GABRIELLE ARMAND, CEO, SFJAZZ

Raised in a Boston suburb and New York’s Hastings-on-Hudson village, music has been omnipresent for Gabrielle Armand — thanks in part to parents who played records from a wide range of genres as well as piano lessons beginning at age 7. In July, following her tenure with Jazz at Lincoln Center, she became CEO of SFJAZZ, which entails being “both a change agent and a stabilizing force,” Armand says.

What drew you to the position at SFJAZZ? I started my career in the record business at a jazz label in 1991. I fell in love with the music and became obsessed with listening to records and going to clubs to see live performances. The music scene in New York during the early 1990s was incredible. There were so many musicians — old and young, established artists and rising stars. The live music community showcased a variety of genres — jazz, hip hop, pop, rock and world music — all flourishing and coexisting. There is a lot about that time that reminds me of this moment for music in San Francisco and for SFJAZZ. The musical lines are blurred and blended, and there is a very cool common thread running through it all. SFJAZZ has a musical philosophy aligned with that energy and spirit, where there is space for many different voices and styles.

What’s it like working with Terence Blanchard, SFJAZZ’s executive artistic director? I’m so lucky to have Terence as my partner. We have known each other for many years and share a common goal to see the music expand into new territories and reach new audiences. I have great respect and admiration for him as a musician, composer, innovator and person. He’s also hilarious!

As we head into 2026, what are you looking forward to? I’m eager to get to know the organization and the community more deeply. Right now, everything still feels new. Once I feel more grounded, I’ll begin taking some risks and shaking things up. I’m excited to connect with other arts and culture organizations within the city and the surrounding area. As a collaborator at heart, I look forward to seeing how SFJAZZ can partner with and learn from our neighbors.

Early impressions of the city? There is a strong sense of pride in being from San Francisco and the Bay Area, and people aren’t shy about expressing their love for it. There’s also an infectious energy focused on the city’s comeback, and a shared desire to rebuild and improve it beyond its pre-pandemic state. Plus, there’s a unique sense of community and caring that I haven’t seen anywhere else. It’s genuine and authentic, and I believe this is the city’s superpower.

JASON BLACKWELL
Chief of Staff, Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD)

The throughlines of his career have been “advancing equity, strategy and cultural change in the arts,” says Jason Blackwell. The Virginia native got his start at the James Irvine Foundation’s Los Angeles office and moved to the Bay Area in 2019 to initially work for San Francisco’s Grants for the Arts agency. Since January 2025, he has served as Chief of Staff at MoAD.

What drew you to the position at MoAD? As a Black, gay man working in the arts, I’ve always been guided by a commitment to create spaces where identity and creative expression are celebrated. MoAD’s mission to elevate the artists and artistry of the global African diaspora resonates deeply with my personal ethos. Professionally, I was ready for a senior role that combined leadership, strategy and values-driven work. A place where I could help align my love for people, purpose and societal impact. Personally, joining MoAD — an organization in San Francisco with an all-Black, female executive team and all-Black board of directors, that honors our collective legacy while shaping a more inclusive cultural future for all — felt like the right place to be.

Favorite aspects of the job? Without question, it’s the people — the staff, artists, partners and patrons who show up every day with so much passion for MoAD and the important work we do in the community. I also love being at the table where vision becomes strategy. Helping to translate big ideas into sustainable systems that honor both our creative and community values is at the heart of my work.

Any favorite works at MoAD? Gustavo Nazareno’s 2025 triptych, “The Secret Matrices of Creation,” part of the UNBOUND: Art, Blackness & the Universe exhibition. The dark, luminous portraits reimagine the deities Oxalá, Iemanjá and Orunmilá as planetary bodies, their majestic figures suspended between ancestry and the cosmos. Drawing from Candomblé and Renaissance art, Nazareno fuses spirituality and celestial power in a stunning visual symphony. The work feels both sacred and cosmic, like standing before a universe woven from faith, memory and light.

Any recommendations for things to see or do near MoAD? If you’re planning a visit to MoAD, you’re in the heart of one of San Francisco’s most vibrant neighborhoods! Just steps away, you can turn the corner and explore SFMOMA, stroll through the beautiful Yerba Buena Gardens across the street, or catch a performance and wander the galleries at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. The SoMa district also offers pretty good dining and a bustling nightlife, from creative cocktails and tapas at local bars to celebrated restaurants serving global cuisine. It’s the perfect area to make a full day or night of art, culture and connecting with people.

