Visual Arts

June 3, 2025 at 8:13 a.m.

The artist's Julian-area home-turned-arts-center is welcoming guests for a Father's Day open house

The cloning table, one of 80 mind-game exhibits at the Museum of Illusions, which will open May 23 in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. (Illusion Photography)

Museum of Illusions, with 80 mind-bending exhibits, opens next week in San Diego

June 4, 2025 at 12:08 p.m.

The Gaslamp Quarter attraction will feature infinity and upside-down rooms, a vortex tunnel, gravity-defying spaces...

Seda Saar’s mirrored installation, “Pacific age,” creates unexpected moments of reflection. Saar is an Iranian-born artist living and working in Malibu. (Photo by Pablo Mason / Courtesy of San Diego International Airport)

In the Curator’s Words: At San Diego International Airport, ‘Mirror Mirror’ explores light, color and space

May 19, 2025 at 5:57 a.m.

Exhibition at the San Diego International Airport’s Terminal 2 features artworks by 16 artists from...

Chinese-born painter Yan Pei-Ming’s “A Burial in Shanghai,” comprised of three towering paintings, is on display at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego through Jan. 4, 2026. He’s shown here seated in the museum’s Strauss Galleries speaking with visitors the day after his exhibition opened in La Jolla. (Daniel Lang for MCASD)

In the Curator’s Words: At MCASD, larger-than-life ‘A Burial in Shanghai’ makes its U.S. debut

May 14, 2025 at 5:57 a.m.

Yan Pei-Ming's monumental project, first shown in Paris in 2019, is composed of three towering...

Erica Marie Weisz stars this month in her solo cabaret show “I Can Cook, Too!” at New Village Arts in Carlsbad. (Erica Marie Weisz)

San Diego arts roundup: Local theater star to cook up some tunes in Carlsbad

May 8, 2025 at 6:03 a.m.

This week: Erica Marie Weisz's cabaret show in Carlsbad, a film and fundraiser for elephants...

“Halifax” (1970, Screenprint) by Gene Davis is part of the “american minimal” exhibition at The San Diego Museum of Art, on display through June 1 at the Balboa Park museum. (Estate of Gene Davis / Artists Rights Society, New York)

In the Curator’s Words: SDMA’s ‘american minimal’ celebrates Minimalist movement

April 14, 2025 at 9:21 a.m.

San Diego Museum of Art exhibition, on display through June 1, pays homage to more...

Jennifer Anne Bennett poses for a portrait in her home studio on Thursday, March 27, 2025 in Lemon Grove, California. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Why this artist wants you to get lost in a ‘nurturing visual space’ of nature-based artwork

March 29, 2025 at 7:17 a.m.

“Into the Woods: Resplendent” features landscape paintings by Jennifer Anne Bennett and Jeanne Dunn at...

Left: Albert Bierstadt’s “Cho-looke, the Yosemite Fall” (1864). Right: Kent Monkman’s “The Fourth World” (2012). (Bierstadt: Putnam Foundation and Timken Museum of Art. Monkman: Kent Monkman via Denver Art Museum)

In the Curator’s Words: At the Timken, looking at art through a modern lens

March 24, 2025 at 11:30 a.m.

Timken Museum revisits Bierstadt’s 19th-century masterpiece "Cho-looke, the Yosemite Fall" through Monkman’s 2012 work, "The...

The cast and creative team of Circle Circle dot dot’s immersive walking play “San Diego, I Love You: City Heights,” running March 21-30. (CCDD)

San Diego Arts roundup: Theater, music and spring events

March 20, 2025 at 5:33 a.m.

Also this week: 'Songs for a New World, Punkrock Rodeo, Rolando Street Fair and Piano...

Among the more than 15 art installations at WNDR Museum is the “Light Floor,” which also surrounds visitors with mirrored walls. The museum offers late night hours on the days that it’s open as well as special WNDR After Dark events. (Robbie Bui)

These San Diego museums have later hours for night owls and after-work exploring

By Abby Hamblin

April 1, 2025 at 9:46 a.m.

While many of San Diego County's museums are only open during day-time hours, here are...

“Austin John Jones’ 2024 digital artwork “A Piece of Mind” will be featured in Oceanside Museum of Art’s “The Art of Autism: A Different Lens” exhibit.” (Austin John Jones)

Spring Arts Preview 2025: The 10 art exhibits and events we can’t wait to see this season

March 18, 2025 at 10:13 a.m.

