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Holiday & End-of-Year Art Events in SF and OAK

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As 2018 comes to a close, check out the festive art events happening around the Bay Area.  There’s creative holiday markets happening throughout the month, so you can get something cool for everyone you know this year!

HOLIDAY CARD MAKING (WITH BEER)
Come drink beer and make a free holiday card this Friday at Anchor Public Taps.  There will be an old-school table top press to letterpress cards and free half-pints of Anchor’s Christmas Ale for the first 20 people!

HOLIDAY CARD MAKING WITH WESTERN EDITIONS
FRIDAY, DEC 7, 5:30 – 8:30PM
ANCHOR PUBLIC TAPS
INFO

 

OAKLAND PHOTO EXPERIENCE
Photographer and still life expert Suzanne Saroff will lead an immersive photo experience for Oakland community members at photo editing app VSCO’s headquarters.  Attendees will be able to create work that may be selected for a pop-up exhibition.

COME CLOSER OAKLAND – A VSCO PHOTO EXPERIENCE
FRIDAY, DEC 7, 4 – 8PM
VSCO HQ, 1500 BROADWAY ST
INFO

 

CREATIVE GROWTH HOLIDAY SHOW
Join Creative Growth’s community for the opening of their holiday exhibition and see more art at their annual Studio Sale.  There will be one-of-a-kind textiles, furniture, ceramics, rugs, mosaics, wood, drawing, paintings, prints, and much more.

HOLIDAY SHOW AND STUDIO SALE
FRIDAY, DEC 7, 5:30 – 9PM
CREATIVE GROWTH ART CENTER
355 24TH ST, OAKLAND
INFO

 

INCLINE GALLERY 8TH ANNIVERSARY
The Mission’s Incline Gallery has organized another exciting group show for its 8th Anniversary.  Join local artists like Yarrow Slaps, Sofie Ramos, and others who are expanding the Bay Area Arts community through their practice.  

8TH ANNIVERSARY SHOW – OPENING RECEPTION
FRIDAY, DEC 7, 6 – 9PM
INCLINE GALLERY
766 VALENCIA STREET
INFO

 

COMMUNITY QUILT MAKING
Customize your own quilt patches with drawings and personal messages in this workshop led by artist Shirin Towfiq.  Each participant’s patches will be used for a bigger communal quilt that addresses issues of identity and double consciousness.  

ABOUT: FACE — A COMMUNITY QUILT
SATURDAY, DEC 8, 11AM – 2PM
PHOEBE A. HEARST MUSEUM OF ANTHROPOLOGY
102 KROEBER HALL, BERKELEY
INFO & TICKETS

 

INTERACTIVE ART SALON & EMPTY BOWL BENEFIT SHOW
Join Oakland cafe Lucky Duck and a neighboring art studio for an interactive art salon and a show that will benefit Punks with Lunch.  There will be games and creative activities, readings, arts and crafts, and live music.

LET’S HOLD SPACE: ART SALON/ BENEFIT FOR PUNKS WITH LUNCH
SATURDAY, DEC 8, 6PM – 12AM
LUCKYDUCK BICYCLE
302 12TH ST, OAKLAND
INFO

 

EBABZ 2018
The East Bay Alternative Book & Zine is back at the Omni Commons, and will be worth crossing the bridge for!  Vendors include Unity Press, Mixed Rice Zines, and a selection of independent artists.  There will also be workshops happening throughout the day and an afterparty at Classic Cars West.     

EAST BAY ALTERNATIVE BOOK & ZINE FEST 2018
DEC 8, 11 – 5PM
OMNI COMMONS, 4799 SHATTUCK AVE
INFO

 

HEATH HOLIDAY MARKET
Pick out gifts from local designers and makers at this holiday market curated by Heath.  There will be a live vase-throwing demo, D.I.Y. holiday wreath making, and delicious food available for purchase.  Some of the vendors include Aesthetic Union (a letterpress print shop), Dandelion Chocolate, and Permanent Collection (a luxury clothing line based on historic and contemporary originals).    

MAKE GOOD MARKET 2018
DEC 8 – 9, 10AM – 3PM
HEATH SF FACTORY & SHOWROOM
2900 18TH ST
INFO

 

Duo B. vs. viDEO sAVant
Shapeshifters Cinema is a new series at the Temescal Art Center that features experimental moving image artists and musicians performing live. The artist duo, duoB. Vs. viDEO sAVant, will create live performances where the separation between music and video, sound and image melt away.

