15 San Francisco Artists Running the Bay Area Art Scene

The citizens of San Francisco can hardly be summarized in a few words—and neither can the city’s artists. Okay, you’re thinking: what about colorful? Out there? We can agree with those descriptions when it comes to the city's artists. In the best way possible, they push the envelope when it comes to contemporary art. Whether in a gallery or on the street, these artists give life to the strange and beautiful visions in their head.

From the Mission to the East Bay, there are artists beautifying the city in unexpected ways. With rising rents and newer developments threatening to negatively affect SF’s artistic community, these artists are a reminder of the talent that adds even more color to the city. Though just a sampling of the city’s artistic genius, this list of 15 San Francisco Artists Running the Bay Area Art Scene shows the range of creative minds making important and enthralling work.

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Known for his swirling forms, bright colors, and creative urban typography, Victor Reyes has been beautifying San Francisco walls for years. You can see his work everywhere, from a gate in Downtown to the side of a school in the Mission. At one point, the artist even managed to spray-paint the entire alphabet in different parts of the Mission.

Reyes takes his talents plenty of other places too; he’s had shows everywhere, from New York to Los Angeles, and created murals in places like Hawaii. With his signature style, it’s easy to spot his works throughout different cities. Letters never looked so good.

At once primal and cryptic, the intricate works of Zio Ziegler feel like a journey into another world. Whether in a painting or mural, Ziegler’s pieces seem to put a kaleidoscopic filter over even the simplest of figures. The body of a man becomes a playing field for bright patterns and layers of symbols. You might spot an eye or a skull amid all this gorgeous chaos, but otherwise it’s best to just sit back and take it all in.

The artist’s pieces show strong Cubist tendencies, but Ziegler’s imagination trumps any overt reference to a previous art movement—these wild scenes could only come from his own mind. Although Ziegler’s works might feel like a secret language, the artist knows that each piece will mean something different to each new viewer. You can spot Ziegler’s outdoor work in San Francisco, where standing in front of his murals feels like stepping before a portal to another world.

No one knows the real name of street artist GATS. The Oakland-based artist might not show his face, but he does establish his presence through a mask that commemorates the important people in his life. GATS pays special homage to those killed through police violence (his name does stand for "Graffiti Against the System," after all) and adds more cracks to the mysterious face as the years go by.

The strange face looks eerie at times and playful at others as it covers walls, trucks, and more everywhere from SF to Los Angeles to Illinois. GATS' recurring imagery takes on all sorts of colors and sizes, even appearing on small stickers.

If we could nominate an artist to paint a visual history of our society, the responsibility would definitely fall on Andrew Schoultz. Taking inspiration from German maps of the 15th century and Indian miniature painting, Schoultz creates complex works with incredible detail and timeless imagery. Borrowing mostly from symbols of wealth—the American dollar bill, gold, images of warfare—the artist’s work hints at the chaotic state of our own greed and consumption. He also touches on historical narratives of destruction, like The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Schoultz's trademark swirling, thin lines, and heavy use of the color red mark the works as uniquely his. Besides exhibiting everywhere from Copenhagen to Portland, Schoultz also boasts a piece in LACMA’s collection. Schoultz will open a solo show at Hosfelt Gallery this December.

Jet Martinez is influenced by Mexican textiles, and many of his paintings look like quilts or woven pieces when seen from afar. The magic lies in his expert layering of lines and careful color choices. His recent solo show, “City of Eternal Springtime” at White Walls Gallery, was an awesome display of his talent but also the nature of his works. Each piece had a title that hinted at a larger—sometimes romantically involved—narrative.

Martinez recently finished up a mural wrapping around the John Fluevog store in Haight-Ashbury, and it’s a testament to his ability to not only create on a flat wall but on an uneven one. We’ve got our eye on him for bigger and better projects in the future, and he’s already worked with major brands, like adidas and Red Bull.

Eerie, gorgeous, ethereal—you could use all of these adjectives to describe the captivating works of Charmaine Olivia. Working primarily with oil, the artist creates beautiful but sometimes unsettling portraits of seductive women. You might recognize some of her subjects, too. Charmaine puts her own artistic twist on stars like Lana Del Rey and Angelina Jolie. Through her distinctive style, the starlets become mysterious creatures emerging from a flurry of brushstrokes that sometimes look like flames.

Besides these chaotically decadent works, Olivia also creates intriguing silhouettes that echo the form of vintage portraiture from an older time. Her talent got her noticed by Lady Gaga and major brands like Urban Outfitters, Volcom, and others.

When it comes to the work of San Francisco native APEX, no piece is quite like another. A close look at his abstract aerosol pieces reveals a multitude of colors, and his murals hold an amazing amount of detail. Even the simplest curved line is packed with patterns, highlights, and contrast.

