An Ian Ross mural is a thing of beauty. Walk by one in SoMa or Silicon Valley, and you’re drawn
to the black-and-white lines of street art and the way they drape across, or border, bricks, doors,
windows and concrete. Ponder one for a while, however, and you see how deeply rooted they are
in nature. “Any time there’s a vertical,” says Ross, 37, “that’s referencing a tree. The horizontals
are referencing the surface of the ocean.”
It’s this interplay between the natural world — Ross is a Larkspur native and lifelong surfer
who comes from three generations of artists — and the street art he fell in love with in Europe as
a teenager that fuels Ross’ work. “I thrive on the juxtaposition bet ween open space and nature,”
he says, “and the dense urban sprawl that creates an art form like graffiti.”
As Ross straddles these worlds, he’s equally planted in the tech one. He was the artist-in-res-
idence at Facebook for several years, starting in 2010, and has created murals or paintings for
Google, Lyft and LinkedIn. But he also makes lush, neon-hued paintings on canvas, many of
which can be seen at the Rocha Art Gallery in SoMa, which he started with his wife, Daniele
Rocha, in 2013.
“What I love about Ian is the way he can transition from creating these huge gorgeous
murals to doing beautiful canvas work inside,” says Sara Gough, owner of Project Gallery in L. A.
“No matter what surface he’s working on, it’s 100 percent pure. He’s just a true artist at heart.”
“It’s just about the pure experience,” says Ross. “When I do something on sand, there’s no
way it can be bought or sold. It’s such a departure from the rhythm of making a living as an
artist and selling yourself. It’s all about the ephemeral experience.”
IAN ROSS
