We will be going through all we know about art in Tucson in great depth for you today. As the piece progresses, galleries, museums, supplies, schools, shows, events, and more will be broken down.
Even if we are trying to cover it all the best Tucson Art Galleries and Museums seem like the wisest starting point. Then we will start to span out and get into the best local art stores for anyone that is trying to buy some new materials or supplies.
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We also can’t forget about the best shows, festivals, and events in the region. Going on an art walk or simply enjoying a leisurely stroll in the right parts of town can be a lot of fun when the weather permits. Checking out the top statues and sculptures in the city can also work well with that.
Expect to learn about local art schools that offer both group and private lessons too. Studio space where you can work on your latest project, as well as dealers, appraisersm and framing services in the area will be covered.
You will find an area art map before you go that will show you where all of these spots are located. The Southwest is an area that we have written about many times before.
Best Art Galleries & Museums In Tucson
If you want to visit the best art galleries and museums in Tucson you can go to:
- Desert Art Museum at 7000 E Tanque Verde Rd
- Museum of Art & Historic Block at 140 N Main Ave
- Museum Of Contemporay Art at 265 S Church Ave
- Solar Culture Gallery at 31 E Toole Ave
- Etherton Gallery at 135 S 6th Ave B
- Madaras Gallery at 3035 N Swan Rd
- Metal Arts Village at 3230 N Dodge Blvd
- Desert Artisans Gallery at 6536 E Tanque Verde Rd
- De Grazia Gallery in the Sun Museum at 6300 N Swan Rd
- Chris Bubany & Friends Art Gallery at 6538 E Tanque Verde Rd
The Desert Art Museum, a non-profit institution, first welcomed visitors on November 1, 2013. The Museum has a library, classrooms, conference and auditorium space, and a 25,000-square-foot display area. Maynard Dixon, Thomas Moran, Albert Bierstadt, and Gerald C. Smith are among the many historical relics and classic and current Southwestern paintings on display in the Museum.
The Museum of Art and Historic Block brings art to life via relevant and engaging activities that encourage exploration, creativity, and cultural awareness. The Tucson Fine Arts Association founded the Museum in 1924, and it was originally housed at the Kingan House on Franklin Street in the El Presidio Historic District. To define its exhibiting and education goal, the group was formally renamed the Tucson Art Center in 1954.
MOCA is the only museum near you that is fully dedicated to modern art from across the world, and it was founded by artists in 1997. MOCA is housed in a renovated firehouse in downtown and uses modern art to find innovative answers to today’s and tomorrow’s challenges. MOCA hosts a series of critical exhibits by locally, regionally, and globally known contemporary artists that promote conversation and empathy between artists and viewers.
Solar Culture Gallery is a collective of artists devoted to bringing local art and music to the downtown area. Etherton Gallery has been the go-to place for photography collectors and lovers in the Southwest since 1981. The gallery shows prominent local and regional artists in a range of mediums and is known for its museum-quality exhibits and extensive collection of historical and modern photographs.
The 2,800-square-foot Madaras Gallery has one of the greatest collections of local art, including the work of 26 guest artists. Paintings, canvas reproductions, prints, sculpture, pottery, and hand-blown glass are all available and that beautiful picture from the top of our post came from there.
Desert Artisans’ Gallery is a fine art gallery maintained by local artists in Southern Arizona. Over 60 of the area’s top creators are represented by the gallery, who work with a range of mediums including clay, glass, jewelry, paintings, photography, and wood.
The De Grazia Gallery in the Sun Museum began as a tiny building project in the early 1950’s and has now grown into a 10-acre National Historic District conceived and built by renowned Arizona artist Ettore “Ted” DeGrazia. The Gallery in the Sun Museum houses six permanent art collections that depict historical events and Native American civilizations in the Southwest. Some of the gallery’s 15,000 DeGrazia originals are on show in rotating exhibitions and many are available for purchase in the consignment room, and the gift store has a large range of replicas.
Ceramic sculptures by Chris Bubany Studio are hand painted with influences from the vibrant colors and motifs of the Southwest where she grew up. Hummingbirds, wildflowers, quail, desert sceneries, and more may all be found here to assist you.
