Our History
THE SHARON BUILDING IS RICH WITH HISTORY
The Sharon Art Studio is San Francisco’s largest public community center for the arts.
Housed in the landmark Sharon Building in Golden Gate Park near the Children’s Playground, the Sharon Art Studio was established in 1968. In 1974, a fire gutted the building and the program was relocated to the old Fleishacker Pool Building near the San Francisco Zoo. In 1980, the program was moved again to temporary housing at the Randall Museum while repairs were being made to the Sharon Building.
Ten years after the 1974 fire, the Sharon Art Studio once again opened the doors of the Sharon Building to the public.
The Studio, once a fledgling arts and crafts program, had grown and diversified its offerings, serving several hundred people annually in the pursuit of artistic growth and expression.
In 1991 a group of students founded the non-profit Friends of Sharon Art Studio (FOSAS) in order to advocate on behalf of the Sharon Art Studio’s program and facility. For more than 20 years FOSAS has partnered with the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department to sustain and enhance the studio and its programming.
