Art of Pride fundraiser celebrates queer creativity while investing in San Diego’s LGBTQIA+ artists
SAN DIEGO, CA (September 14, 2026) This fall, San Diego Pride’s Art of Pride invites the community to “Be the Muse”. OUT at the Museum will bring queer art, performance and community to one of San Diego’s most iconic cultural spaces, the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego (MCASD) in La Jolla. The inaugural fundraiser benefiting Art of Pride will feature performances, burlesque, community activations, art installations and more.
For LGBTQIA+ communities, art has long been more than creative expression. It has been a means of resistance, connection, storytelling and survival. Queer artists have shaped culture for generations, creating both within and beyond the social and political boundaries of their time. Supporting their work today ensures those voices are not simply celebrated in retrospect, but given the resources, audiences and spaces they need to thrive now.
The event arrives at a moment when the world needs artists, and investment in the arts, more than ever. OUT at the Museum is made possible in part through the Prebys Foundation’s investment in affordable access to cultural spaces for area nonprofits, offering an important reminder of what arts funding makes possible: opportunities for artists to create, communities to gather and stories to be shared.
Guests are encouraged to Inspire or Be Inspired, paying tribute to generations of queer icons, artists and muses who refused to disappear. Tickets include access to MCASD’s fall exhibition, Visiones Nocturnas: Queer Nightlife in Contemporary Art, which explores queer nightlife as a space for belonging, transcendence and resilience.
EVENT DETAILS
OUT at the Museum: Be the Muse
Friday, October 16, 2026 | 6–10 p.m.
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego
700 Prospect Street
La Jolla, CA 92037
Tickets and additional event information: sdpride.org/event/out-at-the-
ABOUT ART OF PRIDE
Art of Pride is a program of San Diego Pride dedicated to celebrating and elevating LGBTQIA+ artists and creative expression. Through exhibitions, events and community programming, Art of Pride creates opportunities for queer artists to share their work, connect with audiences and contribute to the cultural life of the region.
ABOUT SAN DIEGO PRIDE
San Diego Pride is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to foster pride, equality and respect for all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities locally, nationally and globally. Through its annual celebrations, advocacy, education, community grants and year-round programs, San Diego Pride works to create a world free of prejudice and bias.
