FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, July 21, 2026
Contact: Shiva Pakdel, shiva@sausalitocenterforthearts.org
Sausalito Center for the Arts Revives the Town's Art Festival Tradition with the Sausalito Landscape Festival
A plein air invitational and juried exhibition bring landscape painting back to the waterfront this August.
SAUSALITO, CA — The Sausalito Center for the Arts (SCA) announces the inaugural Sausalito Landscape Festival, a two-part celebration of landscape painting opening August 5 at SCA's gallery at 750 Bridgeway. The festival brings together a plein air invitational and a juried exhibition to create a month-long experience centered on the landscapes, waterscapes, and cityscapes that define the region and inspire the artists who paint them.
The festival, on view through August 27, carries a particular resonance for Sausalito. From 1952 until 2021, the Sausalito Art Festival was recognized as one of America's premier outdoor art events, drawing thousands of visitors each Labor Day weekend to the waterfront. When that festival ended in 2021, the Sausalito Art Festival Foundation channeled its legacy — along with significant funding, knowledge, and equipment — into the founding of SCA. Four years later, SCA is returning to an arts festival tradition in Sausalito, reimagined around landscape painting.
Plein Air Invitational
The festival opens with Paint-Out Days, August 2 through 6, during which 25 invited plein air painters will work on location throughout Sausalito along the historic waterfront, in hillside neighborhoods, among the houseboats, and in nearby parks. Visitors who happen upon an artist at work will witness one of painting's most compelling traditions: a direct, unmediated response to place, capturing the fleeting quality of light, atmosphere, and color in real time. The works produced during the paint-out days will enter the festival exhibition, offering collectors a chance to acquire freshly painted views of Sausalito.
Juried Exhibition
The juried exhibition, on view August 5 through 27, broadens the lens to include landscape, seascape, and cityscape works from 25 California artists, whether painted outdoors or in the studio, presenting a wide range of contemporary approaches, from quiet rural scenes to dramatic coastal vistas and dynamic urban views. The exhibition is juried by Carolyn Meyer, Director of Painting in the School of Fine Art at San Francisco's Academy of Art University, whose own practice spans thirty years of work in galleries across the country.
"This exhibition brings together the best of the traditions of plein air painting with the deeper exploration that happens back in the studio," said Meyer. "The traditions and the contemporary expressions on view here show why artists will always be inspired by the world in which we all live."
The Sausalito Landscape Festival is presented with support from the Bank of Marin.
The festival opens with an awards reception on Sunday, August 9, from 4:30 to 5:30 PM, at which prizes will be presented for Best of Show, second, and third place. An opening reception follows from 5:30 to 7:00 PM. The exhibition closes with an artist reception on Wednesday, August 27, from 3:00 to 5:00 PM. All works in the exhibition are for sale.
The gallery is open Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is always free and open to the public. For more information, visit sausalitocenterforthearts.org.
About SCA
The Sausalito Center for the Arts was founded in 2021 and is located in the heart of downtown Sausalito. Its mission is to enrich the cultural experience and unite the community through diverse artistic expression that benefits all. The organization's programs aim to build connections, create dialogue, and foster understanding and inclusion through the arts.