Guide toSan Francisco's Museums and Galleries This Fall
Explore inspiring exhibitions from esteemed creators of the past and present at these San Francisco institutions.
San Francisco is home to dozens of must-see museums and acclaimed art galleries. Need help deciding which to visit during your stay? No problem! We’ve gathered the goods on the most exciting exhibitions on display across the city this fall. Keep reading to learn more and buy your tickets.
Asian Art Museum
Into View: New Voices, New Stories
On display now through October 17, Into View: New Voices, New Stories at the Asian Art Museum showcases artworks acquired from local and global contemporary artists who challenge norms by reshaping familiar tales, stereotypes, and techniques. These works explore diverse themes like cosmology, mythology, and political unrest. Visitors are encouraged to engage actively, with a book library and reading group discussions, offering a space for learning and dialogue.
Hallyu! The Korean Wave
Splash-landing on September 27, 2024, Hallyu! The Korean Wave celebrates the irresistible charm of the Korean TV series "Hallyu," which became an unprecedented global pop culture phenomenon. This exhibition brings together close to 200 objects and artworks animating and illustrating Hallyu’s many dimensions, complemented by dynamic digital displays and interactive experiences. On display September 27, 2024 - January 26, 2015.
California Academy of Sciences
NightLife
Every Thursday, the California Academy of Science invites visitors (21+) to a vibrant evening of dancing and musical performances, participating in thought-provoking talks and presentations, and a visit with Claude, the resident albino alligator. And to ensure you're having a fabulous night, the café and bars at NightLife serve pizzas, pastas, specialty cocktails, craft beer, and delicious wines.
Children's Creativity Museum
Art & Design Intertwined
In this exhibition, the entire family can discover innovative ways to engage with others through art and design. It aims to facilitate exploration and connection in three interactive spaces. At ArtLab, visitors can collaborate on creating artwork and explore diverse forms of expression. DesignIt! Studio offers challenges to solve and opportunities to prototype with various materials. Lastly, the Community Garden allows visitors of all ages to contribute to a digital flower garden, fostering a shared creative environment for everyone.
Contemporary Jewish Museum
California Jewish Open
The CJM's first major open call-based exhibition invites Jewish artists from the Golden State to respond to the following question: how are artists looking to the many aspects of Jewish culture, identity, and community to foster, reimagine, hold, or discover connection? Works across a variety of media—sculpture, video, painting, photography, and more—will be on display through October 20, 2024.
Firmament
This first solo museum exhibition by local artist Nicki Green explores Jewish identity and tradition through the concept of the firmament, a thin dome referenced in the Book of Genesis that divides the earth from the heavens. The immersive, inviting exhibition will be on display through February 2, 2025.
Looted
A multimedia installation that reflects the history of stolen art from the World War II-era, Looted will feature videos of artists creating reproductions of nearly 60 priceless pieces that were looted from Polish homes and institutions by the Nazis. Creators Dorota Mytych, Jessica Houstin, Marcia Teusnik, and Tracy Grubbs will resurrect the work of Raphael, Rembrandt, and others. On display through July 27, 2025.
The de Young Museum
Tamara de Lempicka
With works that exuded cool elegance and transgressive sensuality, Tamara de Lempicka helped define Art Deco. Her paintings captured the glamour and vitality of postwar Paris and the cosmopolitan sheen of Hollywood celebrity. This exhibition, the first major museum retrospective of Lempicka in the United States, explores the artist’s distinctive style and unconventional life. On display October 12, 2024 - February 9, 2025.
The Exploratorium
Glow
Exploratorium's annual winter exhibition invites artists to illuminate Pier 15 with stunning light sculptures. Get ready to discover luminous artworks that dazzle and surprise, including engaging new works and seasonal favorites. On display from to
Edge of the Square
Edge on the Square’s Annual Contemporary Art Festival, "High Five," transform five Chinatown streets into artistic representations of Earth, Fire, Metal, Water, and Air. This festival continues Edge’s mission to revitalize Chinatown with multimedia art activations, performances, and a new food component featuring culinary delights from local restaurants. Showcasing Asian-American and BIPOC artists, "High Five" amplifies community solidarity and creativity, reflecting Edge’s commitment to enriching the neighborhood’s cultural and economic landscape.
The Legion of Honor
Mary Cassat at Work
The first North American retrospective of Mary Cassatt’s work in 25 years, this exhibition presents her as a fiercely professional artist who helped shape the French Impressionist movement and transformed the course of modern art. Juxtaposing paintings, pastels, and prints, Mary Cassatt at Work will explore the artist’s activity across media, revealing the daring, iterative methods she used to give form to her ideas. On display October 5, 2024 - January 26, 2025.
Nexus: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week
MoAD (Museum of the African Diaspora) is excited to introduce Nexus: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week, a dynamic new annual celebration of Black artistry in the region, running from October 1 to 6, 2024. This inaugural event will unite artists, institutions, galleries, and creative spaces across San Francisco and Oakland, highlighting the profound contributions of Black artists through exhibitions, special programs, and meaningful dialogues. With a focus on fostering community, increasing visibility, and encouraging collaboration, Nexus aims to elevate Black art in the Bay Area and create a vibrant platform for artistic innovation, cultural conversation, and cross-city partnerships.
