The San Francisco Arts Commission Galleries is pleased to announce the first installment of Sanctuary City, a yearlong exhibition and public program series that delves into topics related to San Francisco's immigration policies, immigrant and refugee populations, and the history of our Sanctuary City status.
For this inaugural Sanctuary City presentation, the SFAC Galleries is pleased to partner with Walter Maciel Gallery, Los Angeles, to bring their critically acclaimed exhibition With Liberty and Justice for Some. Co-curated by Bay Area artist Monica Lundy, this exhibition features over 125 portraits of immigrants to the United States by 100 artists from Los Angeles and the Bay Area. Conceived in response to the presidential election in November, this show is a statement in response to the current administrations' new executive order that blocks citizens from six Muslim-majority countries (Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen) from getting visas for 90 days, and reinstates a temporary blanket ban refusing admission to all refugees for 120 days.
Curator and artist Monica Lundy and gallerist Walter Maciel invited artists from across the country to make 8 x 8-inch portraits of individuals who came to the United States as immigrants including historic subjects, personal friends, relatives, strangers, and self-portraits. Lundy says, “Several portraits depict individuals that represent multiple politically vulnerable communities, such as African Americans, LGBTQ persons, Mexicans, Muslims, Jews, refugees, and women, thus representing our communities here in the Bay Area being threatened by the Trump administration.”