SOMETHIN’ ELSE
“SPACE IS THE PLACE” TERRACE

July 18, 2017 | Rusty Aceves

Glass door to Space is the Place Terrace from the Lester Young Green Room.

In honor of the Sun Ra Arkestra making their SFJAZZ Center debut from August 3-5, we take a closer look at a part of the building named for the late music icon.

The outdoor artist terrace located at the back of the Lester Young Green Room on the SFJAZZ Center’s second floor is named “Space Is the Place Terrace” in honor of avant-garde jazz giant Sun Ra and the 1974 afro-futurist science fiction cult film he starred in, Space Is the Place. Produced by jazz musician and concert presenter Jim Newman, Space Is the Place was filmed primarily in Oakland and San Francisco, and concerns the salvation of black culture through space exploration, with Sun Ra’s music as the divine force that will save the people and usher them to a new future in outer space.

In addition to providing a relaxing outdoor environment for artists to enjoy before and after their performances, the terrace has proven to be a popular location for artists to take promotional photographs, including the SFJAZZ Collective and John Beasley's MONK'estra, among others. Below is one of the SFJAZZ Collective's most recent promotional images, taken by renowned music photographer Jay Blakesberg.