A new season means new museum exhibits. Here are a few near BART

Explore the art collection of K-pop star RM of mega-group BTS at this one-of-a-kind exhibition at SFMOMA. Photo courtesy of SFMOMA via Secret San Francisco. 

The fall season brings a fresh wave of exhibitions to museums across the Bay Area, from San Francisco to the East Bay. For a sampling of what’s on display – and easily reachable by BART – here are some exciting, new exhibitions to check out this fall.

Use BART's Trip Planner for detailed routes and transit options.

Discover the works of noted South Korean artist Ha Chong-Hyun at the Asian Art Museum this fall. Photo courtesy of the Asian Art Museum. 

“Ha Chong-Hyun: Retrospective” at the Asian Art Museum (Sept. 25-Jan. 25) 

“Ha Chong-Hyun: Retrospective” is the first museum exhibition in North America for one of South Korea’s most influential contemporary artists. It promises to be a sensory journey through 60 years of unique abstract art from an artist who transforms the surfaces of canvases up to eight feet tall into treasure troves of texture. Head to the Yang Yamazaki Pavilion at the Asian Art Museum for this exhibition. 

The Asian Art Museum is at 200 Larkin St., just 0.2 miles from the Civic Center/UN Plaza.

Discover ceramic art from the Jamaican Diaspora at the Museum of the African Diaspora (MOAD) in San Francisco. Photo courtesy of MOAD. 

“After the Island: Ornament and Ceramic Practice in the Jamaican Diaspora” at the Museum of the African Diaspora (Sept. 30-May 30)

This new exhibition at the Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD) explores contemporary ceramic practices in Jamaica, shaped by Caribbean histories and culture. Each artist approaches Jamaica from a different perspective along the diasporic journey. See how artistic and cultural traditions are passed down, preserved and reinterpreted through generations. This exhibition is a curatorial partnership with the Black Artists’ Network in Dialogue and Gardiner Museum in Toronto. 

MoAD is located at 685 Mission St., just 0.2 miles from Montgomery St.

Check out the art collection of K-pop star RM of BTS at SFMOMA this fall. Photo courtesy of SFMOMA.

“RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me” at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (Oct. 3 - Feb. 7) 

Fans of the K-pop supergroup BTS won’t want to miss this special exhibition at SFMOMA. “RM x SFMOMA: Between You and Me” is the first-ever museum exhibition featuring artworks from the personal collection of RM (born Kim Nam-joon) of BTS. The South Korean rapper, songwriter, record producer and global leader of BTS has also become a prominent contemporary art patron and collector. 

Located at 151 3rd St., SFMOMA is just 0.3 miles from Montgomery St.

Look at history through an artistic and critical lens with “Private Frontiers: Media Legacies of the Cold War” at the Berkeley Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA). Photo courtesy of BAMPFA. 

“Campus Collaborations / Private Frontiers: Media Legacies of the Cold War” at BAMPFA (Sept. 9-Dec. 13) 

The Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) presents an exhibition featuring new and recent work in photography, installation and video by artists who take a critical look at the Cold War in order to understand today’s media-saturated world. Artists Naeem Mohaiemen, Prajakta Potnis, TJ Shin and Tiffany Sia draw on media such as television and pop music to look at how politics was presented through culture in the second half of the 20th century. 

Located at 2155 Center St., BAMPFA is just 0.1 miles from Downtown Berkeley. 

Look back at Japanese American Incarceration through a new lens at the Oakland Museum of California (OMCA). Photo cropped from a Russell Lee image from the Library of Congress, courtesy of OMCA. 

“BeHere / 1942: A New Lens on the Japanese American Incarceration” at the Oakland Museum of California (Sept. 18-Dec. 27) 

Through immersive installations of images and augmented reality experiences, Japanese artist Masaki Fujihata takes visitors to the moments in 1942 before Japanese Americans in California were sent to internment camps during World War II. Fujihata, who spent years going through the archives of famed photographers Dorothea Lange and Russell Lee, enlarges and activates their images to encourage visitors to see the emotions of each subject. This exhibition includes elements specific to the Bay Area. 

The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) is located at 1000 Oak St., just steps from Lake Merritt Station.

Explore tufting as a form of artistic expression. Photo courtesy of the Lesher Center for the Arts. 

“High Pile: Concepts in Tufting” at the Lesher Center for the Arts (Sept. 26-Dec. 13) 

This exhibition at the Lesher Center’s Bedford Gallery explores the art of tufting beyond traditional craft in order to highlight its role in contemporary fine art. “High Pile” brings together 20 artists whose tufting work conveys narratives and cultural meaning. Together, the artists’ work shows the range and possibilities of tufting as a contemporary art. 

The Lesher Center for the Arts is located at 1601 Civic Drive, approximately 0.5 miles from Walnut Creek Station.

Which exhibit are you planning to visit first?

Tell us on social media tag #SFBARTable and follow us on  Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok to see all of the best BARTable events, places to eat and where to have fun around the Bay.