Pajaro Valley Arts is set to open its new exhibit, which serves as a launch for the annual Santa Cruz County Open Studios Art Tour.
The show, titled “2026 Open Studios Preview Exhibits,” showcases dozens of artists in their own studios around the county beginning Oct. 3.
To prime the public with what’s on deck, the PVA Gallery in Watsonville at 280 Main St. is teaming up with two other galleries: the Santa Cruz Art League and the M.K. Contemporary Art Gallery to offer preview exhibits.
The shows allow people to explore work from artists from La Selva Beach, Watsonville, Davenport, Bonny Doon, San Lorenzo Valley, Scotts Valley and elsewhere.
“PVA is very excited to be hosting the Open Studios preview show again this year,” said PVA Executive Director Miriam Anton.
She added that the exhibit will have over 60 artists participating from South County and will be open from 11am to 5pm on Saturday and Sunday during the three weekends of Open Studios.
The opening reception for the preview show will be Thursday, Oct. 1, from 5 to 7pm. It is open to the public.
The show encompasses a wide range of mediums, from paintings and drawings to woodwork, ceramics, sculpture and photography.
The Open Studios Art Tour, put on by the Arts Council Santa Cruz County, is broken into three groups. South County will run Oct. 3 and 4 from 11am-5pm; North County, Oct. 10 and 11 from 11am-5pm; and all county, Oct. 17 and 18 from 11am-5pm.
The Santa Cruz Art League is at 526 Broadway in Santa Cruz, and the M.K. Contemporary Art Gallery is at 703 Front St. in Santa Cruz. For information about the PV Arts show, call 722-3062 or visit pvarts.org. For information about the overall Open Studios Art Tour, maps of the artists’ studios and more, visit artscouncil.org.
