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.
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
August 5 through August 31, Celebrate Summer
*** Reception Sonoma Art Walk Thursday, August 6, from 5 to 7 p.m.
The exhibition is filled with original paintings, photography, sculpture, ceramics, jewelry, and mixed media created by the Guild’s accomplished local artists. Guest artist Anne Travis presents, Geometry, Light, and Shadow, an exhibition of fine art photography with compelling images that explore the interplay of light, nature, geometry, and the beauty found in everyday moments.
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
Through September 13, Engage
An exhibition of painting, photography, and glass that offers distinct yet interconnected ways of seeing. Some works emerge from lived experience and the passage of time. Others transform imagined forms into tangible objects. Still others frame familiar subjects through the lens of a camera or the gesture of a brush, revealing new dimensions of what might otherwise go unnoticed. Together, these works explore the relationship between perception and creation, inviting us to consider not only what we see, but how we see it. Showcasing work by Featured Resident Artist Trudie Folsom with Guest Artists Steven Folsom, and Kay Young, as well as the following artists: Laura Paine Carr, Jane Gardner, Terry Holleman, Pamela Heck, Will McCoy, Jason Taylor Morgan, Jennifer Weiss, and Community Annex Artist Eleanore Webster.
204 N. Cloverdale Boulevard, Cloverdale
707-894-4410
www.cloverdaleartsalliance.org
Corricks Art Trails Gallery/ My Daughter the Framer
Through August 24, Maurice Lapp 101
Corrick’s presents a retrospective exhibit of the works of the late, beloved painter and art teacher Maurice Lapp. With a newly-expanded collection of Maury’s oils and watercolors, this will be an outstanding celebration of his life and works.
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
August 6 through September 13, Inner Landscapes
*** Artists Reception Saturday, August 8 from 1 to 4 p.m. with music by Jeremy Lispin.
Featuring paintings, drawings, monoprints and collages by Sandra Rubin and Harry Frank, with Guest Artists Christine Field, Deborah Titus, Bill Shortridge, and Catherine Cruz.
9048 Graton Road, Graton
707-829-8912
http://www.gratongallery.net
Hammerfriar Gallery
Through October 17, Here & There; Paintings by D.A. Bishop
In his paintings Bishop records landscapes embedded in our common memory—images of local hills, intersections, roadside trees, buildings, and engaging skies. Rather than nostalgia, his work evokes the mysteries of this region.
132 Mill St, Healdsburg
707-473-9600
https://www.hammerfriar.com/art-gallery
Healdsburg Center for the Arts
334 Center Street, Healdsburg
707-431-1970
healdsburgcenterforthearts.org
Laguna Foundation, Heron Hall
Through August 28, 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 November 8, Christo and Jeanne-Claude: Running Fence at 50 Years
This landmark exhibition celebrates the 50th anniversary of Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s monumental Running Fence, the temporary art installation that stretched 24.5 miles through Sonoma and Marin Counties. The project became world famous, and is an iconic part of North Bay culture and history. Through immersive design, powerful visuals, and firsthand accounts, the exhibit invites visitors to experience the magic and beauty that was the Running Fence – white fabric flowing across fields and cresting over hills to vanish into the Pacific Ocean – and to discover the remarkable 4-year odyssey that brought it to fruition.
Related Events:
August 13; Conversations and Stories About Running Fence
September 12; Running Fence Reunion
September 26; Documentary Screening
For more information and further reading: https://museumsc.org/christo/
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
August 8 through September 13, Pointless Sisters
*** Artists Reception and People’s Choice Award: August 22, from 2 to 4 p.m.
The Pointless Sisters art quilt group strives to create an encouraging and non-competitive space for its members to develop skills while exploring their own individual journeys as artists. Individually and together, they are committed to bringing art quilting to the community through exceptional fabric creations. Learn more @ https://www.pointless-sisters.com/
3850 Doris Murphy Court, Occidental
707-874-9392
www.occidentalcenterforthearts.org
Paul Mahder Gallery
Through August 16, Elena Zolotnitsky: Idols, Icons & Variations on the Theme
Zolotnitska creates emotionally charged representational paintings that exist between observation and memory, and between realism and abstraction.
