Join us at SHACK15 for the third of seven inaugural SHACK15 Artist Fellow activations with artist Abel Rodriguez.
This conversation will center on a simple question: what is painting, and why does it matter now? In a world flooded with fast digital images, Abel Rodriguez slows things down: repainting photographs by hand and turning them into something you experience, not just scroll past.
He draws and paints from photographs that raised him. From his Vallejo studio, Rodriguez transforms personal ephemera into subtly framed paintings that refuse erasure, adding tenderness so often lost. That shift, from instant image to handmade object, changes how we relate to memory, identity, and history. We’ll explore what happens when pictures move from screens into real space.
Run of Show
5:30 PM — Doors open, cash bar service & music
6:00 PM — Artist presentation and conversation
6:45 PM — Brief Q&A and closing remarks
7:00 PM — Open conversation & cash bar service
8:00 PM — Event ends
About the SHACK15 Art Prize
The SHACK15 Art Prize, curated in partnership with ArtBae, represents an unprecedented investment in the Bay Area’s cultural future, offering $20,000 fellowships to seven regional artists to create new work culminating in a group exhibition during SF Art Week 2026.
About ArtBae
ArtBae, co-founded by Inga Bard and Andrew Berardini, and organized with Lucas Foglia, helps the Bay Area connect with art through criticism, events, and community engagement. ArtBae supports the local art ecology by amplifying artists and building cultural infrastructure. Visit artbae.info or follow @artbae.info on Instagram.
RSVP Required
This event is 21+
Please review our House Rules and Guest Code of Conduct.
About SHACK15
SHACK15 is a community for Founders, Innovators and Changemakers. Located on the third floor of the iconic San Francisco Ferry Building with panoramic views of the Bay, SHACK15 provides the stage for a diverse global community to gather and connect.
SHACK15 Location
We’re located on the 2nd floor of San Francisco's Ferry Building. Please use the elevator to come to the 2nd floor in the Ferry Building’s “Office Lobby” - located underneath the giant clock tower, on the left side of the main market entrance.