Materials & Supplies Near You
These art stores near you should have all of the materials and supplies you need:
- Arizona Art Supply at 4343 N Oracle Rd
- Posner’s Art Store at 944 E University Blvd
- Sarnoff Art Materials at 4747 E Sunrise Dr
- Fred’s Custom Canvas Stretching & Picture Framing at 938 W Grant Rd
- Hobby Lobby at 5555 E Broadway Blvd
- Michaels at 4070 N Oracle Rd
People have relied on Arizona Art Supply for high-quality art materials and technical information for over 65 years. Arizona Art Supply also contributes generously to professional arts groups in order to ensure that individuals have solid community foundations.
For the past fifteen years, Posner’s Art Store has been offering the finest materials to artists all around the world. With over forty years of combined expertise selling and using numerous mediums and goods in this sector, they work hard to provide you with the best service and products possible.
Sarnoff Art is a locally owned and operated gallery that prides itself on cultivating partnerships with the local artistic community. Their knowledge will get you on the proper course, whether it’s for professionals, school assignments, or creative hobbies.
Fred’s Custom Stretching is well-known for managing some of the state’s largest murals, canvas paintings, and picture frame projects. You probably don’t need us to tell you what the chain stores like Michaels and Hobby Lobby are all about.
Shows & Events
Some of the top local art shows, events, and festivals would be:
- Wigwam Festival of Fine Art in February
- Tubac Fine Arts Festival in February
- Prescott Antique Show & Vintage Market in July
- CornFest Arts & Craft Show in August
- Art in the Park Sierra Vista in October
The iconic Wigwam Resort, located in the center of Litchfield Park’s historic area, hosts an amazing three-day festival Wigwam Festival of Fine Art, which features nationally recognized artists, dancers, and musicians. Towering palms, groomed lawns, and vibrant lush gardens greet visitors at the front gate. The Wigwam’s historic grounds are full of lovely nooks and botanical gardens, providing an intimate setting and unrivaled ambiance for outdoor eating, arts, and entertainment.
Tubac Arts Festival is an annual event that takes place about 45 minutes South of the city. It will feature paintings, handcrafted crafts, antique crafts, and more from hundreds of visiting artists from across the country.
Prescott Antique Show & Vintage Market has been offering a large range of high-quality antiques in your area for many years and their annual show in July is definitely worth checking out. The El Zaribah Shriners are holding an Arts and Crafts Festival in their big air-conditioned theatre, which is open to the public for free. With an estimated 70 vendors selling art, this is a fun-filled family atmosphere.
Art in the Park is a big art event that features work from some of the best artists and craftspeople in the West. Admission is free at the Veterans Memorial Park. Shop the art galleries before unwinding at the Vineyard.
Art Dealers & Appraisers
When you want to find some new unique works or figure out the true value of something visit dealers and appraisers like:
- Covington Fine Art Appraisals at 6530 E Tanque Verde Rd
- Fine Art Publishing at 4500 E Speedway Blvd #35
Covington Fine Art Appraisals works here and around the United States with insurance, donations, estates, fair market value of paintings, drawings, prints, and sculptures. Steven Terpning owns and operates the Fine Art Publishing company. It began by creating and selling limited edition fine art canvas reproductions of Howard Terpning’s work, but rapidly grew to include other notable painters.
Madaras Gallery from our initial list could also have gone in this section.
Walking Tours
These art walking tours can be a lot of fun on a nice day:
- 1st Saturday Art Walk at 115 N Church Ave
- Meet Me at Maynards at 400 N Toole Ave
The goal of Meet Me at Maynards is to attract active people and families to the downtown region for healthy activity, to appreciate and patronize local businesses, and to see the beauty, history, and architecture of these distinct neighborhoods.
Sculptures & Statues
You may also be interested in taking photos of these statues and sculptures:
- 911 Sculpture at 10637 E Camino Quince
- Invisible Horses Sculpture at 1256 S Houghton Rd
- Junk Sculpture Garden at 1402 E Water St
- Glenn Stone-Muffler Man at 2811 N Stone Ave
- Concrete Wine Bottle at 3306 N 1st Ave
- The Mormon Battalion Monument at 165 W Alameda St
Paul “Oly” Olesniewicz established 911 Sculpture to produce high-quality bronze sculptures in honor of deceased and live police officers, law enforcement officials, military, forest service workers, and other first responders, including medical workers.
