AKArt

02/04/2026

🌊 Excited to share this one!

'Hidden Currencies: Water Justice in the Age of AI' opens April 18, kicking of SF Climate Week at Pier 17 in San Francisco.

Presented by the Consulate General of Switzerland in San Francisco, this interdisciplinary exhibition runs through May 10, bringing together six artists whose practices span photography, sculpture, installation, performance, video, and data art: Mark Baugh-Sasaki, Kristiana Chan 莊礼恩, Céline Ducret, Annelia Norris (pue leek la'), Ana Teresa Fernández, and Greg Niemeyer — to explore the future of water stewardship at the intersection of Indigenous knowledge, diplomacy, and AI.

From dam debris pulled from the newly freed Klamath River to live hydrological data from Swiss glaciers to a meditation on how much water it takes to generate an AI video of water, the work asks how we might harness our collective intelligence to meet our responsibilities as stewards of the water systems that sustain all life — and what wisdom, old and new, we will need to do so.

Free public programming runs throughout: performances, conversations, film screenings, and community activations — including an opening Bucket Brigade on April 18, Community Day on April 26, and conversations on Water + AI and Water Stewardship + Indigenous Knowledge.

All events are free and open to the public. 🙌

👉 Check it out at Pier 17, San Francisco.



Read the Press Release: https://mailchi.mp/akart/apharvwdnq-15938890?e=f576f8ccd5

31/12/2025

🌊 Meet Alson Kelen: a Marshallese master navigator whose deep ancestral knowledge of the ocean is now part of groundbreaking research bridging tradition and science.�
For thousands of years, Marshallese navigators read the sea not by compass or GPS, but through the subtle feel of swells, winds, and waves — a skill called wave-piloting that allows them to find distant atolls across vast blue horizons.

This fall, scientists teamed up with Alson and other Indigenous sailors in the Marshall Islands to explore not just how this navigation works, but what it reveals about the human brain and spatial awareness. Using tools like mobile eye-tracking and motion capture on the open ocean, the research aims to decode the neurological foundations of this ancient wayfinding tradition.

Alson isn’t just part of the research — he’s a cultural keeper, guiding youth through Waan Aelon in Majel, a canoe building and sailing school dedicated to passing these skills forward.

In Our Life Is Here (Kõmij Mour Ijin), a forthcoming exhibition at UC Berkeley, curated by Svea Lin Soll and myself Amy K. , his presence underscores a central theme: the resilience and relevance of Marshallese knowledge in a changing world — connecting ancestral wisdom, climate, memory, and the future of human cognition. ourlifeishere.org

🔗 Link to read how science and culture meet in this extraordinary journey.

nytimes.com/2025/11/18/science/neuroscience-brain-navigation-marshall-islands.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

Scientists and Indigenous sailors in the Marshall Islands are studying seafaring and the human brain.

26/10/2025

Don't miss this. Mini print. Museum quality. Supports Magnum Photos, Aperture and the Kwame Brathwaite Archive. Offer ends today.

James Brown sign outside the Apollo Theater. Harlem, New York City, USA, 1962. “This image captures a young child in front of an A-frame advertisement for a James Brown concert at the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem. The sign towers over the curious child as he takes in the moment. The contrast ...

06/03/2025

Thank you Charles Lewis III and SFGATE for the writeup of 'Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political' and 'Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time,' on view through March 23 in San Francisco.

"The intentions of YBCA Curator Amy Kisch are clear: The two-- Nodjoumi's paintings created over 15 years, and Hagigat's paintings, prints and etchings spanning six decades--complement as much as they contrast each other... Nevertheless, Nodjoumi's shouting and Hagigat's whispers emphatically give voice to a people who have been considered collateral damage to their oil-rich homeland."

By Charles Lewis III

06/03/2025

Join us for the final three weeks of 'Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political' and 'Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time,' with curator-led tours of the exhibitions and accompanying screenings of 'A Revolution on Canvas'—the documentary film which inspired the exhibitions.

CURATOR-LED TOURS
Thursday, March 6 at 7:15pm for Downtown First Thursdays
Sunday, March 9 at 2pm for YBCA Free Second Sundays
* Screenings of 'A Revolution on Canvas' precede curator-led tours

FILM SCREENINGS
Thursday, March 6 at 5:30pm during Downtown First Thursdays*
Sunday, March 9 at 12pm for YBCA Free Second Sundays*
Wednesday, March 12 + March 19 at 2pm during YBCA Free Wednesdays
*Curator-led tours of the exhibitions follow these screenings

EXHIBITION HOURS
Wednesday - Sunday: 11am-5pm
First Thursdays: 11am-8pm
FREE Admission Wednesdays + Second Sundays

LOCATION
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (YBCA)
701 Mission Street
San Francisco, CA 94103

The exhibitions "Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political" and "Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time" tell the story of a family of artists shaped by revolution.

06/02/2025

Looking for the perfect way to stay warm and dry on a cold, rainy San Francisco evening?

Join us for tonight’s Downtown First Thursday screening at 5:30pm of the award-winning HBO documentary ‘A Revolution on Canvas,’ followed by a 7:15pm curator-led tour with of the exhibitions ‘Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political’ and ‘Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time‘ at YBCA.

—the documentary film which inspired the exhibitions, tells the story of one of Iran’s most revolutionary artists, Nickzad (Nicky) Nodjoumi, and his former wife and fellow artist, Nahid Hagigat. Part intimate documentary, part art-heist thriller, the .pictures film chronicles the search for 120 missing paintings, while examining religious and political extremism, the sacrifices required for creative freedom, and activism, and the ageless power of art and family.

