Gulf To Bay St. Pete Clearwater FL

St. Pete/Clearwater is a cultural mecca, rich with prestigious museums, an abundance of galleries and studios, hundreds of colorful murals and a thriving performing arts scene.

Home to one of the largest collections of works by Spanish surrealist Salvador Dalí, this powerhouse museum rotates special exhibitions featuring stars of art history like Vincent Van Gogh and Pablo Picasso. Download The Dalí app on your phone to take self-guided tours in multiple languages, including scavenger hunts for kids. Through augmented reality, it also helps you discover facts about Dalí’s masterworks including The Hallucinogenic Toreador and The Discovery of America by Christopher Columbus. “Meet” Dalí on screens around the museum that use Artificial Intelligence to create a talking likeness of the artist. Find surreal souvenirs at the museum store. Outside, the Avant-garden is a prime spot for selfies or to enjoy wine, coffee and tapas from Café Gala. The building is a work of art in itself: a helical staircase in the center of the museum was inspired by Dalí’s fascination with DNA, and a large glass geodesic bubble made of 1,062 triangular pieces of glass known as the “Enigma” erupts from the outside.

Located on the downtown waterfront on bustling Beach Drive, the museum is a short jaunt to many restaurants, galleries, Straub Park and the St. Pete Pier. It holds the only encyclopedic collection of work in Florida spanning about 5,000 years from antiquity through contemporary. Much of the permanent collection is presented in a renovated wing and includes works by Claude Monet, Georgia O’Keeffe and Kehinde Wiley, as well as Ancient, Asian and African art galleries. Kids can take a scavenger hunt throughout the galleries and visitors can explore the vaults. The museum also holds a large photography collection. A breadth of artwork from old masters to emerging artists is featured in special exhibitions.

With a stunning imported sandstone façade, the museum beckons visitors from downtown’s lively Central Avenue, just blocks from the waterfront. The James features an impressive private collection of bronze sculptures and paintings of cowboys, Native Americans, landscapes and animals, and contemporary art created by living Western and Native American artists. Rotating exhibitions offer more to the story of the American West, from local artists to Andy Warhol. Native American jewelry dazzles in the Jewel Box, a gallery specially designed for it. Kids can enjoy making art in the open studio or take a tour created just for them. Audio tours can be downloaded to smartphones with an app.

Years in the making, the highly anticipated museum is now open. The stunning architecture and the world-class collection in the 137,000-square-foot, five-story museum was well worth the wait. Featuring the collection from the Two Red Roses Foundation, it is the first museum in the world dedicated to the Arts and Crafts movement. It showcases the handcrafted furniture, pottery, lighting, photography and paintings of the period from 1890 to 1930, by artists including Frank Lloyd Wright, Gustav Stickley, Charles Rohlfs and Rookwood Pottery. Located in the heart of downtown, its modern architecture lets the objects shine and includes an ovoid structure and spiral staircase wrapped in venetian plaster. The Ambrosia Restaurant will include works from the period, including a rare Grueby tile fireplace mantel. You can shop for contemporary handcrafts and jewelry in the museum store or enjoy a gourmet lunch at the Arts Café without having to purchase museum admission.

Contemporary glass art from American and international artists is on full, dazzling display here. It includes works by the founders and leading artists of the studio glass movement, including pioneer Harvey Littleton. Marvel at more than 500 works in the 34,000 square foot museum, like Karen LaMonte’s dreamy sculptures of the female form and kimonos. Another must-see is Anthony James’ Icosahedron, a mind-boggling sculpture made of glass, titanium, LED lights and mirrors. The museum also introduces emerging glass artists and features handmade works in the gift shop. Its location in the busy Grand Central District, full of restaurants, bars and murals, makes it easy to make a day of a visit.

A magical, art-meets-technology immersive experience awaits in a 15,000 square-foot space in the Warehouse Arts District. Celebrating “weird, wacky and wonderful Florida,” the attraction is centered around the Mermaid Star Motel, where there is a mystery to solve through a choose-your-own-adventure journey through environments entirely created by artists. Complete with sights, sounds and smells, it features cutting-edge technology combined with Florida nostalgia, including CENTcom, a spaceship shaped like a Twistee Treat filled with interactive gaming elements, cats and aliens. Find the many Florida birds perching throughout with a scavenger hunt. It’s a delightful experience for kids and adults alike. Works from artists are for sale in the gift shop. It’s located in the arts attraction The Factory St. Pete, home to artist studios, Daddy Kool Records and Sunshine State Goods.

One of only two museums in the world entirely dedicated to living legend glass artist Dale Chihuly, it is unique in that it is the only installation in a building designed specifically for his colorful artwork. A 20-foot sculpture created specifically for the space on downtown’s Central Avenue makes a statement, while installations like the Ruby Red Chandelier, Mille Fiori and Ikebana shine vibrant hues in dramatically lit galleries. It’s presented by the Morean Arts Center, which showcases exhibitions and is right across the street in the Central Arts District, home to galleries, shops and restaurants. Go behind the scenes for a glassblowing demonstration at the Morean Glass Studio.

This small but mighty museum is part of St. Petersburg College and sits on its Tarpon Springs campus. The modern and contemporary museum boasts a sizeable collection containing works by 20th century artists Allen Leepa and Abraham Rattner. Exhibitions showcase their contemporaries, including Picasso, Renoir and Chihuly, as well as national, regional and local artists, and incorporate interactive elements.