Museum of the African Diaspora
What We Carry To set Ourselves Free
Helina Metaferia’s solo project, What We Carry to Set Ourselves Free, is part of her ongoing By Way of Revolution series. This project highlights the often-ignored contributions of BIPOC women and gender-marginalized people to social justice movements, both historically and today. On view October 2, 2024 to March 2, 2025
Museum of Craft and Design
She Bends: Neon As Soulcraft
She Bends: Neon as Soulcraft focuses on neon bending and the diverse knowledge base demanded by this craft, spanning physics, chemistry, and spatial abilities. The exhibition showcases collaborative artworks crafted during three neon residencies held across the United States. Through a community-driven selection process, teaching artists were matched with emerging student artists. These residencies offered a platform for teaching artists to hone their craft and for student artists to pursue their exploration of neon. On display through November 24, 2024.
Open Studios - 50th Anniversary
Since 1975, ArtSpan’s SF Open Studios has been a cherished tradition that connects the San Francisco community with local artists, offering residents and visitors a chance to explore the city’s creative landscape. Running from September 19 to October 13, SF Open Studios provides free access to hundreds of artists through studio visits, gallery exhibits, and art pop-ups, allowing attendees to learn about the artists' processes and purchase artwork directly. Celebrating its 50th anniversary, this event, which also includes an archival exhibition at the San Francisco Public Library, plays a vital role in supporting the city’s artistic heritage and stimulating local economic growth.
Rebecca Camacho Presents
526 Washington St.
Andy Mister: I always knew it would come to this
Andy Mister’s third exhibition with Rebecca Camacho Presents is a compendium of exquisitely rendered still life drawings in oil pastel on linen. The bold and saturated colors he works in harken back to the history of photography. Two drawings in I always knew it would come to this were produced in collaboration with Oakland-based multi-disciplinary artist, Tosha Stimage. On display November 12 - December 20.
Project Room | Maryam Yousif
Maryam Yousif’s solo exhibition in the gallery’s Project Room demonstrates the artist’s ongoing exploration of Mesopotamian mythologies, histories and objects through clay sculpture. On display November 12 - December 20.
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA)
Get in the Game
SFMOMA presents Get in the Game, exploring the powerful—and sometimes contentious—place of athletics in our communities. This will be the museum’s most expansive presentation dedicated to a subject to date, covering over 15,000 square feet with paintings, sculptures, photographs, video and interactive installations by some of today’s most important artists, together with design breakthroughs in sports gear, gaming and apparel. Audiences will also encounter artists and designers inspired by athletes advancing conversations about gender, race and identity, as well as artworks responding to the remarkable achievements of sports figures such as Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, Colin Kaepernick, Diana Nyad, Venus Williams and Zinedine Zidane. On display October 19, 2024 - February 18, 2025.
Kara Walker
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art will feature artist Kara Walker's first site-specific installation in its admission-free Roberts Family Gallery this July. Known for her examination of power dynamics and exploitation of race and sexuality, Walker's work blends fantasy with sharp humor to challenge established narratives. Walker's latest project will prompt visitors to contemplate how they remember trauma and to consider the goals of technology.
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Art, Action, Change: YBCA Creative Corps Initiative
In cooperation with the California Arts Council, YBCA supported 48 local artists who worked on projects in service of their communities, focusing on civic engagement, climate justice, community health and awareness, and social justice. The results range from collaborative murals to immersive dance classes and beyond! Explore the intersection of art, action, and community from August 16 to September 15.
Nicky Nodjoumi & Nahid Hagigat
Distinct solo exhibitions with a shared history, Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political and Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time, together tell the story of a family of artists whose lives become inextricably linked to political revolution. Explore these distinct bodies of work, from Nodjoumi’s kaleidoscopic paintings to Hagigat’s evocative etchings. YBCA is also pleased to present A Revolution on Canvas, an accompanying HBO documentary produced by their daughter Sara Nodjoumi and her partner Till Schauder. The film examines the international controversy of 120 missing artworks in Tehran, which irreversibly changed this family’s life forever.
111 Minna Gallery
Year of the Dragon
Depicted in countless cultures and faiths from every corner of the globe, from ancient times through the centuries, dragons are ubiquitous in the legends and folklore that shape our histories and the stories we tell. In Year of the Dragon, curated by tattoo artist and studio owner Luke Stewart, 111 Minna Gallery hosts a curated collection of illustrations, paintings and sculptures to celebrate the legendary creature. On display through September 28, 2024.
Lucas Mittenentzwei is a digital project and content consultant. Originally from Germany, he has lived in California since 2010, calling San Francisco his home for several years. Lucas started in the hospitality industry before joining Visit California in its mission to inspire the world to visit the Golden State. He is passionate about all aspects of the travel experience, but trying new restaurants (or tried-and-true classics) is at the top of his list.
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