In November, there are 35 shows at art centers from Sarasota to Marco Island.
“Olive Branches Carried Us Home” [Art Center Sarasota]: In this solo show, Karina Yanes combines symbols of Palestinian endurance and identity with imagery drawn from her family’s stories of life in Palestine, reflecting on how cultural symbols and lived experiences intertwine to carry traditions and memories across generations. Their transformation into ceramic gives these narratives the power to endure. Yanes is a Gainesville-based artist whose work is rooted in her upbringing as a Puerto Rican-Palestinian-Midwesterner. She received her MFA from the University of Florida, and her work has been exhibited in group shows across the country. She recently had a solo exhibition at the Morean Center for Clay and has an upcoming solo exhibition at Greenwich House Pottery in 2027. She has been an artist-in-residence at ACRE, Craigardan, the Open Studio Residency at Haystack School of Craft, and the CIRCA Graduate Exchange. She was a 2024 recipient of the NCECA Graduate Fellowship and was selected for "Fresh Squeezed 8: Emerging Artists in Florida" at the Morean Arts Center. Closes Nov. 14.
“St. Pete Ceramics” [Art Center Sarasota]: This exhibition brings together functional ceramic works by Beth Miranda, Ethan Fielder and members of St. Pete Ceramics, all created in the temporary studio that emerged from the aftermath of a devastating fire that destroyed their studio on Jan. 28, 2026. Alongside the artwork, the exhibition shares the story of resilience, rebuilding, and the remarkable community that carried the studio forward. A portion of all artwork sales will directly support the ongoing effort to rebuild and permanently re-establish St. Pete Ceramics. Closes Nov. 14.
“Joy in Motion” [Art Center Sarasota]: In this solo exhibition, Jorge Blanco showcases a collection of drawings, prints, and sculptures that celebrate playfulness and joy. Blanco is a Venezuelan-American artist, internationally recognized for his public sculptures, graphic design, and illustrations. He studied industrial design at the Neumann Institute of Design in Caracas before continuing his artistic training at the Academy of Fine Arts in Rome. His story is one of evolution, from a curious child inspired by abstract art to a celebrated artist whose colorful, uplifting sculptures dot public spaces. Blanco served as the creative director of the Children's Museum of Caracas, and he is widely recognized as the creator of the long-running comic strip "El Náufrago (The Castaway)." Since relocating to Sarasota in 1999, Blanco has completed numerous public art commissions throughout the United States, Venezuela, Japan, and Europe. His large-scale sculptures have been installed in civic spaces, parks, museums, educational institutions, and private collections, and his work has been exhibited extensively in galleries and museums internationally. Closes Nov. 14. Also read/hear “Art Center Sarasota exhibiting playful exhibition of Jorge Blanco drawings, prints and sculpture.”
“Strange Weather” [Art Center Sarasota]: This exhibition celebrates the surreal, inviting artists to explore worlds where reality bends, logic dissolves, and the unexpected becomes possible. “Strange Weather” serves as a metaphor for moments of transformation, uncertainty, and the uncanny rather than literal atmospheric conditions. Artists were encouraged to create work that embraces dreamlike imagery, psychological landscapes, improbable juxtapositions, and the strange beauty of the impossible. The juror for this group show was Danny Canton, who graduated from the School of Visual Arts with a BFA in cinematography and has been in the film industry for over 50 years with experience as a director, producer and most notably as a director of photography. He has worked on a variety of projects including feature films, television programs, behind-the-scenes and making of studio films, industrial films, commercials, and documentaries. Canton continues to teach film for the Sarasota Film Society at Lakewood Ranch Cinemas and he is working on a number of projects including directing a documentary on local sculpture artist, Jorge Blanco. Closes Nov. 14. Also, read/hear “Art Center Sarasota’s ‘Strange Weather’ explores worlds where the unexpected becomes possible.”
“Fall Members Show” [Venice Art Center]: Showcases work from local members alongside a special exhibit by the Venice Area Garden Club. Runs to Nov. 5. Also see/hear “Venice Art Center’s fall member show consists of 97 works of art in a wide array of media.”
“Funky Fresh” [Venice Art Center]: Plus Jamison Brumm solo exhibition in the Altman-Vogt Solo Exhibit. Opens Nov. 13. Runs to Dec. 3.
“Bling Thing Jewelry Show and Sale” [Venice Art Center]: Free event featuring finest jewelers in the area. Nov. 21 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
“Bowe and Bruno” [Venice Art Center at Jacaranda Trace]: Bowe creates resin and wood artworks. Carol Anne Bruno is an author and an artist currently based in Venice. Originally from New Jersey, she received her BA in art from William Paterson University. Her work reflects over 30 years of study in spirituality and nature. She typically works with acrylic canvas, some found objects, and covers most pieces in resin. She enjoys bringing elements in the background to emerge toward the foreground in her abstract paintings. Currently on view.
Gloria Urban [New Satellite Gallery at Venetian Golf Club in Nokomis]: