What are the opening hours?

Wednesday 11am - 5pm Thursday 11am - 5pm Friday 11am - 5pm Saturday 11am - 5pm Sunday 11am - 5pm

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

Name: Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Address: 701 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA, 94103, US
Telephone: +14159782700

Home
United States
San Francisco, CA
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

Yerba Buena Center for the Arts presents contemporary art, performances, film, and more. Open Thu-Su from 11a–5p, and Wed 11a–8p with free admission.

Situated in the center of downtown San Francisco, YBCA functions as a dynamic platform to generate ideas and nurture the talents of emerging and established artists. Centering artists as essential to social and cultural movement, YBCA is reimagining the role an arts institution can play in the community it serves.

09/10/2026

We’re excited to be part of Nexus: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week! Check out events happening at YBCA and across the neighborhood:

🎉 Thu. 10/1 from 8–11:30pm: Dance, connect, and celebrate with us during The Nexus Party, hosted at YBCA and featuring DJ Kream & DJ Jahari! Presented by MoAD and YBCA.

🎨 Sat. 10/3 at 1pm: Join Dread Scott, Emory Douglas, and Orlando Smith at SFMOMA for a discussion on the ways art can be a form of resistance. Co-presented by SFMOMA and YBCA.

📽️ Sun. 10/4 from 1–4pm: Head to the YBCA screening room for an afternoon of indie films and conversation about filmmaking and technology, presented by the San Francisco Black Film Festival and YBCA.

Visit nexus-sfbay.com to explore what else is happening and to RSVP. We’ll see you there!

Image credits:
Nexus (MoAD) Global Groove Remix 2025 photo by Chloe Jackman Photography, courtesy of MoAD.
Photo of Dread Scott by Stephan Brigidi.
“The Lake Merritt Monster,” 2023” (still). Directed by Sara Anders and Written/Directed by Benjamin Mulholland.

09/08/2026

At Yerba Buena Center for the Arts: The quiet power of GaHee Park’s surrealist paintings invites a closer look.

Cats, cocktails, and floating fish populate Park’s fantastical scenes, where familiar moments become strange and unexpected. Subverting the viewer’s gaze while also troubling the traditional notion of subject, Park takes us to peek behind the curtain and consider: Who is looking at who?

Step inside her world in “GaHee Park: Behind the Curtain,” on view through January 3. → https://bit.ly/4eTEFpd

Photos by Charlie Villyard.

Artworks courtesy of Perrotin and Jessica Silverman.

08/27/2026

As part of Free Wednesdays at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, we're presenting a series of intimate in-gallery performances—live music from Bay Area bands, offering a sonic juxtaposition to the art on display.

🎵 Coming up on Sep 2, Cindy will perform surrounded by GaHee Park's surreal paintings of ambiguous introspection.
🎵 On Oct 7, DVT (Damani Rhodes, VADIA, and Tongo Eisen-Martin) will meld jazz, poetry, and soul, along with our upcoming exhibition of Dread Scott’s artwork.
🎵 On Nov 4, Ryli will bring their melodic yet melancholic sound to the work of GaHee Park.

Music begins each night promptly at 7. Seating limited, RSVP recommended. → https://bit.ly/4bHPQiJ

And be sure to stop by the Creativity Explored residency in YBCA’s Front Door Gallery for hands-on artmaking before each show.

Photos by Phillip Huante, Cinque Mubarak, Bobby Martinez, and Fiona Duong.

08/26/2026

On view at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts beginning September 25: “Rael San Fratello: Prototypes and Provocations” is the most comprehensive presentation to date of the renowned Bay Area design studio. Working at the edge of experimental architecture and design, Rael San Fratello is known for disrupting the conventions of architecture by tackling topics such as homelessness and immigration, while also incorporating Indigenous craft techniques and sustainable practices.

Founded by Virginia San Fratello and Ronald Rael in 2002, this mid-career survey traces the evolution of their practice—from early experiments merging clothing and construction, to a series of bold projects centered on the U.S.-Mexico border, to their trailblazing work fusing 3D printing with traditional earthen materials.

Playful, restless, and provocative, the studio challenges us to imagine more equitable, adaptive, and humane ways of inhabiting the world.

“Rael San Fratello: Prototypes and Provocations” is organized by Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and curated by René Morales.

Explore Rael San Fratello’s innovative designs → https://bit.ly/45OHlyA

Image credits:
Rael San Fratello, “Mud Frontiers," 2019. Courtesy of the artists.
Rael San Fratello, “Cochineal,” 2010. Courtesy of the artists and Emerging Objects.
Rael San Fratello, “Pink Teeter Totter,” 2019. Courtesy of the artists.
Rael San Fratello, R13 Puffer Jacket,” 2004. Courtesy of the artists.

08/24/2026

Dread Scott’s work insists on the inseparability of art and radical social transformation.