Check out these exhibits of contemporary art, textiles, 17th-century masterworks, floral displays, comic books and...

Natalie Gonzalez is a multimedia artist who moved to San Diego four years ago from her native Mexico. Her solo exhibition opening April 26 at Oceanside Museum of Art will combine sacred spiritual objects crafted with brightly colored yarn. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Spring Arts Preview 2025: Natalie Gonzalez makes her artistic tribute a reality in adopted hometown

March 16, 2025 at 5:03 a.m.

Born in Guadalajara, the local textile artist credits San Diego for making her creative dreams...

A bald eagle in Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, in episode one of the NBC/BBC Studios series “The Americas.” BBC Studios

San Diego arts roundup: Stunning ‘The Americas’ series finds beauty during turbulent times

March 6, 2025 at 5:31 a.m.

Also this week in local arts, Voices of Mexico in La Jolla, San Diego Theatre...

Chan Marshall, aka Cat Power, will perform Feb. 27 at the Magnolia in El Cajon. AP

San Diego arts roundup: Eclectic singer Cat Power to sing at the Magnolia next week

February 20, 2025 at 6:01 a.m.

Also this week: Comedy with Jeff Garlin, Black Voices concert with Gill Sotu, San Diego...

Musician and surfer Jack Johnson in a scene from the documentary “The Cigarette Surfboard,” screening Feb. 18 at the Oceanside International Film Festival. (OIFF)

San Diego arts roundup: Oceanside film festival returns

February 14, 2025 at 12:33 p.m.

Also this week, the Harlem Quartet in La Jolla, David Gray in Valley Center and...

Hostile Terrain 94 is an exhibit in collaboration with Undocumented Migration Project at the Museum of Us. (Museum of Us)

Museum Month is here: These are just 10 of the interesting exhibits you can visit

By Abby Hamblin

January 28, 2025 at 2:53 p.m.

San Diego County and Tijuana museums open their doors for half-price ission during the month...

The aerial dance group BANDALOOP performs at La Jolla Playhouse’s 2024 Without Walls Festival at UC San Diego. On Tuesday, the Playhouse received a $20,000 NEA grant to the 2025 WOW Festival, which returns to the UCSD campus April 24-27. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

NEA announces $36.8 million in funding nationwide. 16 San Diego County arts organizations are on the list.

January 15, 2025 at 12:01 p.m.

The $305,000 in combined gifts would fund art exhibits, a children's opera, free dance classes,...

Art collectors and philanthropists Iris and Matthew Strauss photographed at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego in La Jolla. In memory of Matthew Strauss, who ed away Aug. 20 at age 91, MCASD will host a 2025 exhibition featuring selections from their collection. (Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego)

2025 preview: Here are the San Diego art exhibitions we can’t wait to see

December 29, 2024 at 5:05 a.m.

From monumental photographic exhibitions to surf-focused gallery shows, the New Year will be a feast...

James Hubbell in
2013 in his Santa Ysabel home. (K.C. Alfred/The San Diego Union-Tribune file)

Year in review: Looking back on the vibrant visual art scene in 2024

December 22, 2024 at 5:02 a.m.

From disability representation to a regionwide takeover of San Diego museums, 2024 was a year...

Self-portrait of artist Maddie Butler in her studio. (Maddie Butler)

Art of the City: ‘Little pieces coming together’ in a creative constellation

December 15, 2024 at 6:00 a.m.

Video and installation artist Maddie Butler explores the intimacies, and lack thereof, of life in...

Niki de Saint Phalle, “La Peste” 1986 is displayed in the For Dear Life: Art, Medicine, and Disability exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. For Dear Life: Art, Medicine, and Disability is an exhibition to survey themes of illness and impairment in American art from the 1960s up to the COVID-19 era. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Artists challenge ideas around disability in La Jolla museum show

By Roxana Popescu

December 9, 2024 at 8:14 a.m.

Art exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego shows works by David Hockney,...

A view of the "To Advance the Status of Women in Law and Society: Lawyers Club of San Diego at 50 Years" exhibit in the History Center on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

‘A moral responsibility’: Women’s Museum continues to claim space in San Diego

By Abby Hamblin

December 9, 2024 at 7:14 a.m.