SHAPESHIFTERS CINEMA PRESENTS VIDEO SAVANT VS DUO B
SUNDAY, DEC 9, 7:30 – 9PM
TAC: TEMESCAL ART CENTER
511 48TH ST, OAKLAND
INFO

 

CYBERPUNK ROCKERS
Thrillhouse Records screen cyberpunk movie classes at the Knockout ever second Monday of the month.  This month, they’re screening Burst City (1982), a movie where punk rockers fight for their right to slum in a dystopian fascist Tokyo.  

CYBERPUNK CINEMA NIGHT
MONDAY, DEC 10, 6:30 – 9PM
THE KNOCKOUT
INFO

 

CURATOR TALK ON MIKE KELLEY
Paul Schimmel, a legendary American curator of contemporary art, will speak on Mike Kelley at the 500 Capp Street Foundation.  The current exhibition “Pushing and pulling, pulling and pushing” has many works that show how Kelley represented Southern California’s contemporary art scene.

A TALK A PAUL SCHIMMEL
TUESDAY, DEC 11, 7 – 9PM
500 CAPP ST FOUNDATION
INFO & TICKETS

 

AGGREGATE SPACE GALLERY BOOK LAUNCH
Celebrate the launch of the Aggregate Space Gallery First 50 book and view the newest exhibition in the gallery.  The limited-edition book showcases different artists who have produced work for ASG.  There will be wine, snacks, and a raffle at this special event.

ASG FIRST 50 BOOK LAUNCH & CELEBRATION
WEDNESDAY, DEC 12, 7 – 9PM
AGGREGATE SPACE GALLERY
801 W GRAND ST, OAKLAND
INFO & RSVP

 

LINES & COLORS 

Check out the first pop-up art show from artist Francesco Stumpo who creates painting that are inspired by infrastructure in different cities.  It will be an intimate evening of art and conversation at a private residence.
LNS CLRS: POP-UP ART SHOW BY FRANCESCO STUMPO
WEDNESDAY, DEC 12, 6 – 10PM
1231 4TH AVE
INFO & RSVP

 

CALIFORNIA MAG RELEASE PARTY
The California Sunday Magazine is hosting a launch party at SF Camerawork for the latest issue of the photography magazine.  The issue features work from emerging and established photographers who traveled through ten states in the American West.  

THE WAY HOME: THE CALIFORNIA SUNDAY MAGAZINE ISSUE RELEASE PARTY
THURSDAY, DEC 13, 6 – 10PM
SF CAMERAWORK
1011 MARKET ST
INFO & TICKETS

 

REIMAGINING THE HOLIDAY MARKET
Do your holiday shopping in a subversive space at SOMArts Cultural Center.  The vendors selected for this holiday market work in ways that reimagine traditional business models and focus on community building.  

REORIENTING THE IMAGINARIES: MAKER’S MARKET
THURSDAY, DEC 13, 6 – 9PM
SOMARTS CULTURAL CENTER
934 BRANNAN ST
INFO

 

YOUTH SPEAKS
Anyone under 21 is invited to compete at this Poetry Slam– it is an Olympic-style competition where those who score highest will move onto the semi-finals in March.  Artists can perform spoken word, music, or dance, and only need one poem to compete.

UNDER 21 OPEN MIC & TEEN POETRY SLAM
FRIDAY, DEC 14, 5:30 – 8PM
SOLESPACE
1714 TELEGRAPH AVE
INFO

 

PRIVATE PARTY
Join nude artists Natalia del Rio and Messy Beck at their pop-up art show, PRIVATE PARTY.  Both artists will be selling their art (and some pieces they collaborated on) and donating 15% of the proceeds to the Coalition on Homelessness

PRIVATE PARTY! POP-UP ART SHOW
SATURDAY, DEC 15, 6 – 8PM
2412 HARRISON ST
INFO

 

GET IT “RONG”
Catch the closing reception for the inaugural exhibition at Flowers, a new artist-run space in Oakland.  RONG is a group show with 6 artists whose work seems a bit “glitchy,” or otherwise made with a misuse of new tools and technology.  The work is ambiguous, absurd, and totally interesting.

RONG: CLOSING RECEPTION
SATURDAY, DEC 15, 7 – 9PM
FLOWERS
2928 TELEGRAPH AVE, OAKLAND
INFO

 

HOLIDAY RE/MIX
KSW and Arc Gallery & Studios are hosting a joint opening reception for two new exhibitions in the gallery.  The main gallery will have a multidisciplinary exhibition that showcases the release and transformation of bodies while the project gallery will feature risograph printed art.  