Opening September 25, “Dread Scott: The Body Politic” is the most significant exhibition of his work to date, bringing together newly commissioned and existing works that explore the structures of power and examine American patriotism.

The exhibition presents recent work including epic body prints, a provocative performance piece, and a series of modified photographs of governmental seats of power. Drawing on the urgency of the present moment, Scott invites viewers to consider their own positions within the systems that his work lays bare.

Learn more about the show and plan your visit → https://bit.ly/4zyfZu2

“Dread Scott: The Body Politic” is organized by Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and curated by René Morales.

Image credits:
Dread Scott, “Fight the Power,” 2023. Courtesy of the artist and Cristin Tierney Gallery.
Body printing photos by Jenny Gorman.
Dread Scott, “Obliterated Power (Supreme Court),” 2022. Courtesy of the artist and Cristin Tierney Gallery.
Photo of Dread Scott by Daniele Molajoli.

08/21/2026

Sunday, August 23 is the final day for both “Diedrick Brackens: gather tender night” and “Conjuring Power: Roots & Futures of Q***r & Trans Movements.” Don’t miss your chance to see these visually stunning exhibitions!

Stop by this weekend: galleries open Fri–Sun 11a–5p → https://bit.ly/4m1waKf

Photos by Fiona Duong and Corey Marsau.

08/15/2026

We’re thrilled to be an official ‘A Celebration of The Arts’ destination for this year’s ‘A Very Laufey Day’ (AVLD) on August 23!

Each year, Grammy-winning jazz-pop singer Laufey puts together a global itinerary for her fans to visit local businesses and cultural venues in their own part of the world—and we’re excited to be an official stop on the list in San Francisco.

Come spend the day with GaHee Park’s surreal and fantastical paintings and catch “Conjuring Power” and “Diedrick Brackens” before they close!

Photos by Fiona Duong, Corey Marsau, and Mahelly Ferreira for Drew Altizer Photography.

08/11/2026

Starting this Saturday at 2pm at YBCA: a weekly film series exploring fantasy, identity, and social taboos.

The series is curated alongside the exhibition “GaHee Park: Behind the Curtain,” and tickets include a sweet or salty snack inspired by Park's dreamlike imagery (🍸🍫🐟). Our concessions team shares:, "We wanted the movie snacks to play off the visual language of GaHee Park’s paintings — a bit surreal and full of delicious details."

Come for the film, stay for the snacks, and check out GaHee Park’s paintings, too: all included in one affordable ticket. “Rear Window” kicks off the series this weekend. → https://bit.ly/4bL8R3d

“GaHee Park: Behind the Curtain” gallery photo by Fiona Duong

08/05/2026

On Fri. 8/7 from 6–9p, be among the first to see “GaHee Park: Behind the Curtain” at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts!

As you explore Park’s fantastical and surrealist works, enjoy drinks and snacks inspired by visual motifs in Park’s work, from martinis and cocktails, to gummy worms and chocolate ants.

RSVP to step inside Park’s intimate and captivating world → https://bit.ly/44TNt89

Image credits:
GaHee Park, “Woman with Cocktail, Olives, and Caterpillar,” 2025. Photo by Paul Litherland. Courtesy of Perrotin.
GaHee Park, “Memory of a Table,” 2026. Photo by Paul Litherland. Courtesy of Jessica Silverman.
GaHee Park, “Still Life With Tired Moth,” 2024. Photo by Paul Litherland. Courtesy of Perrotin.
GaHee Park “Back to Mountain,” 2025. Photo by Paul Litherland. Courtesy of Perrotin and Jessica Silverman.
All work © GaHee Park.

08/04/2026

Beginning August 5, YBCA will host Creativity Explored as part of a new program offering free on-site arts activations to visitors. Artists from Creativity Explored (a progressive art studio that supports artists with intellectual and developmental disabilities) will showcase their artwork and produce new pieces in a reopened programming space on YBCA’s first floor.

You’re invited in to explore the art on view, to purchase work on display, and to make your own pieces alongside Creativity Explored’s studio artists: sharing art-making materials, conversation, inspiration, and community.

Stop by YBCA during regular gallery hours (701 Mission St, Thu–Su 11a–5p, Wed 11a–8p), and check out the calendar for accompanying free programs (including a film festival of animated shorts, printmaking night, and a puppet making workshop). → https://bit.ly/4helhEw

Images courtesy of Creativity Explored. Photos by Peter Prato. This program is made possible in part by Yerba Buena Partnership.

Address

701 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA
94103

Opening Hours

Wednesday	11am - 5pm
Thursday	11am - 5pm
Friday	11am - 5pm
Saturday	11am - 5pm
Sunday	11am - 5pm

Telephone

+14159782700

Website

http://www.ybca.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Yerba Buena Center for the Arts posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Yerba Buena Center for the Arts:

Want your business to be the top-listed Event/venue in San Francisco?