Sonoma County’s sheer natural beauty and general creative ambience entices visitors, as well as long-time residents to explore the many and varied fine art offerings. With the addition of great food, drink, and outdoor activities, it’s easy to spend a day, a week, or a lifetime traversing through the vineyards, forests, and rolling hills, along the scenic coast, and through the welcoming towns of Sonoma County.

This month we’ll see preview exhibitions for Art at the Source Open Studios; and exhibitions that explore identity narratives in Threads That Connect Us, an exhibition from The Origin Stories Project; and John Paul Morabito: Dancing in the Night which features richly woven works that blend digital processes with handcraft, and Norma I. Quintana: Paradise of Memory, a series of portraits that connect personal and collective histories.

The following is a partial list of local art exhibitions. Many eateries, wineries, and civic buildings also present changing art shows in their spaces.

*** Designates an Opening Reception.

Arts Guild of Sonoma
Through June 1, Embracing Art
*** Opening Reception Coincides with Art Walk Thursday, May 7, from 5 to 7 p.m.
May Guest Artist, Donna Loftus, brings a deeply personal and intuitive approach to her work. Since retiring, she has embraced painting as a central creative pursuit, exploring a range of mediums and subject matter with curiosity and joy. Her work reflects a strong connection to color and the natural world, often drawing inspiration directly from what she observes around her.
Also showing works by nearly 20 Guild artists.
140 E. Napa St., Sonoma
707-996-3115
www.artsguildofsonoma.org

 

Charles M. Schulz Museum
Through September 16, Snoopy’s Family
Snoopy once claimed to be an “only dog,” but we know that’s not true! Enjoy an in-depth look at Snoopy’s family with original Peanuts art by Charles M. Schulz, animation cels, and products. Learn about Daisy Hill Farm, Snoopy’s parents, his siblings, and how they became a part of Peanuts.
2301 Hardies Lane, Santa Rosa
707-579-4452
www.schulzmuseum.org

Cloverdale Arts Alliance Gallery
204 N. Cloverdale Boulevard, Cloverdale
707-894-4410
www.cloverdaleartsalliance.org

 

Corricks Art Trails Gallery/ My Daughter the Framer
May 1 through June 27, 2026 Art at the Source Preview
*** Reception May 1 and June 5, from 5 to 7 p.m.
Featuring works from dozens of artists from the popular Art at the Source Open Studio program. Explore and get inspired for your Studio visit itinerary!
637 Fourth Street, Santa Rosa
707-546-2424
www.corricks.com

Erickson Fine Art Gallery, Inc.
324 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg
707-431-7073
www.ericksonfineartgallery.com

Fulton Crossing Art Gallery
1200 River Rd., Fulton
www.fultoncrossing.com/exhibitions

Graton Gallery
Through May 10, Printers Ink—Expressions in Printmaking
Featuring prints by Rik Olson and Mark Ross, with guest artists Livia Knight, Craig Magoon, Karen Purdy, and Linda Schroeter.

May 14 through June 21, Three Traveler Views – Paint & Stitch
*** Artists Reception Saturday May 16, from 1 to 4 p.m.
Featuring artworks by Julie Merrill, Cyndi Connolly & Heather Myler; with guest artists Margo Elis, Wendy Gorris, and Sue Ellen McCann.
9048 Graton Road, Graton
707-829-8912
http://www.gratongallery.net

Hammerfriar Gallery
Through July11, Forms in Flux
Kerry Vander Meer and Laura Van Duren bring together their shared love of organic abstract forms using a variety of materials and bold colors. Together, their work reflects forms in continual transformation evolving through intuitive processes.
132 Mill St, Healdsburg
707-473-9600
https://www.hammerfriar.com/art-gallery

Healdsburg Center for the Arts
Through May 30, An Abstract Vision
334 Center Street, Healdsburg
707-431-1970
healdsburgcenterforthearts.org

IceHouse Gallery / Digital Grange
405 East D St., Petaluma
707-778-2238
www.digitalgrange.com

 

Laguna Foundation, Heron Hall
May through August, Illuminating Connections
Megan Gnekow offers a series of watercolor and ink illustrations that highlight the connections between organisms in their ecosystems, with a special focus on threatened or endangered species in California. All organisms exist in relation to each other – a kaleidoscope of connections across species, habitat, and time. When we recognize the interconnected needs of all species – including our own – we can make decisions that benefit us all.
900 Sanford Road, Santa Rosa
707-527-9277
www.lagunafoundation.org

 

Museum of Sonoma County
Art
Through May 24, Artistry in Wood
Artistry in Wood, presented in collaboration with the Sonoma County Woodworkers Association, showcases fine woodwork by local and regional artists. Now in its 36th year, Artistry is one of the most respected juried shows of woodwork in the state, and a perennial favorite for museum visitors.

