ARTIST AS FIRST RESPONDER
Engaging & Supporting Artists whose creative practices Heal Communities and Save Lives
Photos: Eli Jacobs-Fantauzzi
Opening Soon:
Excavating Uranus,
a Psalm for Nyota Uhura
October 8, 2026 - January 30, 2027
San Francisco Arts Commission Main Gallery
We’re excited to announce the upcoming exhibition EXCAVATING URANUS, A PSALM FOR NYOTA UHURA.
Curated by Ashara Ekundayo, Excavating Uranus brings together the work of Sydney Cain, Ayana V. Jackson, Courtney Desiree Morris, and Bryant Terry at the San Francisco Arts Commission Main Gallery
Drawing from African cosmologies and Dr. Rasheedah Phillips’ thinking on Black temporalities, the exhibition considers how Black memory moves across generations, carrying knowledge, ritual, nourishment, and possibility with it.
At the center is Nyota Uhura, the communications officer portrayed by Nichelle Nichols in the original Star Trek series. When Uhura first appeared on American television in 1966, she offered an image of a Black woman in space, occupying the bridge of the Enterprise and helping to connect beings across languages, cultures, and worlds.
Now, Uhura becomes a point of departure for thinking about transmission: Who safeguards Black memory? How does it travel? And what do we carry forward so it is not lost?
Mark your calendars to join us in San Francisco for Excavating Uranus, A Psalm for Nyota Uhura, opening October 8th and on view through January 30, 2027.
Image Credit: Courtney Desiree Morris
Artist As First Responder (AAFR) is an arts collective founded in 2019 by interdisciplinary, independent curator Ashara Ekundayo, that creates sacred spaces for imagination, investigation, production, conservation and rest by centering the work of artists whose practices heal communities and save lives.
Through a 4-point interactive arts platform we engage and collaborate with global communities through public forums, residencies, archives, and exhibitions.
The mission of AAFR is to actively transform the cultural sector into a space where Black, Indigenous and artists and culture-bearers of color are protected, honored, and deeply invested in.
Artist As First Responder (AAFR) is committed to creating spaces that are inclusive and accessible to all. We recognize access as essential to cultural equity and prioritize it across our digital platforms, physical spaces, and public programs.
If you have access needs or would like to request accommodations for an upcoming program, please email artistresponder@gmail.com. We welcome your feedback and view it as an opportunity to grow, strengthen connection, and deepen our commitment to equity and care.