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It's First Friday in North Beach — gather 'round. Altered States & Poetry Workshop is happening tonight! Church of Mother Gong at 1345 Grant Ave, in North Beach of course. Doors open at 7:30 PM. See you soon!

What happens when mathematics becomes meditation? This First Friday, we're honored to present the work of Job Smith, an artist whose intricate geometric compositions exist somewhere between mathematics, architecture, and optical illusion. Built from thousands of precisely repeated lines, each piece reveals unexpected rhythms, hidden symmetries, and shifting visual relationships. The longer you look, the more the work seems to transform—inviting slow observation rather than instant interpretation. Join us for an evening celebrating Job's newest exhibition, meet the artist, and experience these remarkable works in person. As always, First Friday is an opportunity to wander North Beach, discover local galleries, and connect with artists, neighbors, and fellow lovers of contemporary art. 📅 This Friday 🕔 5:00–9:00 PM 📍 Professor Seagull's Smartshop & Church of Mother Gong 1351 Grant Ave, North Beach, San Francisco 🎨 Meet the artist 🍷 Community & conversation ✨ Free admission Some works ask to be understood. Others ask simply to be looked at. We hope you'll spend some time with these. #FirstFriday #NorthBeachArtWalk #NorthBeachSF #SanFranciscoArt #GeometricArt #GenerativeArt #OpticalArt #PatternArt #ContemporaryArt #JobSmith #ArtOpening #ProfessorSeagull #ChurchOfMotherGong #SupportLocalArtists

🎨 FIRST FRIDAY IS BACK! 🎨 This Friday, join us in celebrating the opening of a new exhibition by Taylor Lasana, a collage artist whose work draws from surrealism, found imagery, vintage ephemera, photography, and visual storytelling. Working with discarded photographs, old magazines, stamps, typography, and unexpected juxtapositions, Taylor transforms familiar fragments into entirely new narratives—works that feel nostalgic, cinematic, and quietly surreal. Come meet the artist, explore the exhibition, enjoy a drink, and wander through one of North Beach's favorite monthly art walks alongside neighboring galleries and businesses. 📅 This Friday 3rd July 🕔 5:00–9:00 PM 📍 Professor Seagull's Smartshop & Church of Mother Gong 1351 Grant Ave, North Beach, San Francisco ... and all over North Beach!!!!! ✨ Free admission 🖼️ Meet the artist 🍷 Community, conversation & art Whether you're an art collector, collage enthusiast, or simply looking for an inspiring way to spend your Friday evening, we'd love to welcome you. See you at First Friday. #FirstFriday #NorthBeachSF #NorthBeachArtWalk #SanFranciscoArt #CollageArt #TaylorLasana #ContemporaryCollage #FoundObjects #MixedMediaArt #GalleryOpening #ArtOpening #ProfessorSeagull #ChurchOfMotherGong #SupportLocalArtists

📍 Church of Mother Gong / Live Worms Gallery 1351 Grant Ave, San Francisco, CA 📅 Friday, July 3 How do poets write about dreams, visions, coincidence, ecstasy, or experiences that seem to exist beyond ordinary language? Join us for an evening exploring the fascinating relationship between poetry and altered states of consciousness. The evening begins with a lecture tracing the Surrealist movement and its influence on writers who sought to dissolve the boundaries between dreams and waking life. After the lecture, we'll move into a guided creative writing workshop where you'll have the opportunity to experiment with some of these techniques yourself. No previous writing experience is necessary—only curiosity. 🍵 Tea will be served beginning at 7:30 PM, giving everyone a chance to settle in and meet one another. 🖋️ The lecture and workshop begin at 8:00 PM. 📍 Church of Mother Gong / Live Worms Gallery 📅 Friday, July 3 You are welcome to simply come by on the evening of the event, or reserve your place in advance with a very small donation through our Eventbrite. We're looking forward to sharing this evening with fellow writers, artists, dreamers, and the curious. We hope to see you there. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/poetry-altered-states-of-consciousness-tickets-1988215221248?aff=erelexpmlt

