Originally created in 2020 as part of the evolution of a film series by EVEN/ODD founder, filmmaker, and artist Mohammad Gorjestani, 1-800 Happy Birthday honors Black and Brown victims of police killings and systemic racism. Created in collaboration with the families of the victims, often here referred to as “celebrants,” the project allows loved ones and the public to leave voicemails for the birthdays of those unjustly killed and makes the messages available for public listening.

In San Francisco, a city shaped by the war on drugs and ongoing inequities, 1-800 Happy Birthday serves as both a mirror and a confrontation. The exhibition exposes the systems that perpetuate harm while creating space for Black and Brown communities to be seen and heard without exploitation. It challenges the city’s myths of progress and liberalism, asking all who encounter it, from grieving families to the affluent, to reckon with the realities beneath San Francisco’s surface.

At its core, the exhibition is a cultural intervention that insists these stories remain visible amid a changing city. The project exists online, at 1800HappyBirthday.com, and allows loved ones and the public to leave and listen to voicemails left on the birthdays of those unjustly killed.

The opening reception for 1-800 HAPPY BIRTHDAY At The Guardhouse was part of the Fort Mason Winter 2026 Art Walk and featured ongoing talks by the curator and members of the families of Sean Monterrosa, Mario Woods, and Dujuan Armstrong. The event also included a Black Gold Book Launch + Radius Books Pop-Up at The Store House, Building D with a live musical performance by Hannah Mayree. The book launch is co-hosted with Radius Books.