Time: 9:30pm – 1am

Immediately following our “Gray Tie” benefit gala, GALVANIZE, we invite you to celebrate our grand opening with a special evening of art, music and community in the inspiring surroundings of our new digital art center the night before we open our doors to the public. Including new works from three pioneers in the field of digital art (C.E.B. Reas, Camille Utterback and Stamen Design) our inaugural exhibition, OPEN, celebrates Gray Area’s arrival as San Francisco’s leading digital arts organization and a cornerstone of the city’s emerging Tenderloin Arts District.

For our opening night, we chose to keep it in the family, inviting three extreme local talents to share their wealth of musical knowledge and skills in moving audiences with you, the initial Gray Area supporters. GAFFTAhours will be a 21+ limited-capacity event, featuring music for exploring and dancing, a hosted bar with wine and beer, and limited edition keepsakes. Advance tickets are $25 and available for purchase via EventBrite. All proceeds go directly towards funding future GAFFTA programs and events.

QZEN
GAFFTA’s own Director of Music & Magic, (Susan Langan (Qzen) was introduced to Gray Area when Josette Melchor, our Executive Director, asked her to DJ at the gallery’s initial opening years ago. Josette continued to invite her back, eventually extending further involvement in the project as the organization grew. After a decade of DJing different styles of music, fifteen years of event production experience, four years as the dance and electronic music editor for iTunes, hosting radio shows, and providing vocals on a handful of underground hit tracks, Qzen has begun to create her own music. She is currently working with the 40 Thieves on a full-length album as well as creating a live A/V experience for performance in Buenos Aires in November, a collaboration inspired by and created with her fellow GAFFTA artists.

NIKOLA BAYTALA
Over the second half of his life, house music DJ/Producer Nikola Baytala has carved his own niche in the global electronic music scene in addition to a legendary local reputation. With over a decade of DJ experience, laudable residencies, and signature tracks produced on well-respected labels, Nikola cemented his status as an A-List artist with the distinctive style that earned him the chance to perform alongside such diverse artists as Swayzak, Daft Punk, and Jane’s Addiction. His eclectic list of musical influences and loves defies a fixed sub-genre of house music. When Nikola steps up to the decks, he selects from his soul, choosing the percussive melodies, drums and basslines that make up the wordless language he speaks best.

DJG
Born and raised in the Bay Area, Dean J. Grenier (DJG) is currently a rising star in the world of dubstep, a bass-heavy music ripe for both intellectual pondering and dancefloor enjoyment. To call him a mere dubstep DJ fails to encompass his history, however. Dean started to DJ at 15, playing industrial music at clubs he wasn’t legally allowed into. His interest in the darker, deeper end of electronic music led him to become a well-respected drum & bass player — and this after years of studying the violin and music production. DJG’s production style is richly melodic, emotive while full of groove and energy. When he gets behind the decks, his passion for the music he plays is palpable, and his affection for dancefloor selections makes each set a spontaneous combination of the highs and lows that his music collection has to offer.

Tickets are only available at the door the evening of the event.