About the SHACK15 Art Prize

The SHACK15 Art Prize is a new initiative rooted in the belief that supporting the arts is a civic act: not charity, not a trend, but a deliberate contribution to the cultural fabric of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Curated in partnership with Art Bae, the SHACK15 Art Prize awards a total of $200,000 in grants to seven SHACK15 Fellows, supporting the creation of new work in San Francisco through a fellowship, public programming, and a culminating exhibition during SF Art Week 2026. 

Mission

Our mission is to make space, for artists, for experimentation, and for the kind of work that changes how a city sees itself.

We believe supporting artists is a civic act: not charity, not a trend, but a deliberate contribution to the cultural and emotional life of San Francisco.

Through the Art Prize, we are building infrastructure for imagination—starting with seven artists and an open invitation that If you believe art belongs at the heart of civic life, this mission is yours, too.

Vision

Our vision is to help create a San Francisco where artists are recognized as essential and vital to its future. A city where cultural investment is not an afterthought, but a civic habit. Where institutions are porous, generosity is strategic, and care is part of the infrastructure.

We imagine public life shaped by the hands of artists, through work that is experimental, rigorous, joyful, and vulnerable.

We’re not just building a program.  We’re building a precedent.  One that says: we are a city that values its artists, and acts like it.