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The best the Bay Area has to offer, from the writers and editors of KQED Arts & Culture.

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An animated still featuring a boy wearing a voluminous rainbow-colored cape. A small girl clings to his shoulders as they fly through the air.

‘Arco’ Is a Dystopian Tale Imbued With a Surprising Amount of Optimism

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A man in a hat and colorful sweater poses for a photo while standing near the San Francisco Bay, surrounded by flowers in the shape of four squares.

Frak’s ‘Four Square’ Mixtape Showcases a Rare Roster of Talent

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wide landscape painting with nude figures lounging, framed by spiky wooden sculptures

In ICA San José Show, Landscapes Offer a Makeshift Home for Ghostly Figures

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A Kids’ Guide to Phone-Free Fun, From the Author of ‘The Anxious Generation’

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A bald African American man in a red shirt standing at a podium that reads "UNLV."

A Super Bowl Event for Everyone Who Cares About Black Men’s Brain Health

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pedestals with small sculptures and salon-style hanging of wall works behind

An Eclectic, Open-Call Art Show Returns to Works/San José

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An elderly man wearing a suit with no tie sits on a beige couch smiling broadly. At his side is a middle aged man in jeans and a polo shirt, also laughing.

‘Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!’ Is a Fitting — and Very Funny — Tribute

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group of people in 18th-century clothes with arms extended in ecstatic dance

Entrancing ‘Testament of Ann Lee’ Relays the Shakers’ Saga in Song and Dance

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book cover superimposed over polluted warehouse and residential landscape

In Carolina Ixta’s New Novel, Teens Fight Against Pollution for a ‘Few Blue Skies’

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A crowd of customers waiting in line at a night market food stand.

San Francisco’s Biggest Night Market Plans a Triumphant Return

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