Todd Berman used to live in the Mission District, but he recently transferred his flag to Bernal Heights. To mark the occasion, he painted a picture of Bernal Hill as seen from 25th and Mission Street:

I’ve been in San Francisco for 14 years — 11 of which I spent in the Mission District, mostly at the foot of Bernal, just across Cesar Chavez  — with Bernal Hill always looming above. Bernal has been my muse for many paintings and drawings, often floating above the fray.

Now, I look forward to painting the view from Bernal and also capturing my new neighborhood’s awesome community vibe. I will certainly need to make a ‘City of Awesome’ painting about Bernal. In my current series of paintings, I ask people, “What do you do to help make San Francisco be so awesome?” Then I ask them to draw a picture of themselves in action (no skill needed, stick figures okay). I then cut the self-portraits out and collage them into paintings of the city. (Perhaps a local business would want to sponsor a City of Awesome Bernal painting featuring their location?)

My day job is as a substitute teacher in the SFUSD schools. My special-lady-partner-person, Lauren, is an independent consultant, crafting marketing and communications strategy for nonprofit organizations, a photographer, and a writer. She has chronicled many of our adventures abroad here.

Our new place is in the St. Mary’s vicinity – the piercing on the tip of La Lengua. Olivia’s does make a superior breakfast.

Welcome to Bernalwood, New Neighbors Todd and Lauren, and we look forward to your future contributions to Bernal’s artistic endowment.

IMAGE: Todd Berman