222 Healdsburg Avenue, Healdsburg
707-473-9150
www.paulmahdergallery.com
Petaluma Arts Center
Through August 29, Expressions in Metal
This exhibition celebrates the depth and range of contemporary metalwork, featuring artists who forge, cast, weld, and experiment with contrasting materials to transform industrial elements into expressive works of art.
Also on view in the North Gallery:
Arthur Drooker; Selections from Thirty-Six Views of the Golden Gate Bridge
Drooker presents selections from Thirty-Six Views of the Golden Gate Bridge, a photographic series inspired by the celebrated 19th-century Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai and his iconic series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji.
230 Lakeville St. Petaluma
707-762-5600
www.petalumaartscenter.org
Ren Brown Collection Gallery
Through August 30, Sarah Brayer—A Sense of Place
A special exhibition of work by Kyoto artist, Sarah Brayer —A Sense of Place, Five Decades in Japan. 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 August 29, Red, White, and Blue
August 6 through September 25, Forces of Nature
*** Artists Reception First Friday, August 7 from 5 to 8 p.m.
Artworks that express the qualities and power of nature’s forces, which also contribute to and sustain life on Earth.
SOFA Arts District
312 South A Street, Santa Rosa
707-526-0135
santarosaartscenter.org/
Santa Rosa Junior College, Robert F. Agrella Art Gallery
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
August 8 through September 6, Kate Haug: Collaborative Practices
*** Opening reception Saturday, August 8, from 2 to 6 p.m.
This retrospective exhibition of work by Bay Area artist Kate Haug engages the Bay Area’s history of technological innovation and political activism. Working both inside and outside of the gallery, Haug employs commercial production and enters into unorthodox environments—transforming public spaces in a transitory way. See website for list of related events.
282 South High St., Sebastopol
707-829-4797
www.sebarts.org
Sebastopol Gallery
Come see and celebrate the Gallery’s new location.
186 N Main Street, Sebastopol
707-829-7200
https://www.sebastopolgallery.com
Sonoma State University, University Art Gallery
1801 East Cotati Avenue, Rohnert Park
707-664-2295
https://artgallery.sonoma.edu
Sonoma Valley Museum of Art
Through September 6, John Paul Morabito and Norma I. Quintana
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
Through August 5, Shapes and Colors Paintings by Michael Coy
August 22 through October 17, Debra Seal; Contours
*** Opening reception August 22 from 4 to 7 p.m.
Contours invites viewers to encounter the human form with fresh eyes. By transforming the body into abstract, landscape-like compositions, the work moves beyond familiar social assumptions and encourages an appreciation of its raw shapes, texture, and natural beauty. Building on the conversations prompted by her earlier exhibitions, particularly around the representation of women, Seal provokes curiosity and acceptance in place of the prejudice and the preconceived notions embedded in our collective consciousness. The body becomes a landscape of quiet curves, contours, and hidden spaces. Lines and shapes flow together, moving between the familiar and the abstract, where scale shifts and the human form becomes an imagined terrain. Ceramist Anna Casadidio, from studio CASA CASA, will pair some of her ceramics with Seal’s photos.
Watershed Building
429 1st Street, Suite 130, Petaluma
www.studiolz.net
Upstairs Art Gallery
Through August 30, Painting In Fauve
*** Reception Saturday, August 1, from 3 to 6 p.m.
Willow LaLand presents Painting in Fauve, a collection of oil and acrylic paintings focusing on our region’s vibrant beauty through the artist’s Fauvist lens. Known for her hyper-realistic landscapes, these works take an imaginative turn to the fantastical, tapping into the wild Fauve vivid color palette.
Meet the artist: LaLand will host the Gallery on August 2, from 2:30 to 6pm and August 16 & 29, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Stairway Smallworks Showcase features Gen Zorich’s Summertime, highlighting the beauty of wine country and the warmth of long, lazy summer days. From Zorich’s background as a geologist and environmental scientist, she imbues her paintings with a deep understanding of the natural world. Meet the artist: Zorich will host the Gallery on August 2, from 11am to 2:30pm, August 4, 11am to 6 pm and August 21 & 23, 2:30 – 6pm.
Also join us for Art Nite Healdsburg on Thursday, August 6, from 5 to 7 pm. This Monthly community event celebrates art and creativity with over 20 galleries participating. ArtNiteHealdsburg.com.
306 Center Street, Healdsburg
707-431-4214
www.Upstairsartgallery.net
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