8 Alternative Exhibits to the Color Factory in San Francisco
Weren’t able to snag tickets to the Color Factory before they sold out again? Well, when one door closes, 8 more open.
The Color Factory in San Francisco has sparked substantial buzz, mostly due to the fact that tickets are seemingly unattainable. If you didn’t get tickets, you’re not alone in your frustration. We’re here to remind you that, here in good ole’ San Francisco, your options for cultural attractions are virtually unlimited (even if you didn’t get tickets for the Museum of Ice Cream, either).
If you’re on the hunt for fun alternatives to the Color Factory to quench your creative cravings, we’ve compiled a list of 8 exhibitions that are perfect for your needs.
Related: 6 Historic Homes You Need to Visit in San Francisco
1. Color of Life at the California Academy of Sciences
This is a rather suitable alternative to the Color Factory. The California Academy of Sciences invites you to enter their World of Color exhibit to experience color in its truest form: as a crucial player in the natural world. With live animals and stunning interactive environments, you’ll learn about the role of color in life while satisfying your aesthetic appetite.
World of Color | The California Academy of Sciences, Gold Gate Park, 55 Music Concourse Drive, San Francisco, CA | Hours: Monday-Saturday: 9:30AM-5PM, Sunday: 11AM-5PM | $35.95 adult admission
2. Colored Shadows at the Exploratorium
Photo: exploratorium.edu
Feel like a kid again at the Exploratorium by experimenting with light, vision, sound, and hearing at the Seeing and Listening exhibit. This exhibit plays with light and sound to investigate the responses of our eyes and eyes on a deeper scientific level. If you’re craving a particularly colorful experience, check out Colored Shadows to make rainbow shadow puppets.
Colored Shadows | Exploratorium, Pier 15, (Embarcadero at Green Street), San Francisco, CA | Hours: Tuesday-Sunday: 10AM-5PM | $29.95 adult admission
3. Klimt and Rodin: An Artistic Encounter at the Legion of Honor
Brush up on your Art History at the Legion of Honor. The esteemed Legion is commemorating the approximate centenary of the deaths of Rodin and Gustav Klimt with the exhibit An Artistic Encounter. They are known to only have met once, but the juxtaposition of their works suggests a subliminal collaborative effort.
Klimt & Rodin: An Artistic Encounter | The Legion of Honor, Lincoln Park 100 34th Avenue, San Francisco, CA | Hours: Tuesday-Sunday: 9:30AM-5:15PM | $15 adult admission
4. Awaking Beauty: The Art of Eyvind Earle at the Walt Disney Family Museum
Photo: Ryan Summers
Relive your childhood fairytale fantasies at the Walt Disney Family Museum’s original retrospective, Awaking Beauty: The Art of Eyvind Earle. Earle is best known as the lead stylist for Walt Disney’s classic feature Sleeping Beauty, as well as creating the concept art that shaped favorites Lady and the Tramp and Peter Pan.
Awaking Beauty: The Art of Eyvind Earle | The Walt Disney Family Museum, The Presidio, 104 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, CA | Hours: 10AM-6PM daily | $10 for Earle exhibit, $30 for Earle and general admission combo
5. Couture Korea at the Asian Art Museum
If you have a penchant for fashion exhibits, then look no further than the Asian Art Museum’s upcoming exhibit Couture Korea, opening November 3rd. This is the first U.S. exhibition to consider Korean fashion as an expression of social and cultural values, and gives insight into the past, present, and future of Korean through the prism of couture.
Couture Korea | The Asian Art Museum, 200 Larkin Street, San Francisco, CA | Hours: Tuesday-Sunday: 10AM-5PM, open until 9PM Thursday and Friday | $15 adult admission
6. Mexico in San Francisco at the Mexican Museum
Tickets to Mexico are inflated at this time of the year. Save some money and make a trip to the Mexican Museum to experience the brand new exhibit Mexico in San Francisco, which will transport you to a different place and time through the works on 15 Mexican artists, gathered from multi-medium collections across the Bay Area. This collection peers at the construction of the modernist Mexican art movement through murals and various forms of art on paper.
Mexico in San Francisco | The Mexican Museum, Fort Mason Center. 2 Marina Boulevard, Building D, San Francisco, CA | Hours: Thursday-Sunday: 12PM-4PM | Free
7. Noguchi’s Playscapes at SFMOMA
Revisit the joy of playing at at SFMoMa’s exhibit Noguchi’s Playscapes. Artist Isamu Noguchi is known for creating artistic spaces that transcend what is normally conventional in an art museum but creating playscapes. His inspiration is drawn from the unique interactions and experiences that exist exclusively in playgrounds. As such, Noguchi has designed a number of public spaces where visitors could physically and actively engage with art, melding together art and play.
Noguchi’s Playscapes | SFMOMA, 151 Third Street, San Francisco, CA | Hours: Friday-Tuesday: 10AM-5PM, Thursday: 10AM-9PM | $25 adult admission
Related: MOMA Mia: The New SFMOMA, One Year Later
8. Many Rooms by Ebitenyefa Baralaye at the Museum of the African Diaspora
The Museum of the African Diaspora’s upcoming exhibit, Many Rooms, explores the experience of disparate presence in relation to home, faith, geography, and culture. By sourcing his own experience with Diaspora, Artist Ebitenyefa Baralaye’s visual language seeks to name realities and spaces of the diasporic mindset through artistic form, pattern, and symbolism.
Many Rooms | The Museum of the African Diaspora, 685 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA | Hours: Wednesday-Saturday: 11AM-6PM, Sunday: 12PM-5PM | $10 general admission
