Sonoma Valley Museum of Art opens a career survey of M. Louise Stanley
The Real-Life Art History of M. Louise Stanley runs September 19 through January 24, with paintings, works on paper and pieces from the artist's archives.
SONOMA: The Sonoma Valley Museum of Art has opened The Real-Life Art History of M. Louise Stanley, a career survey running September 19, 2026 through January 24, 2027 at the museum's 551 Broadway galleries.
The exhibition brings together Stanley's large-scale acrylic paintings, gouache and watercolor works on paper, and sculptural objects, presented alongside selections from the artist's personal archives: sketchbooks, studies, photos and notes that trace her process.
The museum describes Stanley as standing a bit apart from her Bay Area Figurative contemporaries, artists like Robert Arneson, James Albertson and Peter Saul, who share her embrace of humor, high and low, as a way of commenting on serious subjects. Stanley's work is noted for wildly imaginative narratives and a distinctly female perspective shaped by close observation of everyday life.
An opening reception was held Saturday, September 26, from 5 to 7 p.m., free for members and $10 for non-members with online registration required. The exhibition is the museum's major fall offering and anchors its program through the holidays into the new year.
SVMA, the valley's only art museum, has built its reputation on exactly this kind of show: a deep look at a California artist whose national profile rewards a home-region retrospective. The archive material, sketchbooks and studies alongside finished paintings, gives visitors a view into how the work gets made, not just what it looks like finished.
The exhibition runs through January 24. The Post's arts coverage continues with the museum's winter programming.
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