ArtSeed has grown in ways we could hardly have imagined twenty-five years ago, but through every exciting change, we have remained anchored by the principles that started it all. Our philosophy is simple. We believe that sustained mentorship empowers young people facing adversity, whether their difficulties are rooted in learning differences, social struggles, financial instability, or something entirely unique.
Treated with respect and dignity, given access to professional materials and complex ideas, and taught the discipline and self-assurance that practicing fine arts requires, our participants push themselves to discover their own unique gifts. We have witnessed over the years with thousands of ArtSeed alumni that excellence learned in art-making transfers to many other areas of life, from academic success to career ambition to active citizenship.
As we pause to reflect on twenty-five years well-spent, we see ArtSeed’s legacy in every person, idea, and relationship we’ve come to know. While thousands have placed a brick in our foundation, we cannot feature them all. The milestones below offer a glimpse into our journey over the years.
ArtSeed took root.
Teaching artists Josefa Vaughan, Marissa Kunz, and Laura Kamian founded ArtSeed to bring cutting edge arts education practices to at-risk youth. They began their operations in San Francisco’s Mission District with the support of ArtSeed’s first board members, earliest volunteers, inaugural class of youngsters, and their parents. 
Our first-ever Fine Arts Summer Intensive took place—and culminated in our first-ever Annual Exhibition.
ArtSeed’s earliest participants collaborated with Tim Rollins of K.O.S. on A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a painting and collage project that took place at the de Young Museum’s Artists Studio. This piece became part of a larger exhibition with Southern Exposure: Gods and Monsters.
Our good work was officially given 501(c)(3) status.
Now labeled a nonprofit organization, ArtSeed’s community-led projects became the basis for a lasting institution. This designation opened up new doors and opportunities that have allowed us to expand our impact and make our long-term mentorship model even more stable.
ArtSeed hit the Appalachian Trail.
To support the students of Burnett Child Development Center in San Francisco’s Hunters Point, Arwen and Heather—the son and daughter-in-law of ArtSeed founder Josefa Vaughan—spent six months hiking the Appalachian Trail to raise funds. During this time, neighborhood violence kept the very children they were hiking for stuck indoors, so Arwen and Heather turned their hike into a virtual field trip. With a constant exchange of photos, drawings, and letters, they shared inspiration found in the natural world to provide a vital imaginative escape during a difficult time.
Going once, going twice… ArtSeed’s first auction took place.
Hosted by the San Francisco Arts Institute in the historic Diego Rivera Gallery, our first auction included performances by Beau Casey, Cornerstone Gospel Singers, Kinji Hayashi, William Klingelhoffer, and Wataka, and extraordinary auctioneering by Greg Quiroga.
ArtSeed expanded to the Presidio.
From the Mission to Bayview to the Presidio, we’ve made friends in every neighborhood of San Francisco. We’ve kept our studio in Hunters Point and added a second home in the Presidio, where artmakers and admirers from all over the world are welcome to create in this beautiful, historic National Park.
Our community grooved for a good cause.
We’ve always enjoyed the opportunity to get up, shake it out, and feel inspired by the people around us. At our first creative “marathon,” we raised funds to provide scholarships and keep all of our programs on a sliding scale.
Art-a-thon was born.
Hosted every year since, ArtSeed’s first Art-a-thon kickstarted the model we follow to this day. This multi–hour event is an opportunity to make new friends, try out new art skills, and enjoy a celebratory atmosphere. Funds raised at Art-a-thon directly benefit participants of our Fine Arts Summer Intensive by paying their tuition and covering the cost of field trips.
A generous gift from Michelle Vignes opened the doors to the ArtSeed Cottage.
Michelle was a renowned French photographer and a dear friend who believed deeply in our mission. A surprise to all of us at ArtSeed, she left her Diamond Heights home as a legacy gift which allowed us to transform it into a true creative sanctuary. For five years, the Cottage served as San Francisco’s only live-in artist residency and offered everything from intimate readings to public arts events. It became a place for creatives from the city’s most marginalized communities to meet friends, learn from one another, and find confidence in themselves. 
ArtSeed found sanctuary at Labyrinth Studios.
After parting ways with the Cottage, we found a new home in a spacious old church on Geary Boulevard. We launched four years of continuous, year-round workshops. The expansive new space, named for its labyrinth garden, gave our participants some larger-than-life canvas to explore their talents and connect with the neighborhood.
We made our digital debut.
Since 2005 our Presidio WorkSpaces at Tides Converge have grown increasingly central to educational outreach, artistic endeavors, and arts administrative internships that culminate in annual public events here in the park. In the advent of COVID-19 we moved our programs online immediately using the internet to achieve sociopolitical climate activism and optimism. Our teens, with guidance from a small staff and board, seamlessly learned to create online weekly classes, an all-day Art-a-thon, a three-week Summer Intensive.
Our youngsters counseled us.
Some of ArtSeed’s earliest participants were also founding members for our Youth Council—a group that advises us on how we can best help, reach, and work with their peers. Thanks to a generous donation from Flying Cloud Retreat in Windsor, CA, we took our guiding youngsters on a trip and gave them the opportunity to expand their artistic and leadership horizons in an entirely new place. 
ArtSeed’s community continues to grow.
With our doors wide open to people of every possible age and background, it’s no wonder we continue to make so many great friends. Our programming, ranging from free weekly lessons to our Annual Exhibition to special events, carries on the values that ArtSeed was founded on: sustained arts mentorships change lives. We hope you’ll join us and see this for yourself, as an apprentice, mentor, supporter, or something entirely new. 