Introducing the 2024 Hearts in San Francisco Artists

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — The San Francisco General Hospital Foundation (SFGHF) is pleased to announce the 18 artists selected to participate in the Hearts in San Francisco 2024 public art project supporting excellence in patient care and innovation at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center (ZSFG). 

The 2024 Hearts in San Francisco series will include three Large Heart sculptures, five Table Top Heart sculptures, and ten Mini Heart sculptures, plus additional archived hearts that will be auctioned off at the February 8, 2024 #HeartsinSF gala.

This year, we celebrate the 20^th anniversary of Hearts in SF. That’s twenty years of coming together to make a profound impact on patient-centered care, twenty years of civic pride in the beautiful Hearts in San Francisco sculptures that raise critical funds for our city’s public hospital, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, and twenty years of investing in health equity and innovation for all who live here. 

Hearts in San Francisco is one of the most widely recognized public art projects around the world. Since the project’s inception in 2004, San Francisco Bay Area artists have created more than 500 hearts that have gone on display all across the city of San Francisco and beyond, from Union Square to the lobbies and conference rooms of corporate supporters throughout the state, including Bank of America, Genentech, Intel, Kaiser, Twitter, and Wells Fargo. Each heart is a unique, one-of-a-kind work of art and celebrates the diversity of San Francisco through designs made of acrylic paints, mosaic art, mixed media sculptures, and more.

Hearts artists will be sharing their progress on their sculptures on social media. Follow SFGHF and the hashtag #HeartsinSF on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn for updates. 

Nimisha Doongarwal, San Francisco — “The Palace”

Nimisha is an Indian immigrant and a sociopolitical artist who moved to the US in 2007 to pursue a higher education in science. Her mom was an artist, and for years she learned to paint and draw by copying her mother’s painting. Nimisha’s work is inspired by her surroundings and finding her own identity as a global citizen. Her work has been featured in over 32 publications and magazines including Forbes, Maake magazine, and Artmarket magazine. She has exhibited in over 80 group and solo exhibits, including the DeYoung Museum, San Francisco International Airport, UCSF Women’s Hospital, Gallery RouteOne, San Mateo City Hall, San Mateo Library, Museum of Northern California, and Brown University.

The Apexer, San Francisco— “Fibers of Life”

APEXER, also known as Ricardo Richey, is a street artist who creates colorful abstract patterns through the use of spray paint. Part of the Gestalt Collective that engages in collaborative murals in San Francisco, Apexer curated mural projects on Bluxome Alley, other districts of San Francisco, and the SFMOMA display windows in association with St. Johns Community Center. His work has been shown extensively both in the Bay Area and abroad. Recent group exhibitions include Calligraffiti: Writing in Contemporary Chinese and Latino Art, Pacific Asia Museum, Pasadena, CA; Bay Area Now 4; Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco; White Walls, and the Luggage Store Gallery. He was the artist in residence at the Headlands Center for the Arts and was featured in documentaries and publications regarding the Mission District in San Francisco.

Nathan Sawaya, San Francisco— “TBD”

Nathan Sawaya is an award-winning artist who creates awe-inspiring works of art using only toy LEGO®️ bricks. His multiple global touring exhibitions, ART OF THE BRICK, have become an international phenomenon reinventing the way people see both LEGO® bricks and art.

Dev Heyrana, East Bay— “Pops of Gold”

Dev is a full-time Fine Artist. She loves working with children and started free art classes called Color Together,, which was featured in ABC’s LOCALISH. Because of this, she also dedicates her time to working with local communities, organizations, and school districts to share her love of Art. Dev believes we have creativity within all of us. She opened a second Library in Walnut Creek in partnership with Rise Up, continuing their message that representation matters in our local libraries. Dev’s High School teacher Mr Giles was an inspiration to her, in many ways she honors him by sharing her love for what Art has done in her life.

Suzanne Baxter, San Francisco— “My Heart in San Francisco”

Susanne Baxter has lived in San Francisco for the last 22 years, and the city has inspired and liberated her to embrace her creative self. She applied to Hearts of San Francisco because she genuinely loves this city. Huge thank you to the team for all that they do. Suzanne Baxter finds inspiration when she takes care of patients. She hears their stories and walks with them through their cardiac journeys, and for the last 12 years, she has been painting for them and decorating their office with those paintings. She is motivated to create because dealing with sick patients makes her sad sometimes, and so painting is her therapy. I take that sadness and make it into something beautiful.

