Howard Hack (1932–2015) was a Bay Area painter and graphic artist whose representational work explores light, reflection and the psychological character of urban spaces. He received a B.S. in philosophy from the University of San Francisco in 1962 and developed his practice amid the flourishing of Bay Area Figuration. His interiors, streets and everyday objects often possess an uncanny stillness, linking his work to traditions of Magic Realism while maintaining a distinctly Northern California sensibility. Hack was closely connected to artists associated with the Bay Area Figurative movement. In 1959, he and sculptor Manuel Neri, who later joined the UC Davis faculty, shared a studio in San Francisco’s historic Audiffred Building. Hack exhibited extensively in Northern California, and was included in Oakland Museum of California’s Scene in Oakland, 1852–2002, situating his work within the broader history of artistic production in the Bay Area.