Guide to Sonoma County’s Vibrant Arts Scene
Sonoma County, California, attracts artists of all disciplines, and their works are on display in dozens of performing arts companies, a multitude of music venues, and many museums and galleries.
Here’s a quick overview of creative activities in Sonoma Wine Country.
All the County’s a Stage
Sonoma County’s performing arts venues range from local musicians jamming on a tiny stage at a weekly farmers market to internationally renowned musicians at the first-class Green Music Center on the grounds of Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park.
Enjoy plays and musicals in the 99-seat Cinnabar Theater in Petaluma.
Explore all of these excellent theatre and performance groups, companies, and venues in Sonoma County:
- 6th Street Playhouse
- Cloverdale Performing Arts Center
- Luther Burbank Center for the Arts
- Occidental Center for the Arts
- Pegasus Theater Company
- Raven Performing Arts Theater
- Santa Rosa Symphony
- Sonoma Arts Live
- Spreckels Performing Arts Center
- Transcendence Theatre Company
Check the Calendar of Events for upcoming performances and Live Music Listings for nearby options.
Museums, Museums, Museums
Sonoma County’s museums offer a wide variety of exhibits and displays. Review aviation history at the Pacific Coast Air Museum or enjoy the beauty of once-common objects at the Hand Fan Museum. Explore the mind of an acclaimed cartoonist and the antics of the “Peanuts” gang at the Charles M. Schulz Museum; or enjoy a fun approach to art and science at the Children’s Museum of Sonoma County.
The Sonoma Valley Museum of Art demonstrates that this Wine Country town hosts exhibits that rival those of its big-city counterparts, while the Museum of Sonoma County displays this region’s rich history, art, and culture in two buildings on a single campus in downtown Santa Rosa.
Or, appreciate the past from a variety of perspectives at these excellent destinations:
- California Indian Museum and Cultural Center in Santa Rosa
- Cloverdale History Center and Historic Gould-Shaw House
- Sonoma Valley History Museum in the town of Sonoma
- Healdsburg Museum & Historical Society
- Petaluma Historical Library and Museum
- West County Museum in Sebastopol
- Windsor Historical Society and Humbree House Museum
Meet the Artists
Discover local artists during the Art at the Source open studios tour each spring in western Sonoma County; the Art in the Redwoods Festival at the Gualala Arts Center each fall; the Studio Discovery Tour along the North Coast each Labor Day weekend and the weekend before; and the juried Sonoma County Art Trails held countywide each October. And check out the monthly community “art walks” where you can walk to art throughout Sonoma County.
Enjoy whimsical sculptures made from found materials on residential Florence Avenue in Sebastopol; watch artists paint outdoors during the Sonoma Plein Air Festival in the Sonoma Valley each September; and follow outdoor Sculpture Trails in both Cloverdale and Geyserville.
Each Sonoma County community has its own style of artistic expression. Look for one-of-a-kind souvenirs by artists, jewelry makers, artisans, and more in galleries and studios countywide, and visit the galleries of these local organizations:
- Arts Guild of Sonoma
- Cloverdale Arts Alliance
- Healdsburg Center for the Arts
- Petaluma Arts Center
- Sebastopol Center for the Arts
Find more in Discover Amazing Art in Sonoma County: 3 Day Itinerary, and check the Calendar of Events.
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