Best of the Bay 2026 Editors’ Pick: Creative Collective

We’re celebrating Best of the Bay 2026 with a multitude of Editors’ Picks of things we love. Please join us at our 13th Annual Gala on October 27 to celebrate even more! With all the dire news about the AI invasion pricing artists out of San Francisco and killing the city’s creative soul, it’s easy to get depressed about our communal future. Aprill Lacey, co-founder and executive director of nonprofit Creative Collective, gets that. Yet in spite of the challenges artists face in our current climate, she remains optimistic about the city’s art scene. “In the event world, I see lots of opportunities for musicians, other artists, and makers,” Lacey, who has 25 years of experience managing events in the Bay Area, explained to 48 Hills. “In San Francisco, there are lots of things happening, often on the same day. On our end, artists we reach out to aren’t always available because they’re already involved in so many other things.” Formed two years ago, Creative Collective partners w