Through paintings, etchings, drawings, animation, film, music, and personal family archives from two revolutionary artists, their daughter, and grandchildren, the exhibition invites us into the lived experience of three generations of artists and an enduring devotion to truth, democracy, justice—and one another.

Exhibitions and programming supported by and Gallery

Photographs and artwork courtesy .nodjoumi, HBO, .nickynodjoumi._ Hagigat, and ADVOCARTSY Gallery. Installation photos by Corey Marsau and Vafa Khatami courtesy of and Farhang Foundation

07/01/2025

Join us for an inspiring and thought-provoking panel discussion exploring the intersection of art, activism, and cultural identity through the lens of revolutionary creativity. Acclaimed Iranian artists Shiva Ahmadi, Ala Ebtekar, and Taraneh Hemami, renowned art historian Talinn Grigor, and curator Amy Kisch will come together to discuss how art can serve as a powerful tool for resistance, transformation, and dialogue.

Held on Tuesday, January 21 at 4pm during San Francisco Arts Week in conjunction with the solo exhibitions, 'Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political' and 'Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time,' currently on view at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts through March 23, 2025. This program is open to all and free with registration courtesy of Farhang Foundation.

REGISTER HERE: https://ybca.org/event/art-of-resistance-iranian-diasporic-perspectives-on-revolutionary-creativity/

11/12/2024

Join us for a live virtual talk this Saturday, December 14 at 11am PST / 2pm EST, featuring internationally-renowned Iranian contemporary artist Nicky Nodjoumi in conversation with esteemed scholar and curator Dr. Layla S. Diba. Together, they will dive into Nodjoumi’s groundbreaking solo exhibition, 'Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political,' currently on view at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts through March 23, 2025.

The conversation—followed by a Q&A with exhibition curator Amy Kisch—invites us to further learn about Nodjoumi’s powerful, surreal paintings, which use bold, kaleidoscopic imagery to reveal the nuanced and often unsettling realities of political power and its influence on the human experience. Join us as Nodjoumi and Dr. Diba unpack the artist’s distinctive style and the deeper narratives woven into his art.

This virtual program is open to all and free with registration courtesy of Farhang Foundation. The exhibition and related programming are supported by Farhang Foundation and Advocartsy Gallery.

REGISTER HERE: https://farhang.org/workshops-lectures/nicky-nodjoumi-the-personal-is-political

Photograph of Nicky Nodjoumi by Vafa Khatami

09/12/2024

Join in for these upcoming opportunities to take a deeper dive into “Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political” and “Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time,” as well as the HBO documentary film "A Revolution on Canvas,” by Sara Nodjoumi and Till Schauder of .pictures that inspired the exhibitions.

👂👀 Saturday, December 14 at 11am: “In Conversation: Nicky Nodjoumi & Dr. Layla S. Diba” a virtual event presented by Farhang Foundation to unpack the artist’s distinctive style and the deeper narratives woven into his art. Visit Farhang.org to register.

🎥 Every Wednesday at 2pm: screenings of “A Revolution on Canvas” on one of YBCA’s free days

🎥 👀 Every 1st Thursday during : film screening at 5:30 pm followed by a curator-led tour at 7:15pm

🎥 👀 Every Second Sunday: film screening at 12 pm followed by a curator-led tour at 2pm on one of YBCA’s free days

Visit Yerba Buena Center for the Arts to learn more about these opportunities and to explore Nahid Hagigat and Nicky Nodjoumi’s works.

These exhibitions and accompanying programs are supported by Farhang Foundation and Advocartsy Gallery. (Exhibition photos by Vafa Khatami)

04/11/2024

DOWNTOWN FIRST THURSDAY
Thursday, November 7, 5-8pm

FILM SCREENING: 5:30pm
'A Revolution on Canvas'

CURATOR-LED TOUR: 7:15pm
'Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political'
'Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time'

This Thursday, November 7, for Downtown First Thursdays SF, please join us for a screening of the award-winning HBO documentary 'A Revolution on Canvas' followed by a curator-led tour of the exhibitions 'Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political' and 'Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time.' Tickets are FREE with registration. (Due to limited seating for the film, advance registration is encouraged. First come, first served.)

Through paintings, etchings, drawings, animation, film, music, and personal family archives from two revolutionary artists, their daughter, and grandchildren, we are invited into the lived experience of three generations of artists and an enduring devotion to truth, democracy, justice—and one another.

Exhibitions and programming supported by Farhang Foundation and Advocartsy Gallery

See a documentary and experience a curator-led tour to go deeper with the work of Nicky Nodjoumi & Nahid Hagigat.

25/09/2024

Sunday, Oct. 6 Opening Day Celebration: Nicky Nodjoumi + Nahid Hagigat in San Francisco at YBCA

Join us for a daylong celebration of the exhibitions 'Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political' and 'Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time' with a screening of the HBO documentary 'A Revolution on Canvas,' followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers Sara Nodjoumi and Till Schauder, an opportunity to meet the artists and curator, and a concert by the Brooklyn-based band LuNika.
https://mailchi.mp/akart/nodjoumi_and_hagigat-665717

25/09/2024

Thank you Emmanuel Fonseca and Mission Local for including 'Nicky Nodjoumi: The Personal is Political' and 'Nahid Hagigat: Etched in Time' in 'Here’s what to see at San Francisco museums this fall.' Opening, Sunday, October 6 at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

What's open at different San Francisco museums this summer? Check our listing of exhibits and regular programming across the city.