On View

all
exhibitions
film series
event series

  • Art laid out for a Five Tables viewing at BAMPFA

    Five Tables

    Ongoing

    Drop by our art study centers on Free First Thursdays for an up-close look at treasures from the BAMPFA collections.

  • Arts + Design Mondays @ BAMPFA

    Public (Re)Assembly

    September 11, 2017–April 30, 2018

    This lecture series asks: What is the role of public assembly in our current moment?

  • Art Wall: Karabo Poppy Moletsane

    November 22, 2017–July 15, 2018

    Moletsane’s vibrant, large-scale portraits for the Art Wall draw on both traditional African visual culture and Afrofuturism.

  • Readings

    Ongoing

  • Black Life

    Ongoing

    Experience the vitality and range of cultural production in the African diaspora through this exciting, multidisciplinary event series. 

  • People enjoying dinner at Babette cafe

    Film to Table Dinners at Babette

    ongoing

    Delectable dinners following screenings of the films that inspired them.

  • Workshops

    Ongoing

    From hands-on artmaking to dance and meditation, our workshops will inspire your creativity, engage your senses, and expand your ideas.

  • Limited Engagements & Special Screenings

    Ongoing

    Recent releases, restored classics, and special guests grace the Barbro Osher Theater.

  • Full

    Ongoing

    Explore the BAMPFA galleries and discover exciting performances in our dramatic space on the night of each full moon.

  • Guided Tours

    Ongoing

    Get a deeper look at the artworks on view by joining an expert-led tour.

  • Family Events

    Ongoing

    Hands-on activities, participatory readings, performances, movie matinees, and more events designed for kids and their families.

  • In Focus: Eisenstein and His Contemporaries

    Lecture/Screening Series

    January 17–May 2, 2018

    Explore the work of celebrated Soviet filmmaker Sergei Eisenstein in the context of his times with screenings and lectures by Eisenstein expert Anne Nesbet.

  • Erica Deeman portrait of Marvin 2017

    Way Bay

    January 17–June 3, 2018

    Explore the creative energies that have emerged from the Bay Area over the past two centuries with this sweeping array of art, film, performance, poetry, and archival materials.

  • Curator Julia White leads a gallery talk

    Gallery Talks, Lectures & Discussions

    Ongoing

    Artists, curators, scholars, and others share their insights on BAMPFA exhibitions, the arts, and other cultural topics.

  • The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T.

    Movie Matinees for All Ages

    Ongoing

    Treat the family to a Saturday afternoon at the movies.

  • Arts + Design Wednesdays @ BAMPFA

    Experiment and Exploration

    January 24–April 25, 2018
  • Breaking ICE: a community response to a citizenship test

    Breaking ICE

    A Community Response to a Citizenship Test

    January 31–May 20, 2018

    An interactive installation based loosely on the 100 questions used to test aspiring US citizens.

  • Jay Heikes / MATRIX 269

    February 14–April 29, 2018

    Recent paintings, sculptures, and drawings that offer both a reflection on our cultural moment and a commitment to the material properties of the art object

  • Cal Conversations: Dreaming the Lost Ming 夢回金陵

    February 21–May 13, 2018

    Created in collaboration with a UC Berkeley course, this exhibition explores the cataclysmic end of the Ming dynasty through paintings and literature of China’s long seventeenth century.

  • Agony in Effigy: Art, Truth, Pain, and the Body

    February 21–June 17, 2018

    This selection of historical works explores how physical violence and suffering have been represented in art, from the promise of transcendence to political critique.

  • Documenting Vietnam

    Self-Portraits of America at War

    February 28–April 29, 2018

    Powerful and innovative documentaries reveal the impact of the Vietnam War on the way Americans perceived themselves.

  • Bergman 100: The Silence of God

    March 1–May 9, 2018

    This installment in our yearlong tribute to Ingmar Bergman focuses on his metaphysical investigations, as well as his collaboration with actor Max von Sydow.

  • African Film Festival 2018

    March 8–May 6, 2018

    This annual festival showcases the best of African cinema and films from the diaspora.

  • Bergman 100: The Early Years

    Salon Screenings in Theater 2

    March 16–May 6, 2018

    Screenings in Theater 2 invite you to enjoy Ingmar Bergman’s early works in an intimate, salon-style setting.

  • Al Wong: Lost Sister

    March 28–June 17, 2018

    Al Wong’s photocollage portraits of the sister he never met form a meditation on displacement and the collision between personal and geopolitical histories.

  • The Anxiety of Identity: The Films of Lucrecia Martel

    April 20–May 10, 2018

    The Argentine director pays a visit to BAMPFA for this retrospective of her atmospheric, compelling films.