History
Through August 23, Disturbing the Peace: Sonoma County’s Early Punk Underground
In the 1970s and ’80s, as their parents settled in the suburbs or got “back to the land,” a generation of disaffected youth in Sonoma County channeled their alienation into a subculture that would grow to become a cultural force: the underground punk scene. With photos, flyers, records, zines, videos, listening stations and more, Disturbing the Peace chronicles the impact of Sonoma County’s flourishing punk movement that continues to reverberate today. A first-of-its-kind visual and audio history of Sonoma County’s punk scene, Disturbing the Peace is guest curated by Gabe Meline, KQED’s Senior Editor of Arts and Culture. A Santa Rosa native, Gabe evidences his love of the punk scene (as both musician and fan) in the artifacts and details gathered for this exhibition.
425 Seventh Street, Santa Rosa
707-579-1500
www.museumsc.org

Occidental Center for the Arts
Through May 9, Energy
An all-media exhibition focusing on Energy; that which cannot be created nor destroyed. It is both intangible and tangible at the same time. You can feel it, but you cannot touch it. Controlling energy has challenged inventors for generations.

May 16 through June 21, Folk Art Unlimited
*** Artists Reception and People’s Choice Award June 6, from 2 to 4 p.m.
Folk Arts are community-based creative expressions that are passed down through generations and reflect a community’s cultural life. They include handmade objects like pottery and textiles, as well as intangible forms like music, dance, and storytelling. Key characteristics include their community roots, informal learning, and ability to express a collective identity, which can encompass traditional crafts, rituals, and everyday life.
3850 Doris Murphy Court, Occidental
707-874-9392
www.occidentalcenterforthearts.org

Paradise Ridge Winery
June 15-ongoing, Return to Paradise
Paradise Ridge Winery and the Voigt Family Sculpture Foundation are pleased to announce Return to Paradise – a sculpture exhibition celebrating Walter Byck and Marijke Byck-Hoenselaars’ thirty year legacy of visionary leadership and community engagement through art and sculpture at Paradise Ridge. Curated by Jeff Nathanson (former director of the Museum of Sonoma County), the exhibition will showcase more than a dozen local artists, each with a unique and rich history of exhibiting at Paradise Ridge. In recognition of Walter Byck and Marijke Byck-Hoenselaars’ enduring dedication to supporting local artists and to bringing sculpture to Sonoma County, the exhibition will serve as a celebratory return for the participating artists.
Paradise Ridge Winery; in Marijke’s Grove
4545 Thomas Lake Harris Drive, Fountaingrove, Santa Rosa
www.prwinery.com

 

Paul Mahder Gallery
May 10 through June 14, Steven Assael, Paintings
*** Opening Reception, May 10, 5 p.m.
222 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg
707-473-9150
www.paulmahdergallery.com

 

 

 

 

 

Petaluma Arts CenterMay 7 through June 6, Threads That Connect Us
*** Opening Reception Thursday, May 7, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
This exhibition, from The Origin Stories Project, weaves together storytelling and visual art to explore identity, connection, and the shared human experience.
Each of the 70 works begins with a personal story—an identity-shaping moment of legacy, arrival, adversity, or revelation. These narratives are then transformed into Stories + Art Boxes using Plexiglas enclosures where voice and visual expression are experienced together. At its core, the project is grounded in a simple belief: when people share their stories and truly listen to one another, connection grows.
Related Events: The Origin Stories Symposium; Saturday, May 30, from 12:30 to 4 p.m.
230 Lakeville St. Petaluma
707-762-5600
www.petalumaartscenter.org

Ren Brown Collection Gallery
Through May 31, What are Moku Hanga?
Moku Hanga is Japanese for woodblock prints. The show is an exploration of the many ways woodblock printing is used by Japanese and American artists. There will be examples of chine collé, embossing, and combinations of printmaking techniques. Housed in a refurbished building with shoji and a small, serene Japanese garden, the gallery shows contemporary art by Japanese and regional Northern California artists.
1781 Coast Highway One, Bodega Bay
707-875-2922
www.renbrown.com

Santa Rosa Arts Center
Through May 30, A Many Splendored Spring
The show focuses on the stunning revival of life and light that underpins a new season of rebirth and growth, changing colors and forms.
SOFA Arts District
312 South A Street, Santa Rosa
707-526-0135
santarosaartscenter.org/

 

 

Santa Rosa Junior College, Robert F. Agrella Art Gallery
Through May 14, Art Department’s 2026 Student Show!
This exhibition showcases the enormous talent of our SRJC art by sharing their works with the SRJC student body and the college community. The SRJC Art Department offers classes in ceramics, drawing, design, painting, photography (both digital and darkroom), art history, printmaking and sculpture.
1501 Mendocino Avenue, Santa Rosa
707-527-4298
https://art-gallery.santarosa.edu/exhibitions