The Women's Museum of California is moving to and becoming a program of the San...

A photograph by Edward S. Curtis taken in 1908 shows three Apsaalooke men gazing skyward, two holding rifles, and a bison skull at their feet. Between 19087 and 1930, Curtis published a 20-volume collection of photos of North American Indian tribes and their lives. (Edward S. Curtis/Library of Congress via AP)

San Diego arts roundup: Edward S. Curtis’ American Indian photography books on display

November 14, 2024 at 5:31 a.m.

Also this week: the Old Globe's "Henry VIII," the San Diego Environmental Film Festival, Patti...

Artist Meera Ramanathan poses with her work at her solo exhibit “18 Points of View” at VISUAL gallery + design in San Diego in Sept. 2022. (Meera Ramanathan)

Art of the City: Crafting young minds a priority for visual artist Meera Ramanathan

November 10, 2024 at 6:01 a.m.

The San Diego elementary school teacher says artistic validation is the most important lesson for...

Bill Walton before a Pac-12 conference tournament game in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

The best things to do this weekend in San Diego: Nov. 8-10

By San Diego Union-Tribune

November 8, 2024 at 6:30 a.m.

Our list of top things to do this weekend includes concerts, theatre, a festival and...

Singer-songwriter Aimee Mann. AIMEE MANN

S.D. Arts and Culture Newsletter: Aimee Mann returns to Belly Up next week

October 24, 2024 at 5:31 a.m.

Also this week: Stephen King horror films, Balboa Theatre's Silent Movie Mondays, Popcorn Reef and...

The San Diego Museum of Art in Balboa Park with have an early concept design for the museum’s West Wing on display. Here, a model showing a cross section of the concept is shown on Oct. 16, 2024. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Take a peek inside S.D. Museum of Art’s west wing early concept proposal

October 18, 2024 at 9:16 a.m.

The model will be introduced to the public on Saturday at the opening of museum's...

San Diego Museum of Art Executive Director Roxana Velazquez, left, and Foster+Partners founder Lord Norman Foster walk through Balboa Park on Sept. 9. (Bauman Photographers)

Meet Lord Norman Foster, the man set to transform San Diego Museum of Art

October 21, 2024 at 12:51 p.m.

The 89-year-old British architect talks about his inspirations, his foundation and his creations, which will...

A portrait of Oceanside artist Marisa DeLuca. (Traygenn Seidler)

Saving what was: Oceanside artist captures on canvas memories of her fast-changing city

October 6, 2024 at 6:01 a.m.

Marisa DeLuca tackles issues of loss, nostalgia and gentrification in her hyperrealistic oil paintings

At a home recording studio on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024 in Spring Valley, Dawud Hasan is one of five artists featured in the “Art for Planetary Health” showcase, which pairs each artist with a local neighborhood for collaboration in creating art that addresses questions about harmony with the health of the planet and promoting environmental consciousness. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Looking up at the stars and seeing ourselves, San Diego artist wants to share astronomy with his community

October 5, 2024 at 6:42 a.m.

Dawud Hasan is one of five artists whose work is featured in the “Art for...

Valeria Peña Palomino, with Mundo Gardens, speaks about the Green Corridor Project on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024 in San Diego, California. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

From gray to green, local community groups working to replace highways with parks

September 23, 2024 at 2:43 p.m.

Even when they didn’t realize the work they were doing would have an environmental impact,...

“The Burden of Every Drop” by Nathalie Miebach whose work will be featured this fall in the solo exhibit “Restless Waters” at ICA San Diego in Balboa Park. (Nathalie Miebach)

Fall Arts Preview 2024: Our top visual art picks for the season

September 8, 2024 at 7:57 a.m.

From intimate gallery shows to large-scale exhibitions, autumn is looking particularly artful

Carlos Castro Arias is a multidisciplinary artist, shown in his home studio on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2024 in San Diego, CA. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Fall Arts Preview 2024: Artist Carlos Castro Arias uses provocative ideas and materials to make people think

September 8, 2024 at 8:10 a.m.

The Colombia-born San Diego artist, musician and college professor tackles subjects from colonialism to Indigenous...

