Intersection at 60: A Brief History

“Intersection” began in 1965 as a merger of several faith-based experiments using art to reach underserved youth. The organization was originally called “Intersection Center for Religion and the Arts” and was located at 150 Ellis Street in the basement of a hotel. Three church groups, sponsored by the Glide Foundation, organized artists who were conscientious objectors to the Vietnam War to teach art to youth in the Tenderloin. “Intersection” was inspired by three predecessors: “Bread and Wine Mission”, “The Fourteenth Street Art Center”, and “The Precarious Vision Coffee House”. The organization quickly became an epicenter of new music, theater, comedy, and other arts in the Bay Area in the 1960s.

“Intersection had just taken over St. John’s Methodist Church at 756 Union in North Beach. It had been an active church, but the attendance was so bad they closed it. The Methodist Church said Intersection could have it for a dollar a year. I took the pews out and got seats from the old Surf Theater. We turned the lower-level social hall into a coffeehouse. We had art exhibits there. We built a light-projection booth for Canyon Cinema. In the sanctuary, they showed experimental films—short, personal films by artists like Bruce Conner. There were poetry readings: Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Michael McClure, Kenneth Rexroth, and Josephine Miles. We had wonderful plays like “Slow Dance on the Killing Ground.” There were so many programs going on simultaneously.” 

“In the late 70s, a lot of talent emerged at Intersection that later became part of the establishment. Intersection was on the cutting edge. They were open to people from different backgrounds. Merging multicultural alliances were forming. Things were really jumping.” Photo Credit: Portrait Ishmael Reed, at his home in Oakland, CA, 1983. Photo by Anthony Barboza/Getty Images.

“Catherine was the executive director during a tumultuous time when Intersection’s board had parted ways with their former ED Jack Davis, and half of the board voted to shut down Intersection if it was evicted from its building in North Beach (which it was). Catherine shepherded it to a temporary space on Columbus Avenue and found its next home at 766 Valencia Street. When it was still in North Beach, Catherine started the visual art installation series…her tenure was critical because Intersection would have shut down without her determined leadership” – Frances Phillips, Executive Director, 1988-1994.

“My memories of that space are almost visceral… it was such a quirky and interesting place.” – Frances Phillips When Frances Phillips was the Executive Director in 1988, she and a cohort of other folks worked on developing and articulating the models for fiscal sponsorship and establishing best practices. Phillips began as the Executive Director when Intersection was located in North Beach and then helped the organization move to 766 Valencia in 1985 and 446 Valencia in the Mission in 1989. Portrait of Frances Phillips. Photography by Linda Wilson, 1990.

Intersection for the Art’s resident theater company, Campo Santo, is an award-winning multicultural ensemble dedicated to creating new performances that reflect our world. Since 1996, Campo Santo has premiered more than 50 new performance pieces, working with renowned playwrights, poets, novelists, screenwriters, musicians, and choreographers.

Intersection launched “Jazz at Intersection,” a series that exposed audiences to more than 60 concerts with almost 200 musicians worldwide.

In the early 2000s, Intersection launched the Artist Incubator Program, offering its members fiscal sponsorship, coaching, professional development, and performance opportunities. Most artists in residence at the 466 Valencia Street location were members of the Artist Incubator Program. 

Intersection was one of the early adopters of fiscal sponsorship for the arts. When Frances Phillips was the Executive Director in the 1980s, she and a cohort of other folks worked on developing and articulating the models for fiscal sponsorship and establishing best practices. But even before that, the organization worked to help artists have sustainable careers. At one point, Intersection hosted a radio show about opportunities in the Bay Area and professional development workshops on topics like developing contracts and copywriting your work. Because it wasn’t lively and outward-facing like the visual and performing arts, artist resources were a behind-the-scenes project we did to build the capacity of individual artists and small to mid-sized organizations. When the organization’s financial circumstances called for a change in 2014, we entirely pivoted to artist resources and services to rebuild Intersection as a sustainable, community-oriented organization.

To commemorate our fiftieth anniversary, Intersection presented “The Circle”, a series of arts programs and community conversations from August through November 2015, celebrating its extraordinary past and future. On September 12, 2015, we returned to our roots at Glide Memorial Church in the Tenderloin to present a 50th Anniversary Concert. David Möschler, the music director and conductor of Awesöme Orchestra (an Intersection member), and Lyz Luke, Founder of UnderCover (a graduate of Intersection’s Incubator Program), created the music lineup which included: Awesöme Orchestra Collective, Idris Ackamoor, Rhodessa Jones, Nicole Klaymoon, Sean San José, Marcus Shelby, Bill Berkson, Youth Speaks, Diana Gameros, Meklit Hadero and Carletta Sue Kay. Photo of Diana Gameros and her band.

…with all of our coworking members in tow. This is Intersection for the Arts’ current home. We are thrilled to have a gorgeous, sunlit space with comfortable and spacious desks, meeting rooms, and more. We offer low-cost coworking and rental options for the arts community, and we can’t wait to welcome you in!

Intersection for the Arts moved to a shared leadership model that distributes vision, responsibility, trust, and decision-making across a diverse staff. The shared leadership model was adopted by Executive Co-Directors Allison Snopek and Scott Nielsen. It now continues under the leadership of Executive Co-Directors Yesenia Sanchez and Scott Nielsen.