Los Hills

Arts Los Altos has installed a vibrant new mural on the side wall at 260 State Street in downtown Los Altos. The mural, entitled “Los Hills,” was painted by San Francisco artist Brian Barneclo. The inspiration for this mural began with Barneclo’s hike around Redwood Grove and up to the top of the Jesuit Retreat Center. After the hike, and looking at a map of Los Altos, he began to envision painting the mural as a bird’s-eye view of a hill enclosing various shapes. As one looks at the mural, each shape on the hill, defined by bold white lines, represents a different segment of Los Altos, including residential neighborhoods, farmland and natural spaces. He calls the style of this mural, “pop-folk or folk-modern”.

​Barneclo grew up in Indiana and studied fine art at the University of Indiana. Pop art and street art have had a substantial influence on the evolution of his artistic style. He moved to San Francisco in 1996, where he started as a sign painter. Soon, he progressed to commissioned murals inspired by life in San Francisco. Brian’s patrons include corporations like Google, Facebook, Visa, as well as beloved local San Francisco establishments such as NOPA restaurant and St. Francis Fountain. Other major public art works in San Francisco include a massive 600-foot by 40-foot mural, entitled “Systems,” at Seventh and Townsend completed in 2011. He installed a 110-foot mural in the concourse of the Chase Center when the Golden State Warriors’ arena opened as part of its initial art collection in 2019.