San Francisco Arts Commission

Join San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) Galleries for “I split the ground, so it would not close over me,” a two-person exhibition featuring the work of two emerging Bay Area artists Kelley Finley and Tricia Rainwater, curated by independent curator Shirin Makaremi.

“I split the ground, so it would not close over me” opens on May 28, 2026 from 6-8 P.M. at the SFAC Main Gallery in the War Memorial Veterans Building and will be on view through August 29, 2026.

In the exhibition, Finley and Rainwater approach survival as both a personal and collective experience. Delving into personal and communal histories, the artists explore what it means to sustain communities and how resilience is an ongoing process.

“I split the ground, so it would not close over me” is part of SFAC Galleries’ new mentorship fellowship program, now in its second year, where two emerging artists work closely with a curator for seven months on their professional development and to create new work for an exhibition in the Main Gallery. Nearly 130 artist applications were submitted when SFAC Galleries launched an open call for artists in July 2025. Kelley Finley and Tricia Rainwater were selected a panel of both SFAC staff and stakeholders in the Bay Area arts community.

We hope to see you on the 28th!

Link in bio for more info

We’re looking for Cultural Ambassadors! The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) is seeking individuals who are passionate about the arts and community engagement to serve as Cultural Ambassadors, helping raise awareness of SFAC’s grant opportunities in fall 2026.

This paid opportunity comes with a $3,145 honorarium four your outreach efforts from August-December 2026!

Deadline To Apply: Friday, July 15, 2026 by 5 p.m. Learn more and apply at: bit.ly/sfac-cap (link in bio)

Share your feedback on Art Proposals for the Chinatown/Him Mark Lai Branch Library Renovation Project! 華埠／麥禮謙分館翻新工程藝術作品提案

The San Francisco Arts Commission is conducting a review process to select an artist to design an artwork for the renovated Chinatown/Him Mark Lai Branch Library. The artwork will be installed into five arched niches, located along the west wall of the Library’s Historic Reading Room. Each niche measures approximately 9’4” x 6’6”, totaling approximately 300 square feet.

三藩市藝術委員會現正進行評審程序，以遴選一位藝術家為翻新後的華埠／麥禮謙分館設計藝術作品。該作品將設置於圖書館歷史閱讀室西牆沿線的五個拱形壁龕內。每個壁龕尺寸約為9呎4吋 × 6呎6吋，總面積約300平方呎。

Three artists have been selected as finalists by the Chinatown/Him Mark Lai Branch Library Artist Review Panel to develop conceptual proposals for this opportunity: Windy Chien, Bijun Liang, and Christine Wong Yap.

華埠／麥禮謙分館藝術評審委員會已選出三位入圍藝術家，為本計畫擬定概念提案：錢仲恩（Windy Chien）、梁璧君（Bijun Liang）及葉黃嘉雯（Christine Wong Yap）。

Please take a few minutes to review these artwork proposals and provide feedback on sf.gov/artscommission. Comments may also be submitted via email to [email protected] by Friday, May 8 at 5:00 p.m. PDT.

誠邀您撥冗審閱上述藝術提案並提供意見。您亦可於太平洋夏令時間2026年5月8日（星期五）下午5時或之前，發電子郵件至 [email protected] 提交意見。

Public comments will be considered by the Review Panel as part of the Final Review Panel meeting where the Panel will recommend one proposal for implementation. Please note that public comments do not constitute a vote.

評審小組將於最終評審會議中參考公眾意見，並推薦一項提案予以實施。請注意，公眾意見不構成投票。

Reclaiming Histories: Black Feminisms & Visual Art

The San Francisco Arts Commission and SFO Museum invite you to join us for a special event on Friday, April 24 from 11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at SFO Louis A. Turpen Aviation Museum and Library for Reclaiming Histories: Black Feminisms and Visual Art: A Roundtable Discussion with artists Alison Saar, Adia Millett, Eve Sandler, Taller SANAA (Shanna Strauss and Jess Sabogal). Moderated by curator Ashara Ekundayo.
 
