Yerba Buena Center For the Arts

Attended the Nick Dong: 11 to 88 exhibit months ago. The center itself is spacious and airy. Beautiful space. Great exhibits. Not very expensive admission either. On some days, the center offers free admission to the public.Located inside the Yerba Buena Gardens and steps away from the SFMOMA.

Quiet and intimidate arts space which features smaller exhibits. Easy to spend about 1 hour or less here given its size. We stopped by for a special exhibit (Nick Dong: 11 to 88) which was free and engaging!

The Yerba Buena Center for the Arts is a contemporary arts center in SF, and it features visual art, performance, and film and video which celebrates artists and the local diverse communities. The current exhibits are Nicky Nodjoumi & Nahid Hagigat, last until February 2025. I think it took less than half an hour to explore the exhibits area.

Came here on Sunday for Nick Dong's 11 to 88 exhibition. Admission was free as it was the 2nd Sunday of the month. The lobby is expansive and has a ton of natural lighting, and plenty of space to sit and hang out. Restrooms were clean.We had to either remove our shoes or wear shoe coverings to enter the exhibition area. The space isn't huge but I spent about an hour or so here as there was a bit of a wait to enter the mirrored room. It was totally worth the wait though. A fun, trippy experience.Overall, worth it to stop by the YBCA if you're in the area and there's a new exhibition you've been eyeing.

Scored a free ticket to see Nick Dong: 11 to 88 exhibit during First Thursdays in downtown. It's usually $10 which is affordable too. Exhibit ends August 25, 2024. This was my first time entering YBCA. The staffs were all friendly. The exhibit was pretty cool. After redeeming your ticket, get your timed entry to enter the infinity mirror room. We waited only 30 minutes. We spent about 15 minutes looking at the other pieces and then we went outside to enjoy the nearby outdoor concert for First Thursdays and came back when it was our time. We only got 3 minutes once inside which was sufficient.

We came here for the parol star lantern event that SOMA Pilipinas held. The space itself is so beautiful. We were mostly on the first floor where the gallery was. I love that they support local artists, cultural events, and that it's such a community-based space.We also came another time for the actual parol lantern festival itself in the large room, and I love the the doors open and can be integrated with the gardens outside. Outside is a great place to walk around or watch the water fountains and relax. Super close to SFMOMA too!

I went back to this smaller gallery museum yesterday. I only went maybe once. The gallery exhibit was interesting...and there was a small room with a light and mirror experience..worth the visit! wow..nice building.

Great modern theater. Nothing fancy yet super convenient and accommodating. We had great seats to see Alonzo King Lines Ballet, but I don't think there's a bad seat in the house. Very helpful staff readily available to give directions and answer questions. Little wine counter with snacks that we didn't partake in since we had just had dinner and drinks pre-show. Multiple entrances into this venue from around Yerba Buena. Restrooms were spacious, clean, and had plenty of stalls to avoid a lines - always a plus. Looking forward to more shows here in the future.

Audience friendly We took in Magic Flute by Mozart there and enjoyed it enormously: both the theater and the performance. Unlike the opera houses, usually grand and sumptuous, this one is small, simple and modern. The production is thin, so it the orchestra BUT the view from the seats from the row N are the best. (A-K aren't as good although they're closer to the stage.)

Looks like YBCA has improved over the years, since it looked like some small local place with local students' and emerging artists' work, but now, it has international artists with much higher-quality exhibits. I'm glad Sylvia Y. had a good experience, but I didn't. I'm not sure what's employees, visitors, and artists' hang-ups against certain visitors. I know way more about the arts than them, but people are rude and dismissive to certain visitors. The arts and museums are way overrated, anyway. Most artists, visitors, and employees pretend to be profound, while really knowing nothing. Nick Dong represents Asia, immigrants, and the cross-section between being American and Asian. His exhibit was actually well thought-through, deep, philosophical, and incredibly well-done and aesthetic. That's how most Asians and Asian Americans are, in contrast with the negative stereotypes. His exhibit really stands out among the rest. I've come to only expect the worst in museums and art these days, since they're often very poorly done, and poorly thought-through, and they're just doing something to do something, and are over-praised for nothing. That said, Dong just seems like any other international artist who puts himself way above other people, and seems to appreciate love from non-Asians more than his fellow Asians. YBCA's young staff is the same as anywhere else in the city - nice to some visitors, and rude and curt to others. I politely asked about something on the phone, and the employee seemed angry, impatient, and unhelpful. And when I came in, she looked disgusted. Then all of a sudden, she smiled and warmly greeted other visitors coming in, like she was so happy and relieved to see people like them. At the exhibit, I politely asked an employee a question, and she angrily shot back a response, like she was disgusted just interacting with me. Then all of a sudden, she was warm and friendly to other visitors. Same with Dong - I felt he was more open to some visitors than others. If he's like some other artists these days, and enjoys some interaction with the public, like with various events and projects, then he should be kind and inviting to all visitors, and shouldn't pick and choose favorites. The arts is overrated, where people think they're special and profound, and where minimum-wage employees think they're above visitors who actually know way more than them.