Ways to Back San Francisco’s Creative Spaces
Support San Francisco creative spaces by giving a program your attention, choosing a screening ticket or making a considered book purchase. Poster art, independent film, intimate music and performance rooms offer different ways to engage. The public library adds shared collections without requiring a purchase.
Outing 1: Haight Street Art Center
This maker resource and gallery celebrates countercultural poster art history through rotating rock poster and Grateful Dead exhibits alongside hands-on screen printing studio classes.
Outing 2: Roxie Theater
As San Francisco's oldest continually operating theater, this Mission District landmark offers an authentic cinematic experience centered on independent releases and repertory classics. The space hosts special screenings, film festivals, and community events, occasionally featuring guest appearances and Q&A sessions with directors and cast members. Visitors find clear projection, balanced sound, spacious seating, and affordable concessions.
Outing 3: Shelton Theater
This historic venue pairs a cozy underground bar with an intimate theater space for live performances like the Secret Improv Society and Cheaper Than Therapy. Comedians play directly to the room, occasionally engaging audience members and hecklers amid a clean setting that preserves an older neighborhood feel.
Outing 4: Brick and Mortar Music Hall
Located on Mission Street, this intimate live music venue hosts an array of diverse touring acts, indie bands, and electronic artists.
Outing 5: Kilowatt
Operating since 1994, this neighborhood fixture maintains a retro rock aesthetic featuring vintage posters, small television clips, and old-school vhs films playing on two older televisions. A disco ball centers the room, which pairs domestic and local craft brews with pool tables, darts, and an analog photobooth. Under new management, the back pool table area was converted into a stage for live music and DJ nights.
Outing 6: Kinokuniya Bookstore - San Francisco
Shelves across the Japan Center shop mix Japanese- and local-language titles with imported periodicals and a dedicated design book corner. Alongside the reading material are character-focused sections, including a Totoro corner stocked with plush toys and themed gifts. The expansive downstairs manga department leans heavily toward collectors, with volumes sealed in plastic wrap that keep stock pristine even if it rules out previewing a chapter on the spot.
Outing 7: San Francisco Main Public Library
Spanning six floors along Larkin Street, this civic hub offers multiple floors of bookshelves alongside specialized zones such as an extensive vinyl record collection, aisles of graphic novels, and rotating zine exhibitions. The space also features dedicated activity spots for youths.