RSVP today on Eventbrite to reserve your spot: ReclaimingHistories.eventbrite.com (Link in Bio)

This roundtable discussion is centered around 11 artworks by 12 women and gender expansive artists of color: Sydney Cain, Erica Deeman, Adama Delphine Fawundu, Myra Greene, Adia Millett, yétúndé ọlágbajú, Trina Michelle Robinson, Taller SANAA (Shanna Strauss & Jess Sabogal), Eve Sandler, Keisha Scarville, and Olomidara Yaya (Kenyatta A.C. Hinkle).

The artworks, recently acquired by the San Francisco Civic Art Collection, are now on permanent display at San Francisco International Airport. These works, located adjacent to Alison Saar’s 2021 commission, Flourish, speak to diasporic movement, rootedness, and repair, while discussing the curatorial methodologies that bring these narratives to public space.

To learn more and for event details, visit sf.gov/artscommission

[Images in carousel: Flourish, 2021, by Alison Saar, stainless steel, patina, and paint. Collection of the City & County of San Francisco. Courtesy of SFO Museum. Artist images of Aid Millett and Eve Sandler are courtesy of the artists/Alison Saar by Nicolas Lea Bruno, Taller SANAA by Jean Melesaine, and Ashara Ekundayo by Demondre Ward. Images of works installed at SFO by Ethan Kaplan Photography. Collection of the City & County of San Francisco.]

Call for artists! The San Francisco Arts Commission invites artists and artist teams residing in the United States to submit qualifications for Harvey Milk Plaza Improvements Project Public Art Opportunity.

Sited on the concourse level of the Castro Muni Station, the Gallery East Art Wall Artwork will measure approximately 8’ ft. high x 18 ft. wide (144 sq. ft.) and will be comprised of a durable material, such as mosaic or digitally printed ceramic tile.

Located in the heart of San Francisco’s Castro district, Harvey Milk Plaza aims to celebrate Harvey Milk’s life’s work of inclusivity and honor his mission of greater social justice. With advocacy and significant engagement from the local community, the redesigned plaza will provide space that promotes visibility for all marginalized people and offer a platform for future activism.

🗓️Deadline to submit qualifications: June 15, 2026, by 11:59 p.m. PT

Learn more & apply: sf.gov/harveymilkimprovementsrfq (link in bio)

Now on view along Market Street!

The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) is pleased to announce the second installation of the 2026 Art on Market Street Poster Series, titled Dreaming People’s History, by San Francisco-based artist Colin Choy Kimzey.

Commissioned around the 2026 program theme, Now & Then: Living Memories, Kimzey’s posters examine how Asian American histories have been actively constructed, remembered, and carried forward through collective action, storytelling, and cultural production. Drawing from archival research and community-based histories, the works highlight the role of artists, writers, and organizers in shaping a shared political and cultural identity.

To learn more, visit sfartscommission.org/artonmarketstreet

Shaping Legacy frames community reimagination as civic action, moving from protest to proposal, from critique to creativity. These 5 artists and their upcoming temporary public art installations propose new materials, new voices, placekeeping rituals, and models for collective authorship. It’s what happens when people who have been erased step forward not just to be seen, but to shape the seeing. The most powerful public art has always been born from community input, resistance, and reimagination.

Meet the artists translating protest into form with projects centering the working class, migration, and community memory.

Images in carousel: Ariana Martinez-Cruz, Adrian Arias, Crane Team: Stacey Carter, William Rhodes and Ian Winters, Afatasi the Artist, and Kaleb Duarte. Images by LexMex Art

Shaping Legacy is evolving the archive by expanding who gets remembered, not erasing the past, but making room for more voices in it. When asked what was true then and what’s needed now, Ellie Tumbuan from The Justice Collective named the through-line: monuments have always reflected specific power dynamics and ideas about who matters, and what our neighborhoods need now is that same truth but more inclusive—the chance to be seen not just as individuals, but as representations of groups deserving of being listened to. Swipe through for her answer, in her own words.

Images in carousel: Mildred Howard’s Promissory Notes at the Southeast Community Center and Juana Alicia and Emmanuel C. Montoya’s Sanctuary/Santuario at SFO are inclusive tributes to communities that have migrated to San Francisco and honor their unsung contributions to our city. Images by Ethan Kaplan and courtesy of SFO Museum