Invisible Horses Sculpture is of a mare and foal on an empty highway median, carefully engineered to be unseen as you approach but apparent as you go past. The Junk Sculpture Garden was created by Jerry Hall with discarded metal which he used to create scrappy figures in his yard.
Glenn Stone-Muffler Man is a large fiberglass figure with a large ax, which is replaced with a sugar cane every season. When it was first placed in 1964 it advertised a car shop.
The Mormon Battalion Monument is a non-profit organization whose role is to help keep the Mormon Battalion alive in memory.
Tucson Art Classes
Whether you are trying to find private lessons or group classes for kids, teens, or adults the best Tucson art schools are:
- University of Arizona School of Art at 1017 N Olive Rd
- The Drawing Studio at 2760 N Tucson Blvd
- Tucson Clay Coop at 3326 N Dodge Blvd
- Blue Raven Art School at 720 E Prince Rd
- SUVA Fine Arts at 2538 N Country Club Rd
The University of Arizona School of Art is committed to providing a rigorous and vibrant visual arts education, challenging students to critically analyze, investigate, make, and teach art in both historical and current settings. The Drawing Studio was founded in 1992 by artist Andrew Rush and 20 friends to provide training and camaraderie to artists and students outside of traditional schools.
Outside wheel and hand building classes, clay, a firing service, glazes, virtual workshops, adult and children’s project kits, as well as an online gallery store and outdoor pottery gallery are all available at Tucson Clay Coop. Birthday parties, painting parties, showers, and other events are all held at Blue Raven. They may create a fun art activity for everyone and include it into your party arrangements.
Southwest University of Visual Arts (SUVA) provides a visually stimulating atmosphere for students pursuing a variety of Fine Art degrees. Southwest offers MFA and bachelor’s degree programs in areas such as advertising and marketing, animation, graphic design, and landscape architecture as well as studio programs in photography, painting, and drawing.
Studios For Rent Near You
Take your next project more seriously by renting studio space to work in at:
- Placita de la Luna Office & Retail Spaces at 204 W Grant Rd
- The 5th on 6th Art Studio & Gallery at 439 N 6th Ave
- Gallery Azul & Artist Studio Cooperative at 439 N 6th Ave #179
Placita de la Luna is home to an eclectic mix of artist studios, retail stores, and office buildings. Art on 6th Street is a cooperative of local artists with studios on 6th Street, Navajo Street, and Hillside Avenue in Prescott. On the 4th Saturday of each month 16 artists will open their 12 studios.
Six artists are given affordable studio space by Gallery Azul and Artist Studio Cooperative. Occasionally, a spot becomes available.
Framing
When you need art framing near you head to:
- Barb’s Frame Of Mind at 319 E 8th St
- Deadwood Framing at 2530 E 6th St
- Arizona Picture & Frame Gallery at 4523 E Speedway Blvd
- Mo’s Gallery & Fine Framing at 3650 E Fort Lowell Rd
- Lewis Framing Studio at 1665 E 18th St #122
Barb’s Frame of Mind is a bespoke picture frame company that offers a comprehensive range of services. A wide range of frame designs and matting choices are available.
The major focus of Deadwood Frame is custom picture framing, but they also sell a variety of other products and cards. Arizona Picture & Frame Gallery combines a bespoke frame business with an art gallery. The work is displayed in half of the store, while the other half has ready-made frames and the custom counter.
In Southern Arizona, Mo’s is the gold standard for framing services. The effort is outstanding, with a completed result that would be at home in the world’s most prestigious institutions. Artistic Archival Framing Installation and Service are provided by Lewis Framing Studio.
You can check out some of our other posts on:
- Phoenix Galleries, Supplies, & Dealers
- San Diego Galleries, Supplies, & Dealers
- El Paso Galleries, Supplies, & Dealers
- Albuquerque Galleries, Supplies, & Dealers
Have Fun Enjoying The Tucson Art Scene
Well guys, we tried to cover the full art scene near you to the best of our abilities. You learned about the best galleries, museums, events, shows, supply stores, dealers, appraisers, walking tours, sculptures, classes, studios, and framers in the area.
If you made it this far you might just know a lot about the local art scene yourself. Feel free to share your own tips, or to let us know if you noticed anything incorrect in the comments.
Have fun going to the galleries, museums, buying supplies or doing anything that has to do with art in Tucson!