Four Bay Area public art works — including a volunteer-built dragon in Golden Gate Park and a light sculpture at UC Berkeley — are among 100 finalists in the international 2026 CODAawards. Public voting closes July 31.

Four Bay Area public art projects — scattered from Golden Gate Park to a wooded hillside in Ross to Yerba Buena Island — are among 100 nominees in the 2026 CODAawards, an international contest run by CodaWorx that recognizes the best integration of commissioned art into public, architectural, and interior spaces. Public voting for a people's-choice winner closes Friday, July 31, at 11:59 p.m. CDT at codaworx.com.

The Bay Area nominees span considerable range. In Golden Gate Park, the Naga Dragon Sculpture was built through what CodaWorx CEO Toni Sikes told KTVU was a months-long effort by "hundreds and hundreds of volunteers." Sikes called it "the brainstorm of an amazing artist" and "a real engineering feat." At UC Berkeley, the Hypercube — a light sculpture by Los Angeles artist Susan R. Dooley — occupies the university's new engineering building. Sikes described it as "a total immersive environment" created "to inspire innovation by engineering students." In Ross, Marin County, the engineering and art firm Ubu built a mushroom-themed treehouse-style structure into the woods; Sikes said the jury took notice because Ubu "created an entire architectural environment" in the trees. The fourth nominee is the Point of Infinity spire on Yerba Buena Island, overlooking the Bay Bridge.

The 100 finalists were selected by jurors across 12 categories. Sikes said making the list matters beyond the ceremony: "It is bragging rights. The way artists market their work is to be able to go out to the world and say, hey, we've been selected as one of the tops."