SFMOMA’s Haas Atrium; photo: © Drew Altizer Photography
After nearly two decades of bringing modern and contemporary art experiences to audiences in its iconic Third Street building, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) will temporarily close its doors to the public at end of day on June 2, 2013 to prepare for two-and-a-half years of construction on the museum’s major expansion project. After June 2, SFMOMA will be on the go, presenting new art experiences around the Bay Area until the museum’s expanded home reopens in early 2016.
During the final four days before closure—Thursday, May 30 through Sunday, June 2, 2013—museum admission and all related festivities will be free to all. A special Countdown Celebration will activate the entire museum with ways to mark this extraordinary moment of transformation for SFMOMA, launching a new chapter in its 78-year history.
Visitors will have the opportunity to kick off the countdown with a museumwide party including cocktails and live music; stay up all night in the galleries and catch performances by 48 artists in a 24-hour variety show marathon; explore SFMOMA’s landmark photography exhibition Garry Winogrand and Christian Marclay’s 24-hour video masterpiece The Clock; meet museum staff and docents in the galleries to hear talks about their favorite artworks; get to know Bay Area makers and artists featured in a special live-format edition of KQED Public Radio’s popular series The Making Of…by the award-winning Kitchen Sisters; see a large-scale model of SFMOMA’s new building to get a closer look at the museum’s future; and bring the kids to a special family day.
“We’re thrilled to welcome our growing audiences and the community of artists who inspire our work into the museum at this incredible moment,” says SFMOMA Director Neal Benezra. “I can’t think of a better way to bid farewell to our building as we know it and embrace the exciting future ahead. We invite everyone to come by and enjoy this free four-day thank-you party.”
“For us, this is a chance to celebrate the great collaborative relationships we have with the creative communities of our city and region,” says Dominic Willsdon, Leanne and George Roberts Curator of Education and Public Programs at SFMOMA. “These four days will honor the Bay Area as a place of making and of incredible everyday creativity. As we move out of our building and into our cities and neighborhoods, it’s relationships like these that will bring life to everything we do.”
Major support for SFMOMA’s Countdown Celebration is provided by the Fisher family and the Koret Foundation. Generous support is provided by Dana and Bob Emery, and by friends of the museum in fond remembrance of Elaine McKeon, SFMOMA Board Chair 1995-2004. KQED is the media sponsor. Support for family programs during the celebration is provided by Target.
COUNTDOWN CELEBRATION AT SFMOMA
General Hours
Thursday, May 30
Entire museum open 10 a.m. to 9:45 p.m.
Friday, May 31
Entire museum open 10 a.m. to 5:45 p.m.
Saturday, June 1
24-Hour Party!
Entire museum open 10 a.m. to closing time the following day
Sunday, June 2
Final Day
Museum closes at 5:45 p.m.
The full daily schedule can be viewed online.
Special Events
The Kitchen Sisters Present The Making Of… • Thursday through Saturday, during museum hours
Award-winning radio producers The Kitchen Sisters (Davia Nelson and Nikki Silva) bring their latest project, The Making Of…, to SFMOMA. The Making Of… is a KQED Public Radio multimedia series about what people make in the Bay Area and why, capturing the art, creativity, and innovation happening in backyards, workplaces, cultural institutions, and public spaces throughout one of the most diverse and innovative regions in the country.
As part of The Making Of…, The Kitchen Sisters will host three days of drop-in demo and conversation tables at SFMOMA. Eight makers each day will present their work, process, and expertise, concluding with a daily maker’s talk and gathering in the Koret Visitor Education Center. Demonstrations by leading artisans, craftspeople, and innovators, such as Cowgirl Creamery, The Homobile, Mision Street Food, Omnivore Salt, Zeega, and other surprise guests will create a rich portrait of creativity in the Bay Area. List of makers available at sfmoma.org.
Gallery Talks • Thursday through Sunday, during museum hours
Throughout the weekend, hear behind-the-scenes perspectives from SFMOMA staff members and docents in the galleries as they talk about their favorite artworks on view. Talks last 20 minutes and start on the hour and the half hour. Meet in the galleries.
Countdown Celebration Kickoff Party • Thursday, 6–9:45 p.m.
Kick off the countdown with a museumwide party, including a special performance by Semi Precious Weapons, gaming lounge, photo booth, video projections, T-shirt screen-printing, live music, and handcrafted libations and bites from favorite local establishments.
The Making Of…Screenings at the Roxie • Thursday, 8:30 p.m. and 10:15 p.m., Off-site location: Roxie Theater
As part of The Making Of…, The Kitchen Sisters and SFMOMA go offsite for two screenings at the Roxie Theater. Join surfboard maker Danny Hess and artist/surfer Jay Nelson for the classic 1971 surf film Morning of the Earth. Afterwards, filmmakers A. K. Burns and A. L. Steiner launch the national tour of their lesbian utopian porn film Community Action Center.
Admission: $10 general/$7 SFMOMA and Roxie members, students, and seniors with ID. Tickets available at The Roxie Theater.
24-hour Screening of Christian Marclay’s The Clock • Saturday, 10 a.m. through Sunday, 5:45 p.m.
Marclay’s celebrated video installation The Clock (2010) is composed of thousands of film clips referencing the time of day, intricately edited into a 24-hour-long montage that matches real time minute for minute—a tour de force of appropriation that is also a functioning timepiece. See the work in full at this special 24-hour screening.
Off the Grid @ SFMOMA’s Countdown Celebration • Saturday and Sunday, varying hours
Take a break with gourmet food and drink from a few of the city’s favorite food trucks, including Fivetenburger and We Sushi. Hours and trucks vary each day.
SFMOMA Future Countdown Live • Saturday, 6 p.m. through Sunday, 5:45 p.m.
A nonstop, 24-hour live art variety show brings artists, filmmakers, musicians, performers, and writers to the stage. Each participant will perform a 20-minute set, offering a robust and lively portrait of the Bay Area creative community. Oakland arts collective Wonderment Consortium, comedian Marga Gomez, comedian George Chen, and drag superstar Peaches Christ will each host a six-hour set of performances. The Blue Bottle Coffee Bar will offer a changing menu throughout the program, bringing back some of its most popular art-inspired treats. Toast to SFMOMA’s future with cash bars on the roof and in the atrium from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.
Full list of performers available at sfmoma.org. In collaboration with KQED, the 24-hour live art variety show will also be live-streamed at sfmoma.org/countdown.
Free Family Day: TIME to Move • Sunday, 11 a.m.–4 p.m.
Designed for children ages 4 to 12, inventive hands-on gallery activities will inspire the whole family as SFMOMA counts down the last day before the big move.
Future Hat Making • Sunday, 12–5 p.m.
Learn how to make your own tin foil time-travel hat with Oakland-based milliner Teri Sage of T.S. I LOVE YOU. Wear it and participate in the procession to the future!
Farewell Processional • Sunday, 5:30 p.m.
As SFMOMA exits its current building to make way for the upcoming expansion, artist Desirée Holman conducts a series of movements that bridge our present potential to our future tense. Drawing on eccentric histories of time and space, from New Age culture and extraterrestrial encounter to paranormal powers, Holman mobilizes extraordinary characters, costumes, and objects that can make the museum’s and our own futures happen now. Help SFMOMA bid adieu to its building by joining the processional as it winds its way from the museum’s rooftop down to the atrium and into the world outside.