Performance Art Foundation Launches in San Francisco

Collector Carla Emil has founded the Performance Art Foundation in San Francisco, filling a perceived gap for a dedicated performance art space in the city. The foundation, also called C Project, will commission site-specific performances across the city. Its inaugural commission features Icelandic artist Ragnar Kjartansson, presenting "Romantic Songs of the Patriarchy" from November 9–11, 2019, at the Women's Building. The project is curated by Tom Eccles, executive director of the Bard College Center for Curatorial Studies. Emil, an SFMoMA board member, was inspired by venues like New York's Park Avenue Armory and London's Tate Modern Turbine Hall. San Francisco's arts sector generates nearly $1.5 billion annually and employs over 39,000 full-time workers, according to a 2017 Americans for the Arts report. The city is also investing $50 million in a public art project for the Bay, featuring artists Ai Weiwei, Chakaia Booker, and Antony Gormley.