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1986 X-Off Contest, Letter As Found Art

In red neon
(1 of 8) (7860 views)

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A clothing store around the corner from Macy's featured two curved neon rods as part of the design. Where the neon rods crossed was the letter X.


X external link Letter As Found Art   •  The 1986 X-off a private contest   •  San Francisco, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 11 July 2005)   •  (Photo taken in 1986)   •  © 2005 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #X-off_01
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Broken metal-screen windows
(2 of 8) (7585 views)

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Metal-screen glass windows on the front of a warehouse on Natoma alley in the south of Market area of San Francisco. When the intersection of these windows was photographed with a camera held at an angle, the letter X was revealed.


X external link Letter As Found Art   •  The 1986 X-off a private contest   •  San Francisco, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 11 July 2005)   •  (Photo taken in 1986)   •  © 2005 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #X-off_02
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Tomatoes in crates
(3 of 8) (7601 views)

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One might not expect round tomatoes to produce the letter X, but the intersection of four boxes of tomatoes did.


X external link Letter As Found Art   •  The 1986 X-off a private contest   •  San Francisco, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 11 July 2005)   •  (Photo taken in 1986)   •  © 2005 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #X-off_03
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Windows reflected buildings
(4 of 8) (7575 views)

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Many windows in the financial district of San Francisco reflect other buildings. This common sight was made uncommon by leaning the camera and shooting the intersection of four such reflecting windows.


X external link Letter As Found Art   •  The 1986 X-off a private contest   •  San Francisco, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 11 July 2005)   •  (Photo taken in 1986)   •  © 2005 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #X-off_04
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Rusty gas can
(5 of 8) (8529 views)

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Back in 1986, Dr. William Carter drove a Land Rover 110, the long bed style Rover. Although the Land Rover was white, the gas can mounted on the back was red. Dr. Carter was upset to find out that I had photographed his gas tank as part of the contest.


X external link Letter As Found Art   •  The 1986 X-off a private contest   •  San Francisco, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 11 July 2005)   •  (Photo taken in 1986)   •  © 2005 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #X-off_05
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Scotch tape
(6 of 8) (7562 views)

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Someone had created the look of lattice on a window by criss-crossing it with scotch tape. The intersection of two pieces of tape created the letter X. For this picture the camera did not have to rotate to find the X.


X external link Letter As Found Art   •  The 1986 X-off a private contest   •  San Francisco, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 11 July 2005)   •  (Photo taken in 1986)   •  © 2005 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #X-off_06
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Garage door
(7 of 8) (7673 views)

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On the Precita side of Bernal Heights, several garage doors were painted bright colors. This one was once a vivid blue. Here the camera had to rotate to capture this garage door in the form of the letter X.


X external link Letter As Found Art   •  The 1986 X-off a private contest   •  San Francisco, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 11 July 2005)   •  (Photo taken in 1986)   •  © 2005 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #X-off_07
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Flower through brick
(8 of 8) (7608 views)

./Letter_X_1986_X-off_08.jpg

Here a brick with two X's in it was part of the edging of a lawn and garden. A yellow flower could be seen through the brick. Here the flower is in focus, and the letter X is intentionally slightly out of focus.


X external link Letter As Found Art   •  The 1986 X-off a private contest   •  San Francisco, California   •  (Photo posted Monday 11 July 2005)   •  (Photo taken in 1986)   •  © 2005 Bryan Costales Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License #X-off_08
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