 

 

Santa Rosa Junior College, Frank P. Doyle Library Gallery
Through December 11, Jerrold Ballaine: Land and Sea
On view are 20 paintings by Ballaine who was part of the art faculty at U.C. Berkeley for over 30 years. There he befriended many artists including Joan Brown, Manuel Neri, and Richard Diebenkorn. Ballaine continues to paint and work in a variety of media in his Sebastopol studio.
1501 Mendocino Avenue, Santa Rosa
https://libraries.santarosa.edu

 

 

Sebastopol Center for the Arts
Through May 3, Pulp • Paper • Book
This juried exhibition features works by book makers, papermakers, and printmakers, including all forms of pulp manipulation. Jurors: Barbara Kibbe: Quinn Keck.

May 9 through June 14, Art at the Source Open Studios Preview
*** Opening Reception May 9 from 2 to 4 p.m.
View work by all artists participating in Open Studios, taking place this year on two weekends, June 6 & 7, and June 13 & 14.
https://www.artatthesource.org/
282 South High St., Sebastopol
707-829-4797
www.sebarts.org

Sebastopol Gallery
Through May 30, Into the Light
Light-filled paintings by Katy Boggs are an exploration of light—how it shapes form, reveals color, and defines what we see. She is drawn to moments where light is felt as much as seen: filtering through dense leaves, towering in the crowns of trees, glinting off cresting waves, or softening into the quiet glow of a sunset.
Guest Artist; Still life Paintings by Gary Martin, Martin, a classical realist painter, captures the essence of the subject, depicting form with light, shadow and color. These paintings represent a journey in the still life genre, though his practice also includes portraiture and landscape. Through direct and careful observation he strives to express the reality of the subject and create a sense of place and time.
150 N. Main St, Sebastopol
707-829-7200
https://www.sebastopolgallery.com

Sofie Contemporary Arts
1407 Lincoln Avenue, Calistoga
707-942-4231
www.sofiegallery.com

Sonoma State University, University Art Gallery
Through May 23, The 2026 BFA Exhibition
The BFA degree is distinguished from the BA by its rigorous, studio-intensive curriculum. The program requires an additional year of focused study, including advanced coursework in studio art, art history, and art theory. Often regarded as the degree of choice for students pursuing graduate or professional studies, the BFA fosters significant artistic development within a concentrated creative environment. For both students and faculty, this exhibition represents a culminating achievement—an opportunity to present a carefully curated selection of each artist’s strongest work in a professional gallery setting, exhibited alongside their peers.
1801 East Cotati Avenue, Rohnert Park
707-664-2295
https://artgallery.sonoma.edu

 

Sonoma Valley Library, Forum Room
May 1 through May 31, Ray Jacobsen
*** Opening reception May 1, from 4 to 5:30 p.m.
Although better known for his wonderful landscapes, Ray Jacobsen was equally adept at abstraction. He painted them from his early days as an artist until his death.
755 W. Napa Street, Sonoma

 

 

Sonoma Valley Museum of Art
May 9 through September 6, John Paul Morabito and Norma I. Quintana
*** Opening Reception Saturday, May 9, 5 to 7 p.m. Event is free for SVMA members/$10 for non-members. Online registration is required by May 7 at 5 p.m.
John Paul Morabito: Dancing in the Night features richly woven works that blend digital processes with handcraft, transforming ritual materials into luminous tapestries that honor Queer life with color, reverence, and exuberance.
Norma I. Quintana: Paradise of Memory is a powerful portrait series drawing on itinerant photography traditions to connect personal and collective histories, celebrating everyday lives as vital expressions of cultural identity.
551 Broadway, Sonoma
707-939-7862
www.svma.org

Studio LZ
429 1st Street, Suite 130, Petaluma
www.studiolz.net

 

Upstairs Art Gallery
Through May 31, Floral Fantasia
*** Reception Saturday May 2, from 3 to 6 p.m.
Bev Haley unveils new floral works in acrylic that greet Spring with bountiful blooms and buds guaranteed to warm the viewer’s heart. Designed with a whimsical flare, each grouping of flowers in these works coalesces into harmonious synchronicity. Meet the artist: Haley will be hosting the Gallery on May 9 & 23 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The Stairway Smallworks Showcase features Luba Stolper’s The Still Life Tradition, a collection of works in oil, painted in the traditional style, building luminosity through time-consuming layers of glazing. Meet the artist: Stolper will be hosting the Gallery on May 2 & 11 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and May 30 from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
306 Center Street, Healdsburg
707-431-4214
www.Upstairsartgallery.net

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