Visual Arts

San Francisco Symphony’s Michael Tilson Thomas is among many Bay Area arts leaders stepping down in the not-too-distant future. (Courtesy Art Streiber)

Bay Area arts organizations see changes at the top

After years, sometimes decades, of steady leadership, major Bay Area arts organizations…

San Francisco Symphony’s Michael Tilson Thomas is among many Bay Area arts leaders stepping down in the not-too-distant future. (Courtesy Art Streiber)
Wesley Tongson’s 1993 “Red Plums Over the Earth” is on view in "The Journey" in The City. (Courtesy Chinese Culture Center)

Wesley Tongson’s evocative ‘finger’ paintings at Chinese Culture Center

Continually exploring the possibilities of ink, Wesley Tongson created exquisite pictures of…

Wesley Tongson’s 1993 “Red Plums Over the Earth” is on view in "The Journey" in The City. (Courtesy Chinese Culture Center)
Poet-writer-activist Chinaka Hodge appears on Saturday at the 2018 YBCA 100 Summit, a gathering of people and groups dedicated to making change and social justice. (Courtesy YBCA)

Activists unite for change at YBCA 100 Summit

For each one of the 100 people and organizations being honored at…

Poet-writer-activist Chinaka Hodge appears on Saturday at the 2018 YBCA 100 Summit, a gathering of people and groups dedicated to making change and social justice. (Courtesy YBCA)
Anna Lisa Escobedo, an executive assistant at the California Historical Society and an artist who chairs the Calle 24 Latino Cultural District's Cultural Assets and Arts Committee in the Mission District, on Monday, Oct. 22, 2018. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)

Bernal Heights artist Anna Lisa Escobedo thrives in a painter’s paradise

“I didn’t grow up with art on the walls or art around…

Anna Lisa Escobedo, an executive assistant at the California Historical Society and an artist who chairs the Calle 24 Latino Cultural District's Cultural Assets and Arts Committee in the Mission District, on Monday, Oct. 22, 2018. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)
Eritrean-American artist Ficre Ghebreyesus' vivid “City With a River Running Through” is on view at the Museum of the African Diaspora. (Courtesy Estate of Ficre Ghebreyesus)

Colorful abstracts at Museum of the African Diaspora

Paintings by Eritrean-American artist Ficre Ghebreyesus, whose colorful landscapes reflect life in…

Eritrean-American artist Ficre Ghebreyesus' vivid “City With a River Running Through” is on view at the Museum of the African Diaspora. (Courtesy Estate of Ficre Ghebreyesus)

Galeria de la Raza to lose main art space after major rent hike

A major rent hike is forcing longtime Latino art gallery Galeria de…

Dulari Devi’s 2015 “Prime Minister Modi arriving in a village via helicopter” is among the eye-catching works in “Painting Is My Everything: Art from India’s Mithila Region.” (Courtesy Asian Art Museum)

Lively Mithila village art graces museum walls

Qamar Adamjee laughed when asked how much travel was involved in her…

Dulari Devi’s 2015 “Prime Minister Modi arriving in a village via helicopter” is among the eye-catching works in “Painting Is My Everything: Art from India’s Mithila Region.” (Courtesy Asian Art Museum)
“Kusama: Infinity” details the life and work of Yayoi Kusama, pictured in the Orez Gallery in the Hague, Netherlands in 1965. (Courtesy Harrie Verstappen / Magnolia Pictures)

A colorful portrait of art legend Yayoi Kusama

Yayoi Kusama, the painter, sculptor, installation maker, performer, provocateur and 89-year-old art-world…

“Kusama: Infinity” details the life and work of Yayoi Kusama, pictured in the Orez Gallery in the Hague, Netherlands in 1965. (Courtesy Harrie Verstappen / Magnolia Pictures)
Collages by Kytana Winn are among the works in "The Black Woman Is God: Assembly of Gods" at SOMArts through Oct. 2. (Courtesy Nye' Lynn Tho)

Artists of color reclaim heritage in ‘Black Woman is God’

Having established firm roots, defying gravity, resisting withering and growing in leaps…

Collages by Kytana Winn are among the works in "The Black Woman Is God: Assembly of Gods" at SOMArts through Oct. 2. (Courtesy Nye' Lynn Tho)
Frédéric Bruly Bouabré’s 2007 pencil and ink “Untitled (Les merveilles du monde)” is among the works in “Defying the Narrative: Contemporary Art from West and Southern Africa” opening in September at Ever Gold [Projects]. (Courtesy Ever Gold [Projects])