Taiko Fujimura, San Francisco — “Necklace in the Sky 1”

Taiko Fujimura is a mixed-media artist based in San Francisco. Currently, she is focusing on painting with watercolor, ink, acrylic, and oil on a variety of surfaces. Taiko’s work is strongly influenced by Japanese wabi-sabi and Japanese calligraphy, which she has studied since the age of six. Between 1999 and 2001, she studied fine arts at the San Francisco Art Institute and graphic design at the California College of the Arts with scholarships and awards. Her works have appeared in exhibitions, including the de Young Museum, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, and the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco.

Ari Takata-Vasquez, Oakland — “Flourish”

Ari Takata – Vasquez is a fine artist and muralist. Ari is driven by a deep passion for creatives and her community. Founder of the brand and brick and mortar shop, Viscera, Ari strives to enrich Oakland’s entrepreneurial landscape by supporting makers, designers, and artists. She carefully sources well-made, ethical products that help consumers connect with the process and stories behind the products they purchase. Founded in 2014, Viscera has been featured in the SF Chronicle, Racked, 7×7, Oakland magazine, and more. Ari’s passion for creativity started with her passion for art. When she isn’t running her business or studio, she is an artist creating murals across the Bay, and most recently was commissioned by the San Francisco General Hospital Foundation to paint one of their iconic hearts of SF.

Nathalie Fabri, San Francisco — “SF Sunsets”

Nathalie Fabri is a San Francisco artist who specializes in Surreal Urban and Natural Landscapes. Using a variety of bright contrasting colors, she makes city streets come alive under her paintbrush, as the buildings and streets she paints take on the floral landscapes of California. Growing up traveling around the world, she was influenced by books and paintings from Africa, the Middle East and Haiti. Her earliest memories of wanting to be an artist stemmed from observing the colors in these paintings. Focusing on Art in College, she experimented with many mediums, including printmaking and ceramics, finally settling on acrylic painting. She enjoys the layering that acrylics help her create.

UCSF Art for Recovery, San Francisco— “Art Saves Lives”

Art for Recovery is a UCSF non-profit providing a safe environment for cancer and HIV/AIDs patients to express the intense feelings that arise in their diagnosis creatively. They believe artistic expression is instrumental to the healing process, whether during treatment or after. Since 1988, their goal has always been to provide art, music and writing experiences, free of charge, to anyone dealing with life-threatening illnesses including the Bay Area underserved populations. They offer Art for Recovery at the bedside, and through various projects and groups. Art for Recovery’s diverse community includes artists from all cultures and ethnicities, connecting in our spaces with the common trait of having cancer. These experiences are an opportunity for everyone to safely share their story, and the stories of other patients and to support each other in a community of those who understand.

Jennifer Carlquist, San Francisco— “Heart on Fire”

Jennifer Carlquist is a cardiology/emergency room physician assistant who heals real hearts in her practice. She specializes in prevention, but also treats the sickest of heart failure patients. Part of healing the patients is having the heart themed art in the office. Lining the walls of each patient room and waiting room, is an inspiring heart art piece meant to help her connect with her patients and share healing that art can provide. Some of the paintings have goddesses others have inspiring words mixed into the hearts.

Derek Lynch, San Francisco — “SF Habitat”

Derek Lynch was born in Englewood, NJ and currently lives and works in San Francisco. His new work involves the creation of urban-based idealized landscapes in dreamlike circumstances. His use of ambiguous relationships and unsettling juxtapositions of geographic locations in the Bay area are prominent features of my work. Derek merges new digital photography with painting and Bay Area architecture to create new perspectives, focusing on San Francisco neighborhoods as my primary subject. The outcome can be whimsical and yet it offers a serious sociopolitical commentary on the changes to our urban landscape.