APEX makes the kind of work that demands you to stop and really look. His incredible sense of movement and three-dimensionality seems to pull you right in with no intention of letting go. You can spot APEX's work around San Francisco and also in major collaborations with brands like Scion and Zynga. As with most street art, nothing beats seeing the murals up close and personal.

If you visit the site Graffuturism.com, you can find some seriously amazing work. The site also features artist interviews and gallery events, all revolving around the theme of graffuturism. What does that term mean, you ask? Artist and founder Poesia’s explanation on the site doesn’t quite clear that up: “I can show you when I see it, I can grasp the forms of it, but I leave it up to you to explain or define.”

One place we might get some idea of graffuturism is in the artist’s own gestural, bold work. Some of his murals feel fluid and light while others look harsh and geometric. Poesia also recently curated a show at 1AM Gallery entitled “A Major Minority,” which showcased more than 300 works of urban art from around the world. We’re looking forward to his next project.

Maybe the hardest part of creating large-scale work, especially outdoors, is making sure you don’t totally get lost in what you create. That seems especially challenging for Aaron de la Cruz when you encounter his swirling forms woven tightly together on concrete walls. But the artist pulls this style off seamlessly, and despite the grid-like nature of his compositions, he often paints without much planning.

Whether on canvas or a large wall, de la Cruz's works make fantastic use of the flexibility of paint. In some pieces, his lines are tight and crisp, as if done with a roller, while in others, he lets the paint drip from a small brush. The artist knows how to adapt his signature style for all sorts of settings, too. Just check out our coverage of his works in Hawaii to see what we mean.

Like many street artists, Eddie Colla makes it his mission to use city spaces as avenues for creative expression. In his view, too much of our public space gets taken over by major corporations and too little by the city’s inhabitants. Knowing Colla's philosophy made it especially ironic when Walmart tried to sell his piece as a Banksy work. In response, the artist created an awesome limited edition screenprint with Walmart’s logo that read, “Introducing the Anti-Establishment Left Wing Subversive Vandalism Collection.”

Besides his sense of humor, you can recognize most of Colla’s work through his monochromatic palette and his subjects. Most of them wear surgical masks over their faces or bandannas and look like runaways caught in the chaos of the city. One of our favorite works shows a girl with a bandana over her face and a spray can in hand next to the words, “If you want to achieve greatness stop asking for permission.”

The work of Brett Flanigan might seem disarming at first with its saturated colors, layers of patterns, and competing textures. But little by little the whole composition turns into an entrancing whole that seems to pulse with energy. Many of Flanigan’s paintings portray human subjects completely covered in bright, abstract patterns—almost as if their insides were turned outside. The artist also frequently uses animals, and in past interviews he has discussed the idea of returning to a more wild state of living.

Flanigan recently showcased his work in a show with Cannon Dill at LeQuiVive Gallery. For the show, he created works based on the experience of nature and memories. We can hardly take our eyes off his intricate works.

We’re huge fans of the dynamic art duo Alynn-Mags, a.k.a. Amanda Lynn and Lady Mags. Not only did they recently create a delicate yet gnarly mural in Downtown SF, they have also collaborated on smaller works. As much as they enjoy spray-paint and the city, the artists sometimes head to wine country and settle down with smaller surfaces and different mediums. Their watercolor, ink, and acrylic works seem ooze sexiness in their genius juxtaposition of colors. Many of their larger outdoors works actually take inspiration from these watercolor creations.

You can spot Alynn-Mags' collaborative pieces and individual works anywhere from SF to Oakland. Just look for a beautiful lady, some fantastic color combinations, and in some cases a bug or two (they’re self-proclaimed bug lovers). Because of these ladies, the streets look even better.

Monica Canilao puts more weight on the process of creating than on the resulting work. A number of artists take the same approach but few do so in such a variety of mediums. From installations to fiber works to paintings to drawings, Canilao explores the themes of home and community in a gorgeously elegant manner. Her current show in LA’s Subliminal Projects, “Born to Ruins,” even incorporates performance.

Canilao is the orchestrator of her own fantastical world. She’s worked closely with Swoon in the past, recently helping with the artist’s “Submerged Motherlands” show in Brooklyn. Keep an eye on Canilao for what will surely be some amazing upcoming projects.

The impressively detailed drawings of Cannon Dill hint at his love of nature and apprehension towards our modern state of living. The artist creates mostly monochrome pieces, which draw the viewer’s eye right into each and every detail. In many ways, his animal characters look like figures from a comic or fairy tale. Each seems to have its own unique personality and story that only Dill knows.

For a show in Oakland last year, Dill painted a large-scale creature whose beak seemed to reach towards the framed works on the wall. His work proves that whether on a wall or in a gallery, it’s all in the details.