Home » City Guide »

SF’s Brand New “Sanctuary City” Art Show

Over 100 artists tackle the US’s immigration policy and SF’s role as “Sanctuary City”
By - posted 3/19/2017 No Comment

The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) Galleries announces the first installment of Sanctuary City, a year-long exhibition and public program series that delves into topics related to San Francisco’s immigration policies, immigrant and refugee populations and the history of our Sanctuary City status.

The opening reception takes place Saturday, March 25th at the SFAC’s Gallery at 401 Van Ness.

For this inaugural Sanctuary City presentation, the SFAC Galleries is pleased to partner with Walter Maciel Gallery in Los Angeles to bring their critically acclaimed exhibition With Liberty and Justice for Some.

Sanctuary City Art Show
March 25 – April 8, 2017
Opening Reception, Saturday, March 25, 2017 | 6-9p
SFAC Main Gallery, War Memorial Veterans Building, 401 Van Ness Avenue, Suite 126, SF
FREE

The main gallery is open to the public Tuesdays through Sundays, 11am to 6pm.

Co-curated by Bay Area artist Monica Lundy, this exhibition features over 125 portraits of immigrants to the United States by 100 artists from Los Angeles and the Bay Area.

Notable subjects portrayed in the exhibition include actor Bela Lugosi, entertainer Grace Jones, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Jamaican political leader Marcus Mosiah Garvey Jr., Architect I. M. Pei, Province of Pennsylvania founder William Penn and several established artists such as Hung Liu, David Hockney, Marcel Duchamp, Enrique Chagoya, Wanxin Zhang, and Julie Mehretu.

Curator and artist Monica Lundy and gallerist Walter Maciel invited artists from across the country to make 8 x 8-inch portraits of individuals who came to the United States as immigrants including historic subjects, personal friends, relatives, strangers, and self-portraits.

Lundy says, “Several portraits depict individuals that represent multiple politically vulnerable communities, such as African Americans, LGBTQ persons, Mexicans, Muslims, Jews, refugees, and women, thus representing our communities here in the Bay Area being threatened by the Trump administration.”