Shows
Art Yap9 - Tina Wiley Crawford, Art Jobs InsideThis week’s guest is Tina Wiley Crawford, recruitment manager at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. She is also a talented graphic designer, a champion for youth programs, and—by her own words—a Swiss Army knife of skills.In this episode, we talk about why claiming “artist” can feel weird, why thank-you notes still matter, and how to get your foot in the door—without selling your soul or starving. Plus, we talk cake decorating, cool tables, and how field trips actually change lives.You’ll laugh, you’ll get inspired, and maybe you’ll sho...2025-07-2539 min
Art Yap8 - Deborah Munk & Bryan Keith Thomas, What KeepsIn this week’s episode I head down to the dump to trash talk...pardon me, talk trash with Deborah Munk, who’s been running the Artist in Residence program at Recology San Francisco for over 25 years, and Bryan Keith Thomas, an incredible artist, educator, and deep thinker about materials, memory, and community.We talk about how trash becomes treasure, how art can teach sustainability through storytelling, and the surprising ways objects hold history. There’s stories about found mirrors, lost objects, 19th-century heirlooms, and fourth graders learning to see garbage differently.If you’ve ever won...2025-07-1834 min
Art Yap7 - Micah Ruiz, The Luck You CraftToday’s guest is Micah Ruiz, the founder of Orion Custom Framing. Micah is the kind of person who makes you feel like you can build something beautiful from scratch—whether it’s a frame, a business, or an entire life.Micah grew up homeschooled in a town of 400 people, the son of a pastor, with no formal arts education—but with a punk mindset that carried him from a teenage summer job in a rural Oregon frame shop all the way to framing for SFMOMA and the Cantor We talk about everything: how frami...2025-07-1131 min
Art Yap6 - Allison Gamlen, Futures Worth FundingToday’s episode features Allison Gamlen, a lifelong arts advocate who now serves as the Visual and Performing Arts Coordinator for the San Mateo County Office of Education.We talk about growing up in the wings of the symphony and Kabuki theater, what happens to the brain when children are denied creativity, and how California’s Prop 28 is giving public school students a shot at becoming the next generation of culture-makers.This episode is for anyone who knows that the arts aren’t extra—they’re essential. That creativity is a human right. And that w...2025-06-2731 min
Art Yap5 - Jonathan Carver Moore, To Be SeenToday’s guest is Jonathan Carver Moore—a gallerist, curator, and unapologetic advocate for emerging artists, especially artists of color and queer voices. Jonathan runs his namesake gallery in San Francisco’s budding Mid-Market arts corridor, where he’s created a space that’s as bold, joyful, and fiercely intentional as the work he champions.In this episode, we talk about what it means to create space—literally and figuratively—for artists who’ve historically been pushed to the margins. We get into the roots of his journey, the power of representation, and the business of building a gallery that f...2025-06-1325 min
Art Yap3 - Anna Lisa Escobedo, Everyone Has a Story to TellToday’s episode features Anna Lisa Escobedo a true community building baddie from LA. Anna Lisa’s creative project management connects artists with opportunities, each other, and the public. She pours herself heart and soul into making the arts accessible to everyone. And at the time of this recording she is on that job market, so scoop her up fast if you are looking to improve your organization’s creative vision, strategy, and day to day environment because Anna Lisa’s a real one.2025-06-1341 min
Art Yap2 - LE BohemianMuse, A Multifaceted StorytellerIn today’s episode I sit down with LE BohemianMuse in her beautiful sunlit SF studio in the mission. LE is first generation Ghanian Bay Area-ian, and I just love talking art and life with her. She’s a philosophical soul who is a multifaceted storyteller at heart. A creative force by nature, LE has no trouble blending her art practice with a streamlined business strategy. Hopefully you are just as excited as I was to hear more about her business muse reverie atelier, which provides 1 on 1 coaching, uplifting blog posts, and curated collaborative art experiences blending food and art...2025-06-1327 min
Art Yap4 - Craig McIntire, Connecting Through ArtToday’s guest is Craig McIntire—a self-taught painter, a practicing speech-language pathologist, and the kind of person who instantly feels like a friend you’ve known forever. He’s warm, funny, endlessly curious, and has a deep love for people (and Halloween, though sadly we didn’t get to that part). I could listen to him tell stories about anything and everything. In this episode, we talk about his creative work, his ever-evolving artistic identity, and the joy he finds in creating authentic connection through imagination. 2025-06-1341 min
Art Yap1 - Stella Lochman, Radical JoyIn today’s episode I sit down with Stella Lochman, a joy-driven community programming visionary with deep roots in San Francisco, the city where she was born and raised. Carrying forward the legacy of the city’s progressive and thoughtful artists, Stella offers a utopian perspective on our current cultural moment—along with simple tangible ways we can show up for one another through a model of mutual aid. So hang on tight for hot takes, fernet sips, Truffle Man art, community radio and collective liberation fueled by imagination. 2025-06-1332 min
Art YapIntroducing: Art YapShawna Vesco Ahern gabs, gossips, and otherwise chitchats with San Francisco Bay Area arts and culture baddies about how they build community through creativity—and the winding life paths that led them there. Art Yap guests bring fresh perspectives on curation, arts project management, community programming, arts funding, legislation, marketing and more. Click here to view the episode transcript.
2025-05-1402 min