Artsy Fartsy
Check Out SF’s Wild New “Banana” Bench at Union Square
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New, Downtown San Francisco, Fun & Games Union Square’s cable car turnaround just got a little more… a-peeling. The second of four rotating public art installations has landed, and it’s a bright yellow banana sculpture that doubles as a bench. Curb-A-Peel officially debuted Friday, August 29, 2025 at the Cable Car Turnaround Arts, right at Powell & more...
Two 16-Ton “Whales” Return to SF After 20+ Years in Storage
Artsy Fartsy After decades in storage, Robert B. Howard’s iconic Whales sculpture, featuring two playful orcas, has a new permanent home at City College of San Francisco’s Ocean Campus Student Success Center at Ocean Ave and Frida Kahlo Way. The Whales sculpture is hard to miss. Standing roughly 10 feet tall, 14 feet more...
Alamo Square “Painted Lady” Hosts Rare Pop-up Museum
Artsy Fartsy, Bay Area Favorites, Brand New, Get Out: Events, Museums / Cultural Institutions, Only in San Francisco, San Francisco For the first time ever, one of San Francisco’s iconic “Painted Ladies” on Alamo Square is opening its doors to the public – and it’s housing a rare pop-up art museum from local street artist fnnch. Inside you’ll find street artist fnnch’s Honey Bear paintings over the last 10 years. There more...
New 120-Foot Glass Artwork Just Debuted at SF’s Chinatown Muni Station
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New, Downtown San Francisco, Transportation A new glass art installation is now on view at San Francisco’s Chinatown-Rose Pak Muni Station. Created by New York-based artist Tomie Arai, the 700-square-foot piece called Arrival spans the station’s parapet façade along Stockton and Washington streets. The large-scale glass mural blends historical and contemporary imagery tied to Chinatown’s past, more...
Golden Gate Park’s New Huge Tire Art Sculptures
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New A new public art installation has been added to Golden Gate Park’s JFK Promenade, bringing a fresh set of large-scale sculptures to the popular pedestrian space. Six sculptures by acclaimed Mexican artist Betsabeé Romero are now on display along the car-free stretch of JFK, between Conservatory Drive East and West. The more...
Ultimate Guide to SF’s Grateful Dead Summer Takeover
Artsy Fartsy, Local Icons, San Francisco, Wow San Francisco is going full psychedelic to honor the 60th anniversary of the Grateful Dead, the iconic band born right here in 1965. In the lead-up to Dead & Company’s sold-out three-night run in Golden Gate Park (August 1-3), the city is paying tribute with art exhibits, live shows, and more...
Rare Max Ernst Sculptures Hide Amongst Redwoods at SF’s Transamerica Pyramid
Artsy Fartsy, Downtown San Francisco, Outdoorsy, Parks & Beaches A small forest of redwoods in downtown San Francisco just got a lot weirder—in the best way. A new outdoor exhibition at the Transamerica Pyramid’s Redwood Park brings twelve fantastical bronze sculptures by legendary Surrealist Max Ernst into public view, many for the first time. Tucked between skyscrapers, the sculptures more...
100-Foot Glowing Sea Serpent Coming to SF’s Golden Gate Park
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New, Only in San Francisco, Parks & Beaches A giant, glowing sea serpent named Naga is surfacing in Golden Gate Park – and he’s here to stay a while. Originally created for Burning Man 2024, Naga & The Captainess is a 100-foot-long, 25-foot-tall serpent made of over 5,000 shimmering scales and lit from within. Installed in the weirdly green more...
SF’s Long-Awaited Mexican Museum May Lose Prime Downtown Site
Artsy Fartsy, Downtown San Francisco, Getting Help The Mexican Museum’s long-delayed move into a 60,000-square-foot home near Yerba Buena Gardens is once again in jeopardy. Originally envisioned as a permanent space to showcase a 16,500-piece collection and anchor San Francisco’s Latino and Mexican-American artistic legacy, the museum missed a key fundraising deadline tied to city grant funds. more...
45-ft Statue of Giant Naked Woman Now Coming to SF’s Embarcadero
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New, Downtown San Francisco, San Francisco Thanks to San Francisco Examiner for sharing the details that San Francisco’s Embarcadero Plaza will soon be home to “R-Evolution,” a 45-foot-tall sculpture by Marco Cochrane that was originally planned for Union Square. City officials relocated the installation after concerns that its weight could damage Union Square’s granite tiles. A Monument more...
Massive New Artist Hub Coming to SF’s Vacant Waterfront Pier 29
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New, San Francisco Thanks so much to the San Francisco Chronicle for sharing that a massive waterfront warehouse on San Francisco’s Embarcadero is getting a new life as a cultural hub for local artists and creative events. The Community Arts Stabilization Trust (CAST), a nonprofit focused on preserving affordable spaces for arts and culture more...
SF’s 175th Birthday Laser Space Cannon Light Show (TONIGHT!)
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New, Community, Downtown San Francisco, Fairs & Festivals, Only in San Francisco, Outdoorsy Illuminate Declares San Francisco the “City of Awe” which will Shoot Lasers onto City Hall Tonight to Celebrate the City’s 175th Birthday On San Francisco’s 175th birthday – which coincides with the local phenomenon of 415 Day – Illuminate, the nonprofit arts organization devoted to awe-inspiring public art, will unveil its latest more...
“California Henge”: SF’s Natural Light Show (April 8-10, 2025)
Artsy Fartsy, Downtown San Francisco, Only in San Francisco, San Francisco, Wow Big thank you to Stu Berman for sharing with us details about California Henge: San Francisco’s twice-yearly solar spectacle. Twice a year, San Francisco puts on a dazzling celestial show known as California Henge—a phenomenon where the rising or setting sun aligns perfectly with the city’s street grid, casting a golden more...
1950s SF Motel Transformed by Artists for One Weekend Only
Artsy Fartsy, Fairs & Festivals, Festival Updates, San Francisco, Wow San Francisco’s stARTup Art Fair is one of the most unique art shows you’re likely to ever encounter. The Return of SF’s Most Unique Art Fair: stARTup Takes Over Hotel del Sol San Francisco’s beloved stARTup Art Fair is finally making its long-awaited return after a five-year pause, and it’s coming back with renewed more...
SF’s Spectacular 1,200-LED Light Show to Dazzle Civic Center
Artsy Fartsy, Brand New, Wow SPECTRA: A Dazzling New Light Installation Transforms San Francisco’s Civic Center San Francisco’s Civic Center is about to shine brighter than ever with the unveiling of SPECTRA, a groundbreaking LED art installation set to illuminate Fulton Plaza. This massive public art project, developed by local nonprofit Illuminate in partnership with the more...
