Gallery Visits San Francisco

Call for Art - Holiday Lights 2026

Open Call for Entries : December 2026 Gallery Exhibit Holiday Lights 2026 Entry Deadline: NOVEMBER 7 6 PM Show: DECEMBER 8 – JANUARY 8, 2027 SFWA invites Bay Area artists of all genders are to submit their favorite works for consideration to be included in our Holiday Lights show. We celebrate Winter Solstice by inviting artists to submit work that’s bright, colorful and emphasize light. Artists are welcome to submit works that glitter, sparkle or shine. Choose bold chiaroscuro or delicate sfumato or be literal with your imagery or medium. All 2D and 3D Media and all artistic styles are welcome ( except video). MORE INFO and SUBMISSION LINK here: https://www.sfwomenartists.org/open-call-for-entries-december-2026/ SFWA is a designated SF Legacy Business in recognition of serving the community as a valued cultural asset of the city for over 100 years. Started in the late 1800s as the Sketch Club, it is one of California's oldest arts organizations.

Lee Friedlander - Gallery Visit / Photo Walk (B&W Delta 400)

Join us as we visit the Lee Friedlander photo exhibit and then take a photo walk - (B&W Delta 400). [https://fraenkelgallery.com/exhibitions/lee-friedlander-maria](https://fraenkelgallery.com/exhibitions/lee-friedlander-maria) Fraenkel Gallery 49 Geary Street, 4th Floor San Francisco, CA 94108 Lee Friedlander: Maria A seven-decade portrait of the artist’s wife Lee Friedlander Lee Friedlander: Maria presents a seven-decade portrait of the artist’s wife, muse, and most recurrent subject, tracing the arc of the couple’s relationship through marriage, parenthood, grandparenthood, and beyond. Spanning the 1950s to the 2020s, Friedlander’s photographs of Maria constitute one of the longest extended portraits in the history of visual art. While the approximately 50 photographs chronicle the unfolding of the couple’s relationship, they simultaneously chart the evolution of Friedlander’s artistic vision. This event is hosted In association with the California Camera Club. [https://www.meetup.com/california_camera_club](https://www.meetup.com/california_camera_club/events/31600993)

Sketch Club at SF Botanical Garden

Join us as we search for fall foliage in the SF Botanical Garden! Bring your sketchbook and plein air kits and we'll meet at the 9th street entrance. Afterward we will check out the exhibit at the library of horticulture. Entrance to the garden is free for San Francisco residents (bring your ID) and there is a discount admission for out-of-town seniors. https://gggp.org/san-francisco-botanical-garden/ Hosted by members of the San Francisco Women Artists Gallery. SFWA is a designated SF Legacy Business in recognition of serving the community as a valued cultural asset of the city for over 100 years. Started in the late 1800s as the Sketch Club, it is one of California's oldest arts organizations.

Lee Friedlander - Gallery Visit / Photo Walk (B&W Workshop - Delta 400)

🎨San Francisco International Art Museum Private Tour & Lunch 🎨

[Oct 18] Nature Journaling @Palace of Fine Arts

Would you like to slow down, notice more, and invite a sense of awe, calm, and wonder into your day? Join us for a Nature Journaling adventure every third Sunday of the month! Each month, we explore a different natural gem within San Francisco, pausing to capture our observations, curiosity, and moments of joy in our journals — using words, pictures, and numbers. This Sunday we will explore the life at the Palace of Fine Arts!!!! The lagoon is full of life, and fall is a lovely time to observe its feathered residents. We’ll keep an eye out for black-crowned night herons resting in the trees, great blue herons fishing along the water, mallards paddling around, and perhaps a few turtles sunning themselves on logs. There’s also plenty to explore in the reflections, changing foliage, and the beautiful meeting of nature and architecture. Come curious. No drawing or journaling experience needed! Event Details 🕐 Time: 1pm to 4pm 📍 Location: Palace of fine arts 📍 Meeting Point: entrance at Palace Dr and Lyon St 🖊️ What to Bring: A journal or sketchbook, writing and drawing/coloring supplies. Optional: binoculars, a lightweight stool, and your curiosity! 🧻 Nearest restrooms are next to the Yatch harbor across the street 🚙 Parking: You should be able to find parking at the Palace of fine arts , if you don’t - there is plenty parking by the bay closer to the Crissy beach 💰Cost: It's a free event, but we encourage 20$ donations to Wild Wonder Foundation https://www.wildwonder.org/donate 📚References: KtfNj email list: tinyurl.com/ktfnj Getting started with Nature Journaling: wildwonder.org https://johnmuirlaws.com Come as you are — no experience needed, just a sense of wonder. We can’t wait to explore with you! Who we are: We are a community of nature loving humans in our favorite city in the world - San Francisco!!! “Karl the Fog and Nature Journalers” meet on the third Sunday of each month to fall in love with various parks, museums, lakes, trails, community gardens etc in SF. We facilitate these sessions to encourage curious exploration and a healthy exchange of ideas. Nature Journaling is a tool that got us to fall in love with our natural surroundings and we now see the world in a new light - full of awe and wonder, and they want to share that magic with YOU and YOU and YOU!!!