“FROM MY BODY” & “RISO-CHROMATIC” OPENING RECEPTION
SATURDAY, DEC 15, 7 – 10PM
KEARNY ST WORKSHOP
1246 FOLSOM ST
INFO & TICKETS

 

HOLIDAY SHOPPING AT CCA
SFMade presents its 8th Annual Holiday Gift Fair at the California College of the Arts campus.  There will be over 60 local vendors and CCA students who will be selling holiday gifts at this shopping extravaganza.  

2018 SFMade Holiday Fair at CCA
SUNDAY, DEC 16, 11AM – 5PM
CALIFORNIA  COLLEGE OF THE ARTS
1111 8TH ST
INFO & TICKETS

 

GET LIT(ERATURE)
Listen as 12-15 writers read three-minute pieces of never-before-read material at Ale Industries.  Giavanna Ortiz de Candia will also be performing music, and Guadalajara Restaurant will be selling tacos! 

GET LIT 43 WITH GIAVANNA ORTIZ DE CANDIA
MONDAY, DEC 17, 7  – 10PM
ALE INDUSTRIES
3096 E 10TH ST, OAKLAND
INFO

 

SHARING ART + TECH IDEAS
The interactive artist Marpi has created a series at the Midway Gallery called Binary Salon where artists working in art + technology share about their practice.  This event will feature AR mixed media artists Camila Magrane and Zoey Vero.

BINARY SALON 06
TUESDAY, DEC 18, 6 – 9PM
THE MIDWAY GALLERY
900 MARIN ST
INFO & TICKETS

 

YERBA BUENA THIRD THURSDAYS
Check out the art spaces in between 2nd and 5th Street, and Market and Harrison Street at Yerba Buena Third Thursdays.  All gallery and museum admissions (including YBCA and MOAD) will be free, except for the Contemporary Jewish Museum which will have special $5 entry tickets.  

FREE MUSEUM & GALLERY CRAWL
THURSDAY, DEC 20, 5 – 10PM
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS
INFO & RSVP

 

FRESH OFF THE BLOCK YOUTH ART SHOW
Join AYPAL, an Oakland organization that empowers low-income Asian and Pacific Island immigrant and refugee families, at their annual youth art show.  There will be photos, paintings, videos, spoken word, cultural performances, and other works.

AYPAL 4TH ANNUAL FOB YOUTH ART SHOW!
THURSDAY, DEC 20, 6 – 8:30PM
EAST SIDE ARTS ALLIANCE
2277 INTERNATIONAL BLVD, OAKLAND
INFO

 

OATMEAL MAGAZINE PARTY
Oatmeal Magazine is back for a special winter solstice issue filled with stories, poetry, recipes, spells, and anything else that their readers have submitted.  Come celebrate with a Breakfast for Dinner reading and release party for the issue.

COLDMEAL: THE WINTER SOLSTIC ISSUE RELEASE PARTY THURSDAY, DEC 20, 7 – 10PM
E.M. WOLFMAN GENERAL INTEREST SMALL BOOKSTORE
410 13TH ST, OAKLAND
INFO 

 

ART WORLD SCREENING

Watch some of the biggest players in the art world like artists Jeff Koons and Gerhard Richter, critics, and curators in this documentary.  Learn more about how monetary value can affect artists, especially those that are still living.

THE PRICE OF EVERYTHING
FRIDAY, DEC 21, 4PM

BERKELEY ART MUSEUM & PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE
INFO 

EXPLORATORIUM AFTER DARK
Bring your most colorful questions to this vivid edition of Exploratorium After Dark.  There will be interactive exhibitions (and drinks) that focus on our perception towards primary colors.  

EXPLORATORIUM AFTER DARK: MIXING COLORS
THURSDAY, DEC 27, 6 – 10PM
EXPLORATORIUM, PIER 15
INFO & TICKETS

 

WHEN INNOVATION MEETS SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Pay the early bird entry fee when submitting your entry for the San Francisco Design Week Awards.  The theme of this year’s competition is “Where Innovation Meets Social Responsibility,” so get ready to show your best work to the judges.  

EARLY BIRD SUBMISSION FOR SAN FRANCISCO DESIGN WEEK
AWARDS
MONDAY, DEC 31
INFO 

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Kirsten Chen

Kirsten Chen

@kirstensly bay area art enthusiast and writer

i'm trying to be as famous as the spice girls