Jorge Bachmann is a San Francisco based sculptor, sound artist and curator. He has been involved in San Francisco’s experimental music/dance and visual arts scene since the early 2000.
Rita Bullwinkel is the author of Headshot (2024) and Belly Up (2018). Headshot was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize and longlisted for the Booker Prize. She received the 2025 Addison M. Metcalf Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and a 2022 Whiting Award. She is editor of McSweeney’s Quarterly and a Contributing Editor at NOON.
Vanessa Chang a writer and curator exploring the entanglements of bodies, machines, and imagination. She is Director of Programs at Leonardo/ISAST and author of The Body Digital (Melville House, 2025). Her work brings artists, scientists, and technologists into collaborative exchange to spark new ideas and research.
Safia Elhillo is a Sudanese poet from Washington DC. She is the author of several books, including the poetry collection Girls That Never Die (One World/Random House, 2022), and the novel in verse Bright Red Fruit (Make Me a World/Random House, 2024). She lives in Los Angeles.
Aaron Harbour is a writer, curator, and DJ based in Oakland, CA. He co-directs Et al. in San Francisco with Jackie Im, where he organizes exhibitions and events. He has curated and exhibited work locally and internationally and produces the music podcast Timber!.
Candace Huey is an art historian, curator and gallerist who has developed programming and exhibitions for international institutions and organizations. She holds degrees in Art History from The Courtauld and UC Berkeley, and is Head Curator at Edge on the Square and owner of re.riddle gallery in San Francisco.
Jackie Im is an Oakland-based curator and co-founder and Director of Et al. in San Francisco. She is Acting Director of Galleries and Public Programs at the San Francisco Arts Commission and has organized exhibitions at the Wattis Institute, The Lab, SFAC Galleries, and LOOP in Seoul. She co-curated the 2024 Oregon Contemporary Artists’ Biennial.
Aïda Jones founded The Jones Institute in 2018, an artist-centered initiative operating from her Alamo Square home and, at times, a gallery at Minnesota Street Project. In the 1990s, she led the transgressive theatre company AvidFan.
Cole Solinger is a Los Angeles and San Francisco–based curator, poet, and sign painter, and co-founder of House of Seiko. An SFAI alumnus, he previously co-founded Delaplane (2019–2022). His work advances a research-driven, multi-generational program centered on Bay Area cultural history while supporting emerging artists and overlooked estates.
Chloë L. Zimberg (she/her) is a dancer, producer, and curator, currently serving as Creative Director of ODC Theater. She co-founded Chlo & Co Dance (2014–2021) and holds a BA in Performing Arts and Social Justice from the University of San Francisco. She is also an alum of the National Arts Strategies and UPenn Arts & Culture Strategy program.
We extend our heartfelt thanks to every applicant who shared their work with us. The depth, originality, and range of submissions were truly moving, and it is always a privilege to witness the many ways artists are thinking, making, and engaging with the world.
Congratulations to the selected artists. We are thrilled to welcome you to Djerassi and to support your time on the land.