A star map dating created in Jaipur, India, in 1780 that’s featured in San Diego Museum of Art’s “Wonders of Creation: Art, Science and Innovation in the Islamic World.” The exhibit is part of the Getty Foundation’s PST Art event this fall. (Michael Tropea / Pritzker Art Collaborative)

Connecting art and science: Getty Foundation brings together 70 exhibits for PST Art

September 3, 2024 at 2:44 p.m.

The huge Southern California event this fall will include shows at more than one dozen...

Public memorial for artist James Hubbell on Saturday

August 19, 2024 at 5:49 p.m.

The celebration of life for the iconic Santa Ysabel sculptor-designer will take place at his...

Zahn McClarnon as Joe Lepahorn in “Dark Winds,” which arrives on Netflix Monday. AMC

San Diego Arts & Culture Newsletter: ‘Dark Winds’ headed to Netflix

August 15, 2024 at 5:31 a.m.

Also this week: Steve Poltz in Solana Beach, a '70s music review in Carlsbad, a...

Artist Grisel Márquez-Razón’s “Pink Case” artwork in the “Border Blasters” exhibit now on display at the Bonita Museum & Cultural Center. (Ricardo Vazquez)

Art of the City: For Grisel Márquez-Razón, making art is both an job and a calling

August 4, 2024 at 6:01 a.m.

Installation artist and museum worker Grisel Márquez-Razón shifts her practice with a new piece in...

Michael Francis, music director for the Mainly Mozart concert organization, photographed conducting a concert at the Epstein Family Amphitheater at UC San Diego in June 2023. Mainly Mozart is among 38 local arts organizations that received a combined $5.7 million in arts grants Aug. 1, 2024, from the Conrad Prebys Foundation. (Courtesy of J. Kat Photography)

Prebys foundation announces $5.7 million in grants for local arts organizations

August 1, 2024 at 10:30 a.m.

Thirty-eight groups, from the Borrego Art Institute to the Old Globe, received grants ranging in...

A scene from the documentary “The Power of Sports for Amputees,” premiering Aug. 6 in San Diego. (Marci Krown)

Arts and Culture Newsletter: San Diego Paralympian profiled in ‘Power of Sports’ documentary

August 1, 2024 at 5:30 a.m.

Also this week, a book on the Sagon Penn case, the Midway Museum's 20 millionth...

Portrait of artist Deanna Barahona. (Deanna Barahona)

Art of the City: NextGen artist explores childhood, heritage through pop culture

July 7, 2024 at 6:00 a.m.

Multidiscipline artist Deanna Barahona, a recent graduate of UC San Diego, isn't afraid of a...

Comic-Con Museum is opening its Becoming Betty Boop exhibit. A life size Betty Boop figure in Balboa Park on Wednesday, June 26, 2024 in San Diego, California. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Exhibit on Betty Boop’s rise to stardom now on display at Comic-Con Museum

By Serena Neumeyer

July 11, 2024 at 12:17 p.m.

The San Diego Comic-Con Museum's new "Becoming Betty Boop" exhibit will be open to the...

Artist James Hubbell, photographed in Jan. 2013 in his Santa Ysabel home art studio. (K.C. Alfred/The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Public memorial set for famed artist James Hubbell on Aug. 24

August 16, 2024 at 9:49 a.m.

Event for the iconic San Diego sculptor-designer will take place at his Pearl of the...

San Diego’s Mainly Mozart All-Star Orchestra Festival at the Epstein Family Amphitheater at UC San Diego. (Courtesy of J. Kat Photography)

Check out these classical, world music and art exhibits in the coming week

June 21, 2024 at 6:01 a.m.

Mainly Mozart and Jewish Arts festivals are under way, and Music en la Calle returns...

Two artists collaborate for the Feminist Image Group exhibit “Women Work Together” at the Mandell Weiss Gallery at Liberty Station. (Courtesy of Elizabeth Tobias)

Arts and Culture Newsletter: 'Women Work Together' in new exhibit

June 20, 2024 at 6:01 a.m.

Good morning, and welcome to the U-T Arts & Culture Newsletter. I’m David L. Coddon,...

Scarlett Baily poses for a photo in front of a portion of the mural she painted at Washington Elementary STEAM Magnet School on Thursday, June 6, 2024 in San Diego, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

San Diego muralist brings joy to kids, and her own inner child, in recent work at Little Italy elementary school