A nascent organization with a long memory.
Shape BAYFig with us
BAYFig origin
BAYFig grew from a potential 2027 conference into something with deeper ambitions: a standing organization dedicated to honoring the progenitors of the Bay Area Figurative Movement, growing public awareness of their artistic and cultural legacy, and actively sustaining the generations of figurative artists who carry that tradition forward.
We are early. We are intentional. And we believe the movement that defied New York in 1950 still has something urgent to say.
Why BAYFig, why now
01
An under-recognized legacy. The Bay Area Figurative Movement changed American art. It remains underrepresented in mainstream art history, museum curricula, and public consciousness.
02
A living tradition at risk of fading. Without organizations actively connecting current artists to this lineage, the thread breaks. BAYFig exists to keep it intact and visible.
03
The figure is more relevant than ever. In a moment defined by identity, embodiment, and social fracture, the figure as truth-telling form — as the progenitors understood it — has never mattered more.
04
Floating the boat. Honoring the past is an investment in the present. When we raise awareness of the progenitors, we raise the cultural standing of figurative art in the Bay Area today.
Who’s leading this?
John Seed
Director
John Seed is a professor emeritus and art historian based on California’s Central Coast. A graduate of Stanford and U.C. Berkeley, he taught art and art history for over 30 years and currently serves on the boards of the Sam Francis Foundation and Cambria Center for the Arts.
His writing has appeared in Hyperallergic, The Huffington Post, and Arts of Asia, and he is the author of Disrupted Realism: Paintings for a Distracted World and More Disruption: Representational Art in Flux.
Karen Herzog
Marketing Director
Her passion for art had always been there. From designing and redesigning her bedroom as a child in Palo Alto, to being drawn to the art and design community as a friend, marketeer, and Collector.
Karen’s business education and and love of art and design led her to representing high end innovators in the architecture and design community in the San Francisco Bay Area, then to marketing and product development for pioneers in internet, collaboration, health tech and the arts.
Richard Sachs
Creative Director
He began making art as a little kid in New York City and never stopped. An obsession with drawing inside the television led to art school, then a career in illustration, design, and art direction.
His introduction to computer graphics was terminally :-) engaging—creating animations for Superman III. All downhill from there, in Silicon Valley he pioneered the use of computers in print and interaction design for global innovators in software, hardware, energy, biotech, and to now—
Build our organization
and its programs
We value your unique insights and perspective on Bay Area Figuration to help build the conference.
We’re in early conversations.
Jam with the team.
If you like the vibe of BAYFig, come join our merry band of volunteers, improvising and exploring possibilities. There will be in-person volunteer opportunities if you are in the Bay Area, as well as remote ways to help. Your support and guidance bring a unique voice to the band.
Drop us a line, tell us about your talents and passions and we'll be in touch.
“
New Orleans gave us jazz and New York gave us Abstract Expressionism. San Francisco put the two together, added the human figure, and gave us Bay Area Figuration.
—John Seed
professor emeritus and art historian
FAQ
Thank you for your interest in BAYFIG. We trust this FAQ can answer some of your questions and open up a dialogue.
-
BAYFig grew from a potential 2027 conference into something with deeper ambitions. What began as an event became a standing organization — one dedicated not just to a single gathering, but to the long-term work of honoring the progenitors of the Bay Area Figurative Movement, growing public awareness of their legacy, and actively sustaining the living tradition they started.
-
BAYFig operates as a fiscally sponsored project of 18th Street Arts Center, a registered 501(c)(3) organization. This structure allows BAYFig to operate with the tax-exempt status and financial accountability of a nonprofit while maintaining the organizational flexibility of an early-stage initiative.
Contributions to BAYFig are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. Write “For BAYFig” in the add a note/comment box of your donation.
-
Fiscal sponsorship is a formal arrangement in which an established 501(c)(3) nonprofit provides administrative and financial oversight for a project that shares its mission.
18th Street Arts Center serves as BAYFig's fiscal sponsor, which means donations made to support BAYFig flow through 18th Street and are tax-deductible. Mark your donation with “For BAYFig”.
It also means we operate with a level of accountability and structure that ensures your support is handled responsibly.
-
BAYFig was founded by John Seed, a professor emeritus and art historian with deep ties to California art history and the Bay Area Figurative tradition.
The team also includes Karen Herzog (Marketing Director), whose background spans Bay Area architecture, design, and arts marketing, and Richard Sachs (Creative Director), a designer with roots in illustration, art direction, and Silicon Valley design culture.
Biographical details for the full team are above on this page ☝︎.
Sign up for the newsletter to stay up to date on our evolution.
-
Our long-term ambitions include public education programs, scholarly resources, artist support and visibility initiatives, and museum and institutional partnerships across the United States.
We are also working toward a permanent, authoritative record of the Bay Area Figurative Movement and its living legacy — a resource for researchers, educators, artists, collectors, and anyone who wants to understand why a group of painters in postwar San Francisco changed what American art could be.
Subscribe to our newsletter or follow us on Instagram to be notified.
-
It means we are building deliberately. We are not yet a fully staffed organization with a fixed budget and a packed calendar.
We are in the formative stage, identifying partners, developing programs, and laying the groundwork for something durable.
We believe that taking the time to get this right matters. The movement we're honoring deserves nothing less.
-
We welcome it. Whether you are a scholar with a research angle, a curator with a collection connection, an artist working in the figurative tradition, or simply someone with ideas and energy, we want to hear from you.
Use the contact form to introduce yourself and tell us what you're thinking.
Image Credits
(In order on page)
-
Glass Chandelier, 1969
oil on canvas
80 × 83 7/8 in. (203.2 × 213.1 cm)
Collection SFMOMA, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Gift of Wells Fargo Bank
© The Estate of Elmer Bischoff -
Untitled, 1953
Oil on canvas
78 x 96 1/2 inches
© The Estate of James Weeks -
Photo by Frederick W. Quandt Jr.