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Tuesday 12pm - 4pm Wednesday 12pm - 4pm Thursday 12pm - 4pm Friday 12pm - 4pm Saturday 12pm - 4pm

Casa Dolores, Santa Barbara

Name: Casa Dolores, Santa Barbara
Address: 1023 Bath Street, Santa Barbara, CA, 93101, US
Telephone: +18059631032

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Casa Dolores, Santa Barbara

Casa Dolores is dedicated to the preservation and appreciation of the popular arts of Mexico. We are open Tues-Sat 12:00pm-4:00pm. Admission is free.

Casa Dolores Museum is located in the historic 1843 Botillier Adobe that houses one of the largest collection of Mexican Folk Art, on the California Central Coast, and offers a unique arts and cultural experience. Check our wall for upcoming exhibitions and displays of cultural information.

06/02/2026

Photo of the Day! ✨

Marilyn Monroe dressed as China Poblana, photographed by Milton H. Green in 1958.

Remembering the spectacular and unique Hollywood star Marilyn Monroe. Yesterday, June 1st, on what would have been her 100th birthday! 🎂

Did you know that Marilyn Monroe's real name was Norma, and that her mother was born in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, México 🇲🇽? His maternal grandfather worked as an engineer on the Mexican National Railroad, and in 1903 the expansion of the railroads led the family to move to California.

Photo: web

05/30/2026

Coming soon…✨
Mask Dance
Viejo Mask or Curpines

Starting June 9, Casa Dolores is so please to feature an elegant and very well carved mask. We invite you to discover the importance of the Traditional Danza, held in San Juan Nuevo Parangaricutiro, Michoacán. Also discover their elements, and masking paraphernalia.

Admission is Free

05/28/2026

✨Happy World Ceramist Day! / ¡Feliz Día Mundial del Ceramista! ✨

Today we celebrate to the ceramist who, with their artistic hands, transform the earth into art, giving shape to beauty, the utilitarian and the eternal.

05/27/2026

✨Did you know that artisans in Michoacán make beautiful and peculiar toys of “Cartoneria” popular Mexican craft? These Lupita dolls enrich our permanent exhibition with the antique Lupita dolls from Celaya, Guanajuato and Mexico City.

This artisanal work is in great demand. The dolls are made with craft paper and hand painted. As a special detail, the dolls have plump and pinky cheeks painted, and wear European-style hats matching their clothes in bright orange and lime green, their decorations reflect the creativity present in the Mexican Toy production and popular crafts.

Materials: Paper craft or paper maché, vinyl paint, rope (mecate),and glitter.
Technique: Molding, painting, and brush outlining.
Artisan: Unknown
C. Contemporary

We invite you to come and see them in our Permanent Exhibition located in the gallery on the second floor of the Museum.

The Lupita Dolls were generously donated by Basilio Ferreira and Wife.

05/22/2026

Delve into the art and ritual of Wixárica people, their rituals are very distinctive that represent their spiritual visions and beliefs. They are sacred protectors of their land and believe that all elements of nature have spirit.

Casa Dolores is featuring this Ceremonial Mask from the Wixárica native people of Nayarit, México. This is a Mask of the fertility, and the white hand painted face part is from an unborn calf embryo. The remainder of the mask is mature cowhide with hair on. This mask was actually worn once in ceremony. It is held together with bailing wire.

This Wixárica Mask was generously donated by Gwyneth Hughan Sauceda. Estate of her mother Roberta Hughan.

05/20/2026

✨Last weeks of this inspiring temporary exhibition✨

“Scrap-Metal Milagro or Ex-Voto Paintings / Pinturas de Ex-Votos ó Milagros sobre Chatarra”

🗓 On view: through – June 4, 2026

From a Prayer or Plea to a Miracle received

Delve into a powerful and humble visual tradition where faith, gratitude, and storytelling come to life through art created on reclaimed scrap metal. This special collection from the 70s and 80s highlights the beauty of transformation: turning discarded materials into heartfelt expressions of devotion and lived experience.

Visit us and celebrate art, culture, and resilience.

Each piece tells a story. Each surface carries history.

🎨 Don’t miss this rare opportunity to see these meaningful works up close.

📍Casa Dolores Museum
1023 Bath Street, between Carrillo and Figueroa Streets
☎️ 805 963 1032

ADMISSION IS FREE

05/19/2026

Huichol (Wixárika) shamans and artisans have used gourds (guajes) for centuries, with evidence of the tradition dating back to pre-Columbian times. 🦂

These traditional gourds are used in several key ways.

Come and explore them.

Admission is free.

05/18/2026

HAPPY INTERNATIONAL MUSEUM DAY!
In 2026, the theme for International Museum Day is ‘Museum Uniting a divided World’.

Museums are trusted public spaces where people encounter stories, objects, and one other. In times of social fragmentation, polarization, and unequal access to knowledge and culture, museums help rebuild connections across generations, communities, and across borders, fostering dialogue, understanding, inclusion, peace within and between communities worldwide.

📍Casa Dolores Museum
Center for the Study of the Popular Arts of México
1023 Bath Street
Santa Barbara Ca.
93101

☎️ 805 963 1032

ADMISSION IS FREE
ENTRADA GRATUITA

05/16/2026

Casa Dolores Museum invites you to delve into the symbolism of the Wixárika Ritual Objects on the Yarn Painting 🧶🦌

"Wirikuta" (dessert where pe**te grows and blooms)
"Tamatsi" (elder brother, deer lord, the arrow strikes pe**te like a deer
"Votive Arrows" that are made from wood, decorated feathers, and wrapped colorful yarn. The arrow is considered a messenger, with the prayer, and also used in shamanic ceremonies for healing

Shamans use them to “speak” to deities like the Sun God, Grandmother Growth, and Grandfather Fire. They are usually placed on altars, left at sacred sites such as rivers, lakes, mountains. They are associated with nierikas (shields or mirrors) and votive gourd bowls.

Admission is Free
Entrada Gratuita

05/15/2026

Happy Teacher's Day! / ¡Feliz Día del Maestro!✨👩🏾‍🏫👨🏾‍🏫

Teacher's Day (Día del Maestro) in México is celebrated annually on May 15. First established by a decree from President Venustiano Carranza in 1917, the holiday honors the pivotal role of educators in society and the nation's development.

The May 15 was chosen to coincide with two distinct historical and religious milestones:

1. The Feast of San Juan Bautista de La Salle: The patron saint of teachers, who revolutionized educational practices for underprivileged children.

2. The Capture of Querétaro: The May 1867 military victory that brought down the Second Mexican Empire and consolidated the Republic.

🖼Everardo Ramírez (1906- 1992) is best known as a mid-20th-century Mexican printmaker and painter whose work captured the struggles, folklore, and everyday life of rural and indigenous communities. His art is deeply tied to the social movements and post-revolutionary efforts in Mexico to celebrate rural education and heritage.

Address

1023 Bath Street
Santa Barbara, CA
93101

Opening Hours

Tuesday	12pm - 4pm
Wednesday	12pm - 4pm
Thursday	12pm - 4pm
Friday	12pm - 4pm
Saturday	12pm - 4pm

Telephone

+18059631032

Website

http://www.casadolores.org/

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