Photo © Samuel del Rosario

DR. SOYOUNG LEE
The Barbara Bass Bakar Director and CEO, Asian Art Museum

Indonesia-born Dr. Soyoung Lee began her more than two decades in the museum sector at the Metropolitan Museum of Art as its first Curator of Korean Art. She next served as Chief Curator at the Harvard Art Museums before joining the Asian Art Museum in April. In addition to overseeing the San Francisco institution’s strategic vision and operations, Lee describes her role as a “bridge builder.”

What drew you to the position at AAM? My entire life has been about traversing cultural boundaries. Growing up moving between countries and continents taught me to be a cultural translator — someone who can help people discover connections across differences. Professionally, I spent over 20 years in the museum world; those experiences taught me that museums can create powerful moments of discovery that can rearrange how you see yourself and the world. The Asian Art Museum position felt like the culmination of both journeys. The opportunity to lead conversations about Asian culture not as exotic “other” but as foundational to contemporary life — that’s exactly the paradigm shift I want to champion.

As we head into 2026, what are you looking forward to? I’m excited to build two interwoven destinies. First, becoming an essential Bay Area destination, a gathering place because we’re integral to the city’s rhythm. I’m looking forward to working with City Hall, our performing arts sister institutions on the other side of Civic Center, the Main Library and neighbors in the Tenderloin to collectively make the Civic Center area a compelling cultural space. Second, building an ambitious global network that amplifies our mission: Envision, for example, emerging curators from various regions of Asia — whether Hong Kong, Seoul, Mumbai or Bangkok — collaborating with Bay Area artists and Silicon Valley technology leaders, treating our galleries as laboratories for new, inspiring art forms. Both of these things will take time, but this next year, we’ll lay the groundwork.

Any favorite works at AAM? I adore New Japanese Clay, one of our current special exhibitions. I am not a potter myself, but I am a scholar of East Asian ceramics, so I tend to have a penchant for clay vessels and sculptures. The works transcend the material — you won’t believe your eyes, and you’ll be enraptured by their unusual beauty. The Japanese are particularly exceptional when it comes to innovation in ceramics.

Any recommendations for things to see or do near AAM? My favorite recommendation is to just walk. The architecture around Civic Center tells the story of San Francisco’s civic ambitions. And if you time it right for farmers market days in UN Plaza, you’ll see the neighborhood at its most vibrant — which is exactly the energy we want to channel into the museum.

Photo by Aaron Wojack

MARI ROBLES
CEO, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts

Growing up in Chicago instilled Mari Robles with a love of art and community at a young age. She has called the Bay Area home for the past five years and, in January, took the reins at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. In addition to building deeper, more meaningful engagement with the community, Robles anticipates “guiding the organization through a period of intentional growth,” she says.

What drew you to the position at YBCA? Over the past two decades, I’ve had the honor of working with some of the most dynamic artist teams and cultural institutions — in Chicago, Miami, New York and Marin County. Across each of these contexts and regions, my focus has always been on how art connects people to their own stories and to one another. At YBCA, our purpose is to be a gathering space for the full spectrum of creative expression and to foster meaningful connections through art. This embodies everything I value about the role the arts can play in daily life. YBCA is a truly special place — where artists and communities come together to imagine what’s possible.

Any programming that you’re especially excited about? I’m incredibly proud of the two exhibitions we are showing in our galleries, Bay Area Then and MAKIBAKA: A Living Legacy, and our related monthly music series. Together, they capture the heart of YBCA: celebrating artists whose work embodies the Bay Area’s creative resilience, spirit of activism and deep sense of community. These programs powerfully imagine the future of art and culture in this region.

Is there a piece in the current shows that particularly resonates with you? There are so many powerful works in both, but one that especially stays with me is Rigo 23’s mural in Bay Area Then. His work captures the political urgency and poetic depth that define this region’s creative DNA. It speaks to resistance, solidarity and belonging in ways that feel both timeless and deeply relevant to this moment. He painted it over six weeks in our gallery, and I loved witnessing it come to life — seeing artists and curators drop by to visit him, and watching family and friends join in to help him realize his vision. It was a beautiful reminder of how art is often a collective act.

In addition to being an art destination, San Francisco is a big food town. Any recommendations near YBCA? There are plenty of great places nearby to eat and meet. Joyride Pizza is right outside in the Yerba Buena Gardens; Jane on Third bakery, if you want to indulge; and a couple of blocks from us, Tin Vietnamese Cuisine, where the vermicelli noodle bowls are my go-to.