San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
UNCLE NATE’S UNLIKELY STORY
Unassuming S. F. graffiti artist breaks out as kids’ art teacher on TV
You probably didn’t hear much from Nathan Tan for much of his life, even if you saw his work in San Francisco’s 1980s graffiti art scene in places like the Psycho City mural space on 12th Street and Crocker Amazon park.
“As a kid I was very shy, not particularly extroverted,” Tan says. “What graffiti art did for me was it gave me that voice. It gave me that confidence. ‘ I am good at something. This is my thing.’ ”
He remained mostly behindthescenes as an adult as well, even as his hiphopinfused clothing designs and often surreal artwork reimagining Bay Area landmarks became popular in the region.
But the pandemic has led Tan to the least introverted of professions: a children’s television host. Nathan Tan is now the star of “Uncle Nate’s Creativity Time,” drawing lessons that have turned into a video series on SFGovTV.
It’s a personal transformation for the smallbusiness owner and artist who, like many, has been adapting constantly since Bay Area shelterinplace rules made both professions more difficult. And it’s a sign of how far graffiti has come. An art style that was still considered outlaw three decades ago has become one of the highlights of the crisis, being promoted on San Francisco’s online TV channel that also broadcasts City Hall meetings.
“Being that this art form was created by the youth and driven by the youth, adults didn’t really understand it. They were scared of it,” Tan says. “There were so many stereotypes behind what they thought it really was. Today graffiti art is maybe a billiondollar industry. … It’s everywhere.”
Tan, whose parents immigrated from Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, said he was always an oddball in the family. He grew up finding his style by sketching in his black book — “writing” in graffiti terminology — and creating “nonsanctioned public murals” with friends as the graffiti scene was ratcheting up in San Francisco during the late 1980s, in alignment with local hiphop and break dancing revolutions.
As a student at St. Ignatius College Prep, he created murals, fliers for dances and airbrushed figures on denim jackets and overalls. But he also kept his grades up and took a design major at San Francisco State University, which satisfied his traditional family.
“To some degree I think they saw the passion in what I was doing, and they realized it was important to me,” Tan says. “And I really thank my parents for that — for giving me the space to grow up and be creative in a family full of lawyers and doctors.”
Tan worked briefly in the corporate world before starting his own business. New Skool is his line of clothing, much of it for children, including a popular design with a stylized drawing of headphones around the neck. Many of his designs have local landmarks, including a glowinthedark Sutro Tower hoodie he wears to a Total SF podcast recorded on Zoom.
His art at Nate1Design. com has a more dreamlike vibe, with the Bay Area reimagined as a joyful graffiti canvas. BART cars and the NJudah streetcar ride tracks that look like roller coasters. The Golden Gate Bridge and Bay Bridge face each other like Bboys in a danceoff. And he’s still airbrushing denim. ( Tan says his airbrushing commissions during the pandemic haven’t been this busy since the 1990s.)
Like a lot of artists on March 16, when Bay Area counties were ordered to shelter in place, Tan was looking to do something for kids who were stuck inside with limited art options. The first appearance of “Uncle Nate’s Creativity Time” was a worksheet on Instagram showing kids how to make bubble letters. When parents asked for a sequel, he made 14 more, a dozen of which can now be downleaded for free.
“When the pandemic hit, I just wanted to do something for poor parents at home with their kids, who don’t have this creative outlet for them,” he says. “I started getting so much great feedback from parents, telling me, ‘ Don’t stop. We really need this.’ ” The DNA of Uncle Nate came from teaching graffiti art classes at the First Amendment Gallery on Howard Street in San Francisco, honing his communication and teaching skills for groups of 30 or more. The video idea came from his friend Andy Kawanami, a digital storyteller known locally for his 1990s “Hip Hop Fridays” showcase on the California Music Channel and behindthescenes work producing videos for artists including E40 and the Backstreet Boys.
Kawanami said it was a dream working with his old friend, who showed off multiple talents — writing the script, creating art for the background graphics and even recording multiple music tracks.
“Nate’s a special artist, and he’s a special San Franciscan,” Kawanami says. “People comment how much they love the intro music. And then I blow their minds: ‘ That’s Nate, too. That’s Nate beatboxing.’ ”
The show has a throwback vibe somewhere between the teenfriendly 1980s KRONTV news magazine “Home Turf” and KTVU’s old Charley & Humphrey puppet videos. There are two more “Uncle Nate’s Creativity Time” videos recorded, including one in the next week, with more on the way.
Tan says he’s worried about the toll of the pandemic on the Bay Area, particularly with small businesses in retail, where he’s seen a lot of partners struggle.
“I’ve seen a lot of shops close down and that is just completely heartbreaking,” Tan says. “It’s our independent businesses that make San Francisco so unique and allows us to have that flavor. Especially when they’re locally owned or family owned.”
But he’s optimistic about the future of the city, where creativity and artistic expression are being valued more than ever.
“Nate’s one of those guys I’m just always excited to see what he comes up with next,” Kawanami says. “We need art and excitement and special things right now. I think Nate’s the perfect guy to bring it.”