Figure Drawing Fridays

## [Figure Drawing Fridays](https://abramsclaghornshop.com/products/figure-drawing-fridays-2025) ### Fridays 6-9pm A Weekly Open Figure Drawing Session This is a short pose session. We start with 2 minute warm ups, with each set of poses getting a little longer. We usually finish the evening with 20 minute poses. The gallery will provide chairs and tables. Easels on request. Bring your own paper, pencils, pens, etc. Snacks and water will be served. Please register in advance.

Le Mil's Specialty Indian Coffee (Cafe Art Circle)

Cafe sketching at the brand new Le Mil's Coffee in SF Nob Hill. 📍 **1:00pm meet inside.** Look for us with sketchbooks. 🎨 Bring your own art supplies. Roam freely. Sketch what you see. ☕ Pull up a chair anytime to draw with us and talk art. 📓 2:45pm. We wrap things up with a show & tell throwdown. Le Mil’s Coffee is San Francisco's first specialty Indian coffee shop that recently held its grand opening Aug 15, 2026. The cafe was founded by Milana Ram and Himanshu Bhaisare, with origins going back to Ram’s family’s five generation coffee farm in Chikmagalur, Karnataka, one of India’s historic coffee growing regions. The cafe serves espresso drinks and pour overs alongside South Indian filter coffee. * [SF Gate Article](https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/sf-indian-coffee-shop-22357496.php) * [SF Chronicle Article](https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/restaurants/article/le-mils-indian-coffee-opening-sf-22345476.php) * [Le Mil's Website](https://lemils.com/) This is organized by the **[Cafe Art Circle](https://www.zenbay.org/cafe_art_circle)** meetup under SF Sketchers. We explore coffee and tea shops around the Bay Area, using sketching as a way to experience the atmosphere of each place and its neighborhood.

Treasures of the Pharaohs Guided Tour @ de Young

East Bay Sketchers at Mountain View Cemetery

Continuing our annual tradition, let's meet at the Mountain View Cemetery on Sunday, Oct 18th. 5000 Piedmont Ave., Oakland. There are old tombstones, statues, and it is the resting place of notables like Julia Morgan and the Ghirardelli family. Let's meet by the fountain, right turn after the entrance. (Note: \*Only\* if it's raining, meet at The Chapel of Chimes) Hope to see you there! Second note: We will be making an exciting in-person announcement. \- All Levels Welcome \- Bring art supplies and portable seat 11:00-1:00 Sketching 1:00-1:30 Throwdown

Alcazar Theater

This eclectic Moorish/Byzantine building, commissioned by the Shriners as the *Islam Temple* was designed by architect [Thomas Patterson Ross](https://noehill.com/architects/ross.aspx). The June 1917 edition of *Architect and Engineer* noted that the temple was "an adaptation from Alhambra, a building that stands as the highest mark of Arabian art and civilization." The Islam Temple was used for Shriner meetings and ceremonies from 1918 to 1970. Later it functioned as a small theater in the tradition of the original Alcazar Theater which was located on O'Farrell Street. (The original Alcazar opened in 1885, was destroyed by the 1906 Earthquake and Fire, was rebuilt, and was razed for a parking lot in 1963.) Brind a chair, meet at 12:15/12:30 to share

Mills College in Oakland

We will meet at 10:30 in front of the Art Museum at the end of Kapiolani Drive on campus. And return to the museum at 12:15 for a thowdown of our sketches. The campus has many unusual buildings, including Mills Hall built in the 1870s. The museum plaza itself presents several vistas onto campus with many mature trees, a creek and a nature trail. There is also covered areas for shade or rain. There is a restroom nearby. Inside the museum, the current exhibition is "The Data on Hand", described as artworks "combining craft materials and practices with data information on climate change". Admission is free and opens at 11 am. Directions: The art museum's page provides the most accurate driving directions at [mcam.oakland.northeastern.edu/visit/](http://mcam.oakland.northeastern.edu/visit/) Bicyclists can load their vehicle on the bike rack and take AC Transit bus # 57 eastbound directly to the main gate next to the stoplight at MacArthur Blvd. Both drivers and non-drivers need to show a photo ID to the security guard at the gate. I've always passed muster by telling them I'm going to the art museum.