Elena Lengardt, San Francisco— “Earth Mother Heart”

Born in 1989 in Kazan, Russia, Elena spent her childhood playing chess and showed a lot of promise in mathematics. She started to paint at 16 years as during her studies at in accredited Business Institute. Her father was Russian Orthodox, and her mother was Muslim, so religious ideas influenced her. She started her career as an auditor in PWC, she also had a few entertainment businesses. After working for 2 years as a CFO in one of the largest construction companies in Russia, Finance, she started to realize the importance of symmetry. he wants to explore the ascent from the concrete reality to the abstract images and then return again. She aims to express her conceptualization of ideas and the enlightenment of meaning through art.

Joelle Jamal Junk, xxxx — “Lovestruck in the Bay”

Joelle Jammal, is an environmental artist and creative director. Her art is called Joelle Jammal Junk. She creates hand-painted pieces, turning everyday packaging and waste material into art. She mainly paints in black and white, with a touch of vibrant color. Which is how she sees life, she doesn’t like gray zones and is a passionate artist who supports environmental, health, and social causes.

Malik Seneferu, San Francisco — “A Frisco Mood”

Malik Seneferu is an award-winning visual artist and modern abolitionist from San Francisco a child prodigy of the arts. Contemporary painter, muralist, wood worker, installation artist, filmmaker, public artist and instructor who explores race, protest, politics, violence, and identity in his work. He is best known for his surrealist portraits on Black Identity using paint, aerosol, wood reclaimed materials, metal, photography , mixed mediums, digital media and poetry.

Rikki & Baggadeluxe, Redwood City — “Neighborhood”

Rikki is a visual artist from Vienna, currently residing in Redwood City, CA. He has created hybrid sculptures and paintings, half animal, half human. In 2018 he started the Manimal project. The MANIMALS embody animal idioms and animal phrases used to describe human behavior. The sculptures pop up as guerilla art installations, provoking in the viewer a combination of attraction and revulsion; similar to the relationship between humans and animals. The Manimal project is a response to humans distancing themselves from nature, reconsidering humans as animals as part of nature. Besides sculptures and installations, I paint MANIMALS, often in response to current events, addressing environmental and social issues.

Florian Bush is an artist who works in a variety of media. His artworks are characterized by the use of everyday objects in an atmosphere of middle-class mentality in which recognition plays an important role. By taking daily life as subject matter while commenting on the everyday aesthetic of middle-class values, he wants the viewer to become part of the art as an added component. Art is entertainment; to be able to touch the work, as well as interact with the work, is important. He uses spray-paint and hand-cut stencils to design everyday objects and motifs. To design everyday objects and motifs. Sharp edges and his sense of. Humor is reflected in his art.

Rose Chan, San Francisco — “Chinatown Mahjong”

Rose Chan was born and raised here in San Francisco. She is a first-generation Chinese American. In fact, she was born at SFGHF in 1980. Rose grew up in Chinatown and North Beach, and her work is inspired by her childhood memories in the places that she loves very much.

Kramskaya, San Francisco — “Ukranian Heart”

Natasha started painting at a young age and was influenced by Vincent van Gogh, and later Warhol and Basquiat. Natasha works with acrylic, oil, and mixed media. She’s developed her own technique where she paints with broad visceral brush strokes, sometimes applying paint directly from a tube. She often incorporates discarded single-use plastic, packaging, and other objects into her work. Lately, Natasha’s art has been focused on Ukraine. One of her recent ongoing series focuses on portraying famous people around the world who have shown support to Ukraine during the Russian invasion. Each person is featured clothed in traditional Ukrainian wear

Jaz Cameron, San Francisco — “TBD”

Jaz Cameron, a cherished San Francisco street artist who has graced our city with his captivating artistry for years. His work adds color and culture to our bustling streets, brightening the daily commute and energizing the way to the nearby ballpark for Giants games and concerts. Born and raised in California, Jaz has always been inspired by San Francisco’s rich artistic history and diverse culture. His passion for art began at a young age, and over time, he honed his skills, developing a signature style that has captured the imagination of the city and beyond. Jaz’s creative process involves acrylic paint, and his canvas of choice is the urban landscape. As an artist, he is best known for his striking geometric shapes and vibrant colors, which draw the eye and spark curiosity. His work is characterized by a unique blend of abstraction and fluidity, with each piece telling a distinct story that reflects the energy and spirit of the city.