Expanded gallery, dining, cocktail options in The City

Ever Gold [Projects], a gallery at 1275 Minnesota St., is on summer…

Frédéric Bruly Bouabré’s 2007 pencil and ink “Untitled (Les merveilles du monde)” is among the works in “Defying the Narrative: Contemporary Art from West and Southern Africa” opening in September at Ever Gold [Projects]. (Courtesy Ever Gold [Projects])
Julie Chang showed off “The Secret Garden,” her design for the floor of the new Salesforce Transit Center. (Leslie Katz/S.F. Examiner)

Truly awesome art at new downtown transit center

Artist Julie Chang had some inspirational words about “The Secret Garden,” her…

Julie Chang showed off “The Secret Garden,” her design for the floor of the new Salesforce Transit Center. (Leslie Katz/S.F. Examiner)
John Roddam Spencer Stanhope’s 1877 “Love and the Maiden” is a highlight of “Truth and The Pre-Raphaelites and the Old Masters” at the Legion of Honor. (Courtesy Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco)

Pre-Raphaelites take inspiration from Old Masters in Legion exhibition

Radicals in their day, the pre-Raphaelites in mid-19th-century England adopted the styles…

John Roddam Spencer Stanhope’s 1877 “Love and the Maiden” is a highlight of “Truth and The Pre-Raphaelites and the Old Masters” at the Legion of Honor. (Courtesy Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco)
Nicole Sweeney creates wood art pieces in her San Francisco studio. (Courtesy Jordan Rosen Photography)

SF woodworker to expand art business after ‘Making It’ on TV

Three years ago, San Francisco woodworker Nicole Sweeney quit her day job…

Nicole Sweeney creates wood art pieces in her San Francisco studio. (Courtesy Jordan Rosen Photography)
Ian Ross recently completed a mural on a building at 18th Street and Potrero Avenue. (Courtesy Elysian)

Making mischief with art and beverages

San Francisco artist Ian Ross has been busy making mischief at the…

Ian Ross recently completed a mural on a building at 18th Street and Potrero Avenue. (Courtesy Elysian)
John Bambery portrays Georges Seurat and Nanci Zoppi plays his lover Dot in San Francisco Playhouse’s “Sunday in the Park with George.” (Courtesy Ken Levin)

‘Sunday in the Park’ colorfully explores meaning of art

Being an artist has never been easy. Consider Georges Seurat, the 19th-century…

John Bambery portrays Georges Seurat and Nanci Zoppi plays his lover Dot in San Francisco Playhouse’s “Sunday in the Park with George.” (Courtesy Ken Levin)
“Les valeurs personnelles” (“Personal Values”), from 1952, is a classic example of the René Magritte’s famed whimsy. (Courtesy SFMOMA, Charly Herscovici, Brussels/Artists Rights Society)

The many phases of René Magritte

Perennially popular for his surrealist works featuring apples, bowler hats and bizarre…

“Les valeurs personnelles” (“Personal Values”), from 1952, is a classic example of the René Magritte’s famed whimsy. (Courtesy SFMOMA, Charly Herscovici, Brussels/Artists Rights Society)
David Park’s “Portrait of Lydia Sewing” (1955), left, and Milton Avery’s “Reader with Plant” (1963) are at Hackett Mill. (Courtesy Hackett Mill)

Mid-century masters Park, Avery paint humanity

David Park and Milton Avery -- who bucked the trend and painted…

David Park’s “Portrait of Lydia Sewing” (1955), left, and Milton Avery’s “Reader with Plant” (1963) are at Hackett Mill. (Courtesy Hackett Mill)
Fernando Reyes' 1995 “Self Portrait”on view at the Mexican Museum is a charcoal drawing on gray paper. (Courtesy Fernando Reyes)

‘Artist’s Evolution’ showcases Fernando Reyes’ breadth

Local artist Fernando Reyes -- a banker turned painter and printmaker --…

Fernando Reyes' 1995 “Self Portrait”on view at the Mexican Museum is a charcoal drawing on gray paper. (Courtesy Fernando Reyes)
The late Joan Mankin (pictured in a detail of the portrait) is featured in "Ghost Light" at Z Space. (Courtesy David Allen)

David Allen’s ‘Ghost Light’ photos illuminate Bay Area actors

For his exhibit “Ghost Light,” performing arts photographer David Allen went old-school:…

The late Joan Mankin (pictured in a detail of the portrait) is featured in "Ghost Light" at Z Space. (Courtesy David Allen)
Homestead Grays catcher Josh Gibson, called “the black Babe Ruth,” is pictured in 1942 at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh in a photo by Charles “Teenie” Harris. (Courtesy Carnegie Museum of Art)

‘Game of Color’ spotlights black baseball greats

Sports and civil rights come together in a fun and fan-friendly exhibition…

Homestead Grays catcher Josh Gibson, called “the black Babe Ruth,” is pictured in 1942 at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh in a photo by Charles “Teenie” Harris. (Courtesy Carnegie Museum of Art)