My name is Drake Toulouse and I live in San Francisco.

Tenderloin Concrete is a culmination of many years spent in living and working in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco. Despite its often negative reputation, it’s a unique 40 square blocks of beating hearts wedged between the government buildings of Civic Center and the skyscrapers of the Financial District. Along with petty crime, the drug trade and homelessness, families and community are here, affordability still holds on and the person you didn’t know yesterday might help you today. It’s a home of many languages, beliefs, and people of all backgrounds. Though it can be rough at times, you never know what you might see, feel, or read across its walls. There’s no place I’d rather be.

I’m a social worker and photographer and I’ve decided to share stories of my neighborhood here along with some photographs (and occasional venting). The stories I tell are true, with some different names or locations thrown about to protect identities. A lot of these stories are ugly, but I am prone to ugliness. I help people for a living, and in this context, the contexts are often unattractive, but they’re meaningful…at least to me. Narratives are important, and there will be some pretty ones too. 

I’ve had photographs in Inspired Eye and F-Stop magazine, as well as a few photography shows if such things matter to you. if they did to me, I’d probably have more shows, but I didn’t like the attention.

Have a nice day.

Drake

For apparel, please visit my shop for hoodies, t-shirts, etc:  https://tenderloinconcrete.com

Images for sale at Fine Art America: https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/drake-toulouse.html

I’m also on Flickr: Drake Toulouse.

Feel free to contact: tenderloinconcrete@gmail.com

Other prints also available.