Santa Barbara Museum of Art

Santa Barbara Museum of Art website: http://www.sbma.net
(620)

Quiz time: What's today? (Answer: Buddha's Birthday! 🎂)Got it right? Come celebrate with Buddhist art at SBMA. Got it wr...
05/24/2026

Quiz time: What's today?

(Answer: Buddha's Birthday! 🎂)

Got it right? Come celebrate with Buddhist art at SBMA. Got it wrong? You still have to visit. 😉 We don't make the rules…

How are you feeling today? Drop your number in the comments. 👇Join us on May 31 to celebrate the closing of By Achilles’...
05/18/2026

How are you feeling today? Drop your number in the comments. 👇

Join us on May 31 to celebrate the closing of By Achilles’ Tomb and send Hermes off in style. He’s heading out on loan to the Getty Villa in Malibu and deserves a proper farewell!

Raise a toast to Hermes, check out a special art activity at the ALL, or join a talk with Helen Morales at 11 AM on how Elliott Hundley uses Greek myth to reflect on contemporary concerns. 🏛️

📍 Ludington Court, SBMA
📆 Sunday, May 31 | 11 AM & 12 - 2 PM
🎟️ Free

This event is co-sponsored by the Argyropoulos Chair in Hellenic Studies, UCSB.

––––––
🖼️Credits:
Image 2: Ludington with Hermes
Image 4: Lansdowne Hermes, Roman, first half of 2nd century CE. Marble. Gift of Wright S. Ludington, 1984.34.1
Image 8: Photography by Brian Forrest.

05/15/2026

“Before trends, there were elements. Before style, there was spirit. Water that carries memory, air that breathes life, fire that fuels transformation, earth that grounds our being. In every color, a story. In every step, a legacy. Through every look, we invite you into the world.”

On May 23, is back on SBMA’s front steps with another stunning fashion show. 💫 Student designers each chose an element that spoke to them — water, air, fire, or earth — and brought it to life through their own personal and cultural lens. The finale looks are inspired by works from As if in a Dream: History, Fantasy, Future.

📍 Front Steps, SBMA
📆 Saturday, May 23 | 4 - 5 PM
🎟️ Free

05/14/2026

Hurry, only a few spots left in SBMA’s summer art camp for kids ages 5–6! 🎨 Carols, one of SBMA’s teaching artists, is giving us a sneak peek at what young artists will create in Printmaking & Textiles, running July 6–10. Come make something wonderful this summer!

Available sessions:
📅June 15–19 · Ceramics & Re-Made Workshop
📅July 6–10 · Printmaking & Textiles
📅July 13–17 · Painting & Printmaking
🔗Register via the link in bio.

Behind every great story, there’s a mama. 🥹❤️‍🩹Happy Mother’s Day to all the incredible moms out there, you deserve the ...
05/10/2026

Behind every great story, there’s a mama. 🥹❤️‍🩹Happy Mother’s Day to all the incredible moms out there, you deserve the world! Swipe to see some of the artworks from SBMA’s collection that celebrate all of the people who play maternal roles in our lives.🤱

––––––
🖼️Credit:
1. Alfredo Ramos Martínez, Virgen y niño, 1935. Charcoal and gilt paint on paper. Gift of Mrs. John M. Case in memory of John Hopkins Denison, Jr., 1952.22 2. Nursing Mother and Child, India, 19th-20th century. Ink, color and gold on glass. Gift of Pratap and Chitra Pal, 1995.57.2.
3. Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川 広重, Act VIII: Konami Traveling with Her Mother Tonase to Meet Rikiya, n.d. Color woodblock print on paper. Gift of the Frederick B. Kellam Collection, 1971.3.15
4. Julia Margaret Cameron, Madonna and Child (Mary Hillier), ca. 1870. Albumen print. Gift of Howard Stein, 1999.10.2

Behind every great story, there’s a mama. 🥹❤️‍🩹Happy Mother’s Day to all the incredible moms out there, you deserve the ...
05/10/2026

Behind every great story, there’s a mama. 🥹❤️‍🩹Happy Mother’s Day to all the incredible moms out there, you deserve the world! Swipe to see some of the artworks from SBMA’s collection that celebrate all of the people who play maternal roles in our lives.🤱

––––––
🖼️Credit:
1. Nursing Mother and Child, India, 19th-20th century. Ink, color and gold on glass. Gift of Pratap and Chitra Pal, 1995.57.2.
2. Alfredo Ramos Martínez, Virgen y niño, 1935. Charcoal and gilt paint on paper. Gift of Mrs. John M. Case in memory of John Hopkins Denison, Jr., 1952.22
3. Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川 広重, Act VIII: Konami Traveling with Her Mother Tonase to Meet Rikiya, n.d. Color woodblock print on paper. Gift of the Frederick B. Kellam Collection, 1971.3.15
4. Julia Margaret Cameron, Madonna and Child (Mary Hillier), ca. 1870. Albumen print. Gift of Howard Stein, 1999.10.2

05/08/2026

everything about the santa barbara museum of art hallelujah 🙏

Mother’s Day is a week away, and SBMA has you covered! Check out our gift guide and shop at sbmastore.net. Join us for P...
05/04/2026

Mother’s Day is a week away, and SBMA has you covered! Check out our gift guide and shop at sbmastore.net.

Join us for Pop Up Opera on May 10 with a special Mother’s Day performance on the front steps at 1 PM. Free and open to all!

May is here 🌸🌻🍓 Swipe to see what we have waiting for you at the Museum this month.––––––🖼️Credit:Paul Nash, Flight of t...
05/01/2026

May is here 🌸🌻🍓 Swipe to see what we have waiting for you at the Museum this month.

––––––
🖼️Credit:
Paul Nash, Flight of the Magnolia, 1944. Pencil, pen and ink, and watercolor on paper. SBMA, Gift of Wright S. Ludington. 1947.13.5
8. Photo courtesy of Kat McDowell
9. Eleni Sikelianos
10. T.C. Boyle
11. Elliott Hundley, Collection, 2025. Collage, graphite and ink on paper. SBMA, Museum purchase with funds from the General Acquisition Fund. Photo: Brian Forrest
12. Photo: Brian Forrest

Everything deserves a second chance (even that old ceramic piece you’ve been too afraid to throw away) 🥣. Join us for an...
04/30/2026

Everything deserves a second chance (even that old ceramic piece you’ve been too afraid to throw away) 🥣.

Join us for an upcoming Kintsugi workshop and learn the Japanese art of restoring broken ceramics with gold, transforming cracks into something worth celebrating. Your guide: Kat Kusumori-McDowell, a certified Kintsugi instructor trained in Japan, who’ll share the tradition’s history and lead you through a hands-on modern restoration.

📍 Luria Activities Center, SBMA
📆 Sunday, May 17 | 1 - 3:45 PM
🎟️ $275 for SBMA Members / $300 for Non-Members

––––––
🖼️: Artist and Instructor Kat Kusumori-McDowell

Address

1130 State St
Santa Barbara, CA
93101

Opening Hours

Tuesday 11am - 5pm
Wednesday 11am - 5pm
Thursday 11am - 8pm
Friday 11am - 5pm
Saturday 11am - 5pm
Sunday 11am - 5pm

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Santa Barbara Museum of Art posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category