Damiana (Turnera diffusa) Few herbs have accumulated as much romantic folklore as Damiana. Across parts of Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean, it has long been associated with courtship, sensuality, and intimacy. It appears in traditional herbal practices, love rituals, and evening gatherings where conversation lingered well into the night. Damiana also has a quiet reputation in dream lore. While these stories belong to folklore rather than established science, the plant has often been connected with reflection, imagination, and the space between waking and sleep. Whether approached as an ethnobotanical curiosity, a ritual herb, or simply appreciated for its warm, aromatic character, Damiana remains one of the most enduring plants in the history of botanical traditions. Plants carry more than chemistry—they carry stories. 🌿 Available at Professor Seagull's Smartshop. #Damiana #Ethnobotany #PlantTraditions #Herbalism #DreamLore #BotanicalHistory #PlantCulture #HerbalFolklore #ModernHerbalism #ProfessorSeagull #Smartshop #SanFrancisco

🌕 Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Full Moon Temple on Saturday. Our doors opened to a night of connection, creativity, and shared moments. As always, we offered art supplies for anyone who felt inspired to create. This painting was one of the beautiful pieces made that evening. I found it around midnight as we were closing the temple, resting against a wall like a little forgotten treasure waiting to be discovered. Thank you for your presence, your openness, your creativity, and for helping make this gathering so special. Every Full Moon Temple is brought to life by the people who share it with us. We are deeply grateful. ✨🌙💛

🌕 CHURCH OF MOTHER GONG'S — FULL MOON TRIP TEMPLE 🌕 The moon is full and the temple doors are open. Join us for an evolving, community-based arts ritual under the strawberry moon — a night of live music, creativity, and pure love energy. Come make something, move to the sound, sip from the non-alcoholic bar, and dissolve into the collective glow. 🎧 DJ set by Maryzelle & Jaleh spinning us into the small hours. 🌙 When: Saturday, June 27, 2026 · 8 PM–Midnight 🏛️ Where: 1345 Grant Ave, SF, CA 🎨 Featuring: Live music · Non-alcoholic bar · Art supplies · Pure love energy Bring your open heart and your wandering spirit. The temple provides the rest. ✨ Scan the flyer or hit the link to find us. All are welcome. ✨

✨ Poetry & Altered States of Consciousness ✨ Come join us and other local poets for a thought-provoking evening of creative writing! On Friday July 3rd, we're hosting a lecture and writing workshop exploring the intersection between poetry and altered states of consciousness — the ways poetry can hold images, memory, and emotion that live outside our day-to-day experience of reality. Together we'll examine the legacy of María Sabina and her literary and cultural impact, alongside the work of Anne Waldman, Allen Ginsberg, and other writers who've experimented at the edges of language and perception. Writing prompts will be provided to spark your own work. ✍️ Pens and paper provided — but bring something to write with if you'd like. 📍 Live Worms Gallery / Church of Mother Gong 🗓️ Friday, July 3, 2026 🚪 Doors open at 7:30 PM — come early to meet fellow poets and share a cup of tea 🍵 🕗 Event begins at 8:00 PM Finding language for the ineffable. We strive to provide an event that is welcoming, accommodating, and supportive of diverse accessibility needs. 💫 📲 Scan the QR code on our flyer to register!

🌙 Peer Support Circle — with facilitator Gwen Pelfini Once a month, we hold a circle: a soft place to land, somewhere to bring the questions, the afterglow, and the things still settling. It's space for integration and general mental wellbeing — whether you're making sense of a recent experience or simply tending to your inner world among people who get it. No fixing, no judgment. Just real support and a room that holds you. 💛 And holding that space with us is Gwen Pelfini. Gwen (LMHC, LPCC, NCC, PATP) is an integrative, multi-licensed psychotherapist, adjunct professor, and certified provider — and the founder of Rooted Ethos. Raised in the Bay Area and trained at UCLA and NYU, she brings two decades in the mental health field, deep trauma work as an EMDR Specialist, and a warm-yet-direct presence that meets you exactly where you are. Her whole philosophy centers on helping people reconnect with their own Inner Healing Intelligence — the idea that the real work isn't done to you, it's done by you. Honoring the whole person: mind, body, and soul. 🌀 A lifelong hiker, water-lover, and singer, she weaves nature and creativity into the way she holds space — exactly the kind of grounded, human presence a circle like ours is built on. This is peer support the way it should feel: honest, warm, and human. Come as you are. There's a seat for you. 🪑 ✨ This gathering is free. RSVP on Eventbrite is encouraged so we know to expect you (and to help us hold the space) — but never required. Link in bio. 📩 Subscribe to the newsletter so you never miss a gathering. 📍 Professor Seagull's Smartshop. 1352 Grant Avenue in San Francisco 7.30pm to 8.30pm 🗓️ Thursday June 18th 2026 #PeerSupport #IntegrationSupport #InnerWork #HoldingSpace #MentalWellbeing #EMDR #CommunityCare #ChurchOfMotherGong #RootedEthos

🌿 A Place for Curiosity 🌿 Tomorrow, stop by and wander a little. Our shelves are filled with herbs, seeds, small-batch elixirs, tonics, tinctures, and intentionally crafted products from around the world. But that's only part of the story. We're also a place for curious books, visionary art, ritual traditions, strange ideas, meaningful conversations, and unexpected discoveries. You'll find oracle decks, works by visionary thinkers and artists, and inspiration from cultures that have explored consciousness, creativity, and transformation for generations. We're fascinated by altered states—not just through plants, but through art, poetry, music, ritual, community, and imagination. We believe creativity itself can be a doorway to new ways of seeing. Whether you're interested in ethnobotany, personal growth, mental well-being, visionary culture, or simply exploring something outside the ordinary, you're welcome here. Come browse, ask questions, discover something new, or just be yourself. 📍Professor Seagull's Smartshop 1351 Grant Ave, North Beach, San Francisco #Smartshop #NorthBeachSF #Ethnobotany #VisionaryCulture #PlantWisdom #Herbalism #Consciousness #ArtAndCulture #Curiosity #Community

✨ Now showing: Lasana Taylor ✨ A new voice on our walls — Lasana brings montage to life, blending images, spirits, and stories into single layered compositions. In his own words: "Most of my time on this planet, I have been in some type of artistic expression, and creating montages is an important section of it. What I would like to do is invite you to view these pieces as an experience involving spirits known and unknown. Part reality, part fantasy. At the same time, I want you to remember that all of you have a gift for creating. There is no good or bad art, only the need for expression. Express yourself!!!!" — Lasana Montage (n.): the art of bringing together different pictures into a single composition — superimposed so they form a blended whole while remaining distinct. Come see his work in person. 🌀 📍 Professor Seagull's Smartshop 1351 Grant Ave, SF 🗓️ On view now #LasanaTaylor #CollageArt #MontageArt #NorthBeachSF #SFArt #SFArtist #BayAreaArtist #MixedMedia #ContemporaryCollage #ExpressYourself

🎬 Free Movie Night at Live Worms! 🎬 This Wednesday, come hang out for a free screening of "Have a Good Trip: Adventures In Psyquedelics" — a wild, funny, thoughtful look at altered states experiences, featuring stories from Sarah Silverman, David Cross, Nick Offerman and a whole cast of other voices sharing their own journeys. Expect laughs, expect reflection, expect good company. 🍿 📍 Live Worms Gallery, North Beach 🗓️ Wednesday June 17th 🎟️ Free entry — just show up Bring a friend. ✨ #LiveWormsGallery #NorthBeachSF #MovieNight #HaveAGoodTrip #FreeEvent #SFEvents #DocumentaryNight