Teen Programs

Overview

A teen sketches in the museum
Photo: Winni Wintermeyer

SFMOMA organizes a range of events and activities especially for teens. Our goal is to foster creativity and self-expression and to expose middle school and high school students to art and professional artists. The SFMOMA Community Gallery (located in the parking garage behind the museum) offers teen artists a venue in which to showcase their work, while innovative programs such as those highlighted below provide opportunities to explore art and ideas.

We also offer a range of tours of our permanent collection or special exhibitions that can be tailored to complement high school curriculum topics in social studies, language arts, foreign languages, and fine arts. Visit our School Tours page for more information.

SFMOMA Matches

SFMOMA Matches was founded in 1996 by the museum's Education Department and Trustee Kamala Harris. This school partnership program brings middle school and high school students together with adult hosts to learn about modern and contemporary art through a series of interactions and activities. By providing structured, hands-on activities inside the museum rather than in the classroom, SFMOMA Matches aims to foster museum visitorship and a lifelong appreciation of the arts. Participating youths receive museum memberships at the conclusion of the program, encouraging them to visit SFMOMA with friends and family.

SFMOMA Matches has served more than 1,000 youths, providing a fun and safe space where young people can get to know the museum and meet adults who share an enthusiasm for the arts. In the spring of 2005, Oakland Works awarded SFMOMA the Academy Mentor Award for its outreach to youth at Oakland High School through the SFMOMA Matches program.

Partnering Schools have included:

  • Balboa High School, San Francisco
  • Cole Middle School, Oakland
  • Oakland High School, Oakland
  • Space Exploration Academy, Oakland
  • Thurgood Marshall Academic High School, San Francisco

View the SFMOMA Teen Program Photostream on Flickr.