Location & Directions

The City by the Bay
The San Francisco Bay Area was chosen at the site of the 2011 Convening for its rich artistic activity, past and present. The area’s diverse, creative spirit is reflected in the high number of grantees in the region, including six Initiative organizations in San Francisco, and two in nearby San Jose.

The map above highlights the locations of these spaces: Galeria de la Raza, Headlands Center for the Arts, Intersection for the Arts, The Luggage Store, MACLA, San Jose ICA, Southern Exposure, and SF Camerawork. The map also indicates the sites of Convening activities as well as a few other cultural destinations you may want to visit should you find a moment to explore the city. At the bottom of this page you’ll find a continually updating scroll of concurrent, unrelated arts events in the city courtesy of Happenstand, a project funded through Southern Exposure and the foundation’s regional regranting program.

Transportation
Mosaic Transportation will be providing bus and coach service throughout our stay. If you are arriving on Thursday, June 23, free airport shuttles will run to the hotel approximately every half hour. A greeter will meet you at the bottom of the escalators – just look for a person holding a Warhol Initiative Convening Shuttle sign. If you fail to connect with a greeter, please collect your bags and wait near baggage claim. If need be, you can also call Mosaic Transportation directly at 1 (800) 398-7881, and anyone there can assist you.

Le Meridien Hotel is located at 333 Battery Street, downtown, near the Embarcadero. Should you end up taking a taxi to or from the airport, please remember to save your receipt to present to us for reimbursements. The foundation will also reimburse you for taxi or public transport to and from the airport in your home city, but cannot do so without original receipts. Please submit receipts with a completed reimbursement form.

Venues & Floorplans
Below please click the images to the right for a floorplan of the spaces used most often, indicating where sessions and events will take place.

Le Meridien Hotel, Downtown, San Francisco
All Convening guests will be staying at Le Meridien, located at 333 Battery Street, just a few blocks from the Ferry Building and the scenic Embarcadero. Breakfast roundtables will take place in the mornings from 7-9am in the main dining room on the 3rd floor. All buses will depart and return to this location for travel to day and evening activities.

Headlands Center for the Arts, Sausalito
The first full day of sessions takes place at the Headlands Center for the Arts, home to a renown artist residency program. Rich with military history, the Headlands campus has sweeping views of the Bay, and sits just across the Golden Gate Bridge. Sessions take place in the main building and surrounding sites.

San Francisco Art Institute, North Beach, San Francisco
The studios, lecture halls, and classrooms of the storied SFAI, are host to the second full day of sessions and activities. The open air campus in North Beach with stunning views of Alcatraz and the Bay, counts among its alumni the artists Richard Diebenkorn, Karen Finley, Paul McCarthy, William Wiley, Barry McGee, and Catherine Opie among many, many others.

Additional Events in San Francisco

Happenstand received funding through Southern Exposure's Alternative Exposures, a project of the Foundation's Regional Regranting Program.