New Orleans, LA

“Vents,” Embarcadero Realty Group, San Francisco, CA

“Mission Vision,” Indochine508 Restaurant, San Francisco, CA

“Embroidered Florals,” Kilroy Properties, San Francisco, CA

“Amate,” SOMA Street Food, San Francisco, CA

“Geometrics,” Kilroy Properties, San Francisco, CA

“Me Perdonas?” Vanguard Properties, San Francisco, CA

“En Rojo Vivo,” Project1 SF, San Francisco, CA

2012

“Nasturtiums,” Moc10 Consulting, San Francisco, CA

Red Bull “Ride n’ Style” event, Arts Fund, Justin Herman Plaza, San Francisco, CA

“Bordadito,” Tipping Point Foundation, San Francisco, CA

“Bouquet,” Facebook HQ, Menlo Park, CA

“Monochromatic roses,” Vanguard Properties, San Francisco, CA

​“Bosque de los Alebrijes,” Central Haight Business Association, San Francisco, CA

2011

“Golden Tomatoes,” Climate Works Foundation, San Francisco, CA

“Amate, Syracuse,” Warehouse Gallery, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY

“Unfolding Cubes/Magnolia,” UBM Corporate, San Francisco, CA

Notable Independent Public Projects 

2020

2019

2017

2016

2015

2014

2013

2012

2011

“Rojo, Blanco y Negro, San Francisco, CA

“Fruit”, SloJoy Coffee, Oakland, CA

“Rosas de Rayas”, Oakland, CA

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“Olor a Rosas y Orine”, San Francisco, CA

“Me Perdonas?

He lives with a much beloved and talented wife and two ridiculously energetic children.

After receiving a BFA in Painting and Printmaking from the San Francisco Art Institute (he had previously studied Spanish Literature at the University Of Colorado), Martinez acted as one of the Clarion Alley Mural Project directors in SF’s Mission District for nearly a decade.

His paintings have been exhibited in various institutions and galleries, including Syracuse University, Facebook HQ, MACLA (Museo de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana), Mesa Center for the Arts, SomArts, SF Arts Commission Gallery, White Walls, Project1 SF, and 111 Minna.

His murals have been commissioned by Facebook, Tipping Point Foundation, Red Bull, and Climate Works Foundation.

Oakland is bikes, roller skates, and sideshows. Oakland’s grit is what polished its finesse.

Oakland imbues its citizens with a unique sense of pride born from the knowledge that that pride is hard-earned. Tica”, Oakland, CA. Commissioned by KALA Art Institute, Berkeley, CA

Community Thrift Store, San Francisco, CA

“More to Green than Money”, I Magnin building, Oakland, CA

“Hills”, North Oakland Community Charter School, Oakland CA

“Florezotas,” mural commissioned by Fluevog Shoes, New York, NY

“Amate San Francisco,” mosaic commissioned by SFAC for San Francisco General Hospital

“Azules,” Solespace Shoes, Oakland, CA

2015

2014

“Tejidos,”, murals, Hilton, Los Cabos Beach and Golf Resort, Los Cabos, Baja Calif.

In contrast, to other people, Oakland is brimming with potential opportunities. The lineage of west

coast mural work looms large in my practice: art functioning as a symbol

of resistance, transforming overlooked spaces into something beautiful ; a daily revolution in the form of creating.