Art Is Awesome with Emily Wilson

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  This week, Emily welcomes Paola de la Calle, a Colombian American multidisciplinary artist based in San Francisco. Her work spans textiles, ceramics, printmaking, and writing, and often explores themes of immigration, land sovereignty, family memory, and diaspora identit...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  This week, Emily Wilson sits down with Julia Goodman, a San Francisco-based artist who makes paper and textiles, as well as paintings and sculptures. They meet on the campus of the California College of the Arts — the last art school in San Francisco, set to close at the...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  This week, Emily welcomes Abram Jackson, the Director of Interpretation at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, to talk about his work making museum exhibitions more inclusive and equitable. Abram came to the role through an unexpected path — he was a teacher and dean...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  This week, Emily interviews Emory Douglas , the Black Panther Party's Minister of Culture and revolutionary artist. The episode centers on a retrospective of his work, Emory Douglas in Our Lifetime , on view at San Francisco's African American Arts and Culture Complex. A...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  This week, Emily chats with Kara Maria, a painter and printmaker based in San Francisco Episode Highlights: Kara discusses her large-scale wood panel print on display at Chase Center in San Francisco, created at Magnolia Editions in Oakland with master printer Tallulah T...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  In this episode, Emily talks with San Francisco based artist Chad Hasegawa, known for his minimalist, bold abstract style. Chad grew up in Hawaii, moved to San Francisco inspired by the Mission School art movement, and studied advertising at the Academy of Art University...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Today, we are paying tribute and remember Tosha Stimage, who passed away earlier this month.  We are revisiting Emily's conversation with Tosha back in 2024, as they discuss her artistic journey, from her childhood experiences with nature to her current projects and insp...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Host Emily Wilson sits down with Maria Jenson, executive director of SOMArts Cultural Center in San Francisco. Maria shares her journey from dancer and playwright to arts administrator, including stops at SFMOMA before finding her home at SOMArts. The conversation covers...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Today, Emily chats with Richmond-based artist Joe Cerda about his multifaceted creative practice spanning tattoo art, painting, and sculpture. Key Topics: Joe's earliest artistic memories, including his godfather teaching him to draw a boat at age four His self-taught jo...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Today, Emily features San Francisco wire sculptor Kristine Mays discussing her politically charged exhibition "State of the Union" at Modernism Gallery. Created in response to the uncertainty and division at the beginning of 2025, the show explores themes of American ide...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  In this week's Episode, Emily features Adriene Busch, a Bay Area fiber artist and weaver whose exhibition "Of Water" is currently on display at M Stark Gallery in Half Moon Bay. They chat at Adriene's home studio and discuss her artistic journey and creative process. Adr...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Today, Emily chats with Christine Wong Yap, a visual artist working in printmaking, social practice, and community-based art. Christine discusses her latest project "Bay Windows/Ventanas," a trilingual public art installation featuring lanterns created with Chinese-speak...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Happy New Year! Cheers to a great 2026!  In today's Episode, we continue our Winter Hiatus with a Replay of EP27 from June of 2024, with Illustrator Tucker Nichols...  Emily chats with NorCal based artist Tucker Nichols as he shares stories about his spontaneous move to...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Today, for our end of the year REPLAY! Episode, we revisit Emily's chat with Pacifica based artist Saif Azouz, discussing his journey in art, inspiration from nature and literature, his current exhibition 'Cost of Living', and his reflections on boundaries and displaceme...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  In this episode, Emily interviews artist Kathy Aoki, known for her witty, satirical works that blend pop culture, gender commentary, and fictional narratives. Kathy discusses her “Koons Ruins” project, her creative process, and the inspiration behind her art, including p...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  In this Episode, Emily interviews artist Jamil Hellu. Jamil shares his multicultural background—Brazilian, Syrian, Paraguayan, American, and queer—and discusses how these identities inform his work. The conversation explores his journey from Brazil to the U.S., his evolu...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  In this episode Emily interviews artist Masako Miki, whose solo exhibition "Midnight March" is on view at the ICA San Francisco through December 7th. Masako discusses her journey from Osaka, Japan to California, her fascination with Japanese folklore—especially the "Nigh...

This special episode of Art is Awesome was recorded live at KALW Public Radio in San Francisco, featuring host Emily Wilson and a dynamic panel: artists Tricia Rainwater and Jennifer Wofford, and curator Candace Huey. The conversation explores the power of art in challenging times, the importance of community, and the unique creative spirit of the Bay Area. Highlights include: Opening chat with Em...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  In this episode, Emily Wilson interviews artist Julio Cesar Morales. Julio discusses his journey from Tijuana to San Francisco, his influences from social movements, music, and literature, and his interdisciplinary approach to art. The conversation explores his exhibitio...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  In this episode  Emily chats with renowned conceptual artist Paul Kos. Paul shares stories from his upbringing in Rock Springs, Wyoming, his journey from aspiring diplomat to celebrated artist, and his influential years at the San Francisco Art Institute. The conversatio...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  This episode of "Art is Awesome" features painter Luis Felipe Chavez, who discusses his journey from a small town in Mexico to exhibiting his work in San Francisco. Emily explores Luis’s background, his inspiration from Mexican muralism, and his experience navigating lif...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Today, we are replaying Emily's chat with film and video artist Trina Robinson from September 2023. The Podcast is taking a quick Summer hiatus, and will return in mid September with a brand new episode.  About Artist  Trina Robinson: Trina Michelle Robinson explores the...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  Today, we are replaying Emily's chat with photographer Shao Feng Hsu from August of 2023. The Podcast is taking a quick end of Summer break, but will return with a brand new Episode in mid September.  About Artist Shao Feng Hsu: Shao-Feng Hsu is a photographer whose work...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  In this week's Episode, Emily features a discussion with artist Pao Houa Her. Pao's exhibit, 'The Imaginative Landscape,' showcases her exploration of the Hmong community's history and culture through photography and art. The artist details her inspiration from family st...

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  This week, Emily features an interview with Zeina Barakeh, an animation artist from Beirut now residing in Alameda, California. Zeina discusses her journey from studying interior design in Beirut to obtaining an MFA from the San Francisco Institute of Art and her current...