Perched on the St. Pete Pier, the museum celebrating its 100th year in 2022 is a great way to soak up some air conditioning and culture. Discover the interesting history of the Sunshine City, including its pioneering role in aviation. It’s not just rich in Florida history – an approximately 3,000-year-old Egyptian mummy is on display in the wacky Odditorium. Baseball fans will delight in Schrader’s Little Cooperstown, the Guinness-certified largest collection of baseballs signed by a staggering number of athletes and celebrities. In 2022, the museum will break ground on a 10,000 square-foot additional building featuring an illuminated metal sculpture by artist Ya La’ford on its exterior.

The museum honoring the millions of people who died or suffered in the Holocaust with artifacts including one of the few remaining railroad box cars the Nazis used to transport Jews and other prisoners to concentration camps. The museum tells the stories of victims and survivors through educational and art exhibits, with a mission to prevent future genocide. One of the largest Holocaust museums in the world, it’s one of only three accredited by the American Alliance of Museums. Its location in the Central Arts District is near museums, galleries and restaurants.

With a mission to preserve and protect African American history, the museum, named for Dr. Carter G. Woodson, the scholar who initiated Black History Month, hosts talks and exhibitions. Visit the historical Black Lives Matter mural painted on the street in front of the museum. It’s located in the Deuces Live District, a hub of Black-owned businesses, homes and entertainment. The museum is the starting point of the African American Heritage Trail, a self-guided walking tour of African American neighborhoods marked by 19 placards that give an overview of the impact of African Americans on St. Pete.

Since 2015, the annual SHINE Mural Festival has ushered in hundreds of vibrant murals to St. Pete every October by locals and renowned street artists like Belin, Drew Merrit, Case Maclaim and Cryptik. Download the Pixel Stix app to get the stories behind the murals for a self-guided tour by car, foot or bike, or take a tour led by a guide from Florida CraftArt.

Paintings, sculpture and photography are on the roster at ARTicles Art Gallery in St. Pete’s Uptown Arts District. Find more contemporary works right next door at D-Gallerie. Down the street, pop art shines through monthly exhibitions at Mize Gallery. In Gulfport, fine craft and fine art are on display at the Brenda McMahon Gallery. Glass art and paintings are a fine mix at Syd Entel Galleries and Susan Benjamin Glass. Pinellas County’s arts agency Creative Pinellas offers exhibitions showcasing the arts at its gallery in Largo.

The Morean Arts Center in St. Pete, the Dunedin Fine Art Center and the Safety Harbor Art and Music Center offer classes and showcase exhibitions. Hundreds of artists call St. Pete/Clearwater home and open their studios to the public. In St. Pete’s Warehouse Arts District, visit studios at the ArtsXchange and The Factory St. Pete, a compound that’s also home to Fairgrounds St. Pete. The artists at downtown ArtLofts open to the public every month, as do the artists in the Pinellas Arts Village in Pinellas Park. Bi-monthly artwalks happen in Gulfport's Historical Waterfront Arts District.

Handcrafted works in metal, glass, clay, fiber and jewelry are found in several galleries in St. Pete, at Florida CraftArt and Craftsman House on Central Avenue, and Shapiro’s Gallery and Red Cloud Indian Arts on Beach Drive.

In St. Pete, view works in functional and sculptural ceramics, visit artists in their studios and give the wheel a spin at the Morean Center for Clay, the Clay Center of St. Petersburg and Charlie Parker Pottery.

The amount of glass art found in St. Pete/Clearwater has earned the nickname, “the glass coast.” In St. Pete, see glassblowing demonstrations, amazing works in glass, and try your own hand with classes at the Duncan McClellan Gallery, Zen Glass and the Morean Glass Studio. Imagine Museum and the Chihuly Collection showcase contemporary glass in St. Pete. In downtown Clearwater, see the stunning creations of Marlene Rose at her eponymous gallery.

St. Pete/Clearwater is rich in performing arts experiences, from Broadway to live music. Take in a concert from The Mahaffey Theater at St. Pete waterfront venue The Mahaffey Theater or Clearwater’s Ruth Eckerd Hall, which along with the Bilheimer Capitol Theatre also presents Broadway, dance and concerts by popular acts and comedians. The St. Petersburg Opera Company brings works by all the great composers to The Palladium Theater, the downtown St. Pete venue that also offers jazz concerts and more.

Beautiful weather also brings art outdoors with large art festivals happening throughout the year. Started in 1976, the Mainsail Art Festival brings top-notch artists from around the world to exhibit side-by-side with the area’s best along St. Pete’s waterfront each April. Fine craft artists from around the country exhibit at the annual CraftArt Festival in November in the heart of downtown St. Pete. Dunedin’s Art Harvest is a highly anticipated annual event in November featuring more than 200 artists. The Tarpon Springs Fine Arts Festival has been bringing national artists to an idyllic location on Spring Bayou every March for more than 40 years. At the Clearwater Beach Chalk Art Festival in October, artists transform the sidewalks into mind-bending works of trompe l’oeil – aka 3D art.

Gulf To Bay St. Pete Clearwater FL - Gulf To Bay St. Pete Clearwater FL 2022

ARTS

Issue List

Gulf to Bay 2026

Gulf to Bay 2025

Gulf To Bay 2024

Gulf To Bay 2023

Gulf To Bay St. Pete Clearwater FL 2022