SFMOMA Free Community Day — Memorial Day

SFMOMA will open its doors for a museumwide Free Community Day on Sunday, May 24, 2026, during Memorial Day weekend. The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art said the event will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at its building at 151 Third Street and include free admission for all visitors, plus family activities and performances. The day is tied to the opening of “Matisse’s Femme au chapeau: A Modern Scandal” and the museum’s new presentation, “Reimagined: The Fisher Collection at 10.” General admission tickets are required, but they are free and can be reserved online. ### When is the free day, and what does it cover? Sunday, May 24, is the date SFMOMA lists for its 2026 Free Community Day. The museum says the event includes free museum admission all day and special programming across the building. SFMOMA’s free-days page says Free Community Days offer museumwide admission to all visitors and are built around performances and activities tied to current exhibitions. (sfmoma.org) SFMOMA’s visitor guide lists standard adult admission at $30, with seniors at $25 and students at $23, while guests 18 and younger are always free. The May 24 event temporarily removes that general admission charge for all visitors. ### What is the day built around? “Matisse’s Femme au chapeau: A Modern Scandal” opens at SFMOMA on May 16 and runs through September 13, 2026, according to the museum’s press materials. (sfmoma.org) SFMOMA said the exhibition examines the history and impact of Henri Matisse’s “Femme au chapeau,” a painting in the museum’s collection that does not travel under the terms of its bequest. (sfmoma.org) Janet Bishop, SFMOMA’s Thomas Weisel Family Chief Curator, said in the museum’s press release that the show is an opportunity to share the full story of a work she described as emblematic of Matisse’s break from convention. The museum also links the free day to “Reimagined: The Fisher Collection at 10,” its newly reworked Fisher Collection galleries. (sfmoma.org) ### What can visitors do besides walk the galleries? House of MORE! will perform at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. in the Phyllis Wattis Theater on Floor 1, according to the event schedule. SFMOMA said the performances are led by Juanita MORE! and feature Ehra Amaya, Mary Vice, Mojo Carter, Tito Soto, Luismi Munster, Dulce De Leche, Pseuda and Helixer. (sfmoma.org) From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., SCRAP will lead a Family Studio activity in the Koret Education Center. SFMOMA said participants will play a collection-themed “I Spy” game, fill a small container with selected objects and take it home. From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., the museum will host “Spotlight on Collectors” in the Gina and Stuart Peterson White Box on Floor 4. (sfmoma.org) SFMOMA said featured participants include Austin Leong and Megan Kelso, the SFAI Legacy Foundation + Archive, Lenore Chinn, Letterform Archive, Juanita MORE!, Prelinger Archives, the SFMOMA Library and Archives, San Francisco Giants Hands on History, San Francisco Public Library and San Francisco Zine Fest. ### Do visitors need tickets for the Matisse exhibition? “Matisse’s Femme au chapeau: A Modern Scandal” will have separate timed entry on May 24, even during the free day. SFMOMA said those timed tickets will be available only on-site at the Floor 2 Ticketing Desk, on a first-come, first-served basis, with limited capacity. (sfmoma.org) General admission tickets for the free day can be reserved online starting two weeks in advance, the museum said. SFMOMA’s visitor guide says the museum is near Montgomery Street BART and next to its parking garage at 151 Third Street in San Francisco. ### What comes after this weekend? June 14, 2026, is the next free-date listing on SFMOMA’s calendar after the Memorial Day weekend event. (sfmoma.org) The museum says that program will be a Free Family Day focused on the refreshed Fisher Collection galleries on Floor 5, with activities tied to works by Ellsworth Kelly, Sol LeWitt and Alexander Calder. (sfmoma.org)