Friday Nights at OMCA | Afrobeats Oakland Takeover

Friday Nights at OMCA | Afrobeats Oakland Takeover, Live Figure Drawing with Sketchboard, and Gallery Chats

Come join us for the Afrobeats Oakland Friday Nights Takeover! Oakland’s most exciting arts and culture brand is partnering with OMCA to host the welcome party for their Annual Afrobeats at the Lake Festival. Afrobeats Oakland shares a taste of their main festival by coloring Friday Nights with a melding of various African cultures, music, and dance. Between the dance tutorials and dance party, the Ethiopian tea ceremony, the live DJ set and the performances from Juan G, KOKO, Christina Alexandria, Asaba, and other special guests, OMCA is set to welcome guests of all ages and backgrounds to a Friday Nights like none other!

Our Gallery of California Art will also be activated with a Friday Night classic, Sketchboard Live Figure Drawing. 

OMCA welcomes all skill levels, including those who have never drawn before and want to try drawing. Art supplies and clipboards will be available for use, and your artwork will be yours to take home or exchange with others. A costumed model representing the diversity of the Bay Area will be posing in the Gallery of California Art for times ranging from 2 to 20 minutes. Since drawing will take place in the gallery, please be mindful of the space and bring only the following media from home: sketchbooks (max size 9×12 inches) and pre-sharpened enclosed graphite or charcoal pencils.

Sketching in the gallery is included with the price of general Museum Gallery access and free for Museum Members. 

In addition to an outstanding event experience, every Friday Nights at OMCA also offers guests a well-rounded gallery experience with Gallery Chats. Unlike the traditional museum tour, Gallery Chats invites visitors to chat, ask questions and connect with our OMCA facilitators who combine content knowledge with lived experience to encourage meaningful dialogue and fresh interpretations of our exhibitions. Come see OMCA in a new light this Friday Nights!

Limited $10 flat rate parking for Friday Nights is available in the OMCA Garage until 10 pm. Learn more about getting to the museum.

Program Schedule:

5—9 pm Core Galleries and Special Exhibitions evening hours with Museum ticket

5:30— 8:30 pm Afrobeats Oakland Takeover | OMCA Garden

5:30—6:15 pm Sketchboard Live Figure Drawing | Gallery of California Art

5:30—7:30 pm Gallery Chats | Gallery of California Art, History, and Natural Sciences

6:45—7:30 pm Sketchboard Live Figure Drawing | Gallery of California Art 

6:45—8:50 pm Afrobeats DJ | Amphitheater

About Friday Nights:

Gather with family, friends, and community every Friday at 5 pm for free live music and hands-on activities, Off the Grid food trucks, and late night access to our galleries and special exhibitions, with a Museum ticket.

Bring your own or grab dinner from any one of the 8 Off the Grid food trucks on 10th Street between Oak and Fallon Streets. Beer, wine, mixed and non-alcoholic drinks are available for sale. After grabbing a meal from a wide and weekly changing menu of culinary creations, head to the OMCA Garden where you’ll find picnic tables and blankets to enjoy your local eats. Play lawn and table games, enjoy weekly rotating Museum programming, and create new memories at one of the Town’s most treasured spaces right in the heart of Oakland.

No outside alcohol permitted. Performances are subject to change. Limited $10 flat rate parking for Friday Nights is available in the OMCA Garage until 10 pm.

Accessibility 

Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) is committed to providing programs that are accessible, welcoming, and inclusive of our community. Wheelchairs, sensory inclusive devices, and additional amenities are available for checkout on a first come, first served basis at the Ticketing Desk. To request other accommodations, like American Sign Language (ASL), Cantonese, Spanish or another language interpreter, please email [email protected] at least three weeks before the event. Learn more about our accessibility options.

Afrobeats Oakland is a collective that has sought to democratize the experience of Afropop and African culture while simultaneously deconstructing the spaces it has thus far been relegated to. It aims to utilize these newfound spaces to create opportunities for cultural diversity, deeper understanding of the African continent and encourage dialogue among its diaspora, all while ushering in a new approach to public celebration and togetherness.

Sketchboard is a BIPOC figure drawing collective, curating eclectic, diverse, and affordable events in the Bay Area over the last 10 years. Their mission is to feature the bodies of people at the intersection of multiple identities, offer living wages to our art models, and create an inclusive environment for the artists in Sketchboard’s community.

Sponsors

Friday Nights at OMCA with Off the Grid is sponsored by the Oakland Museum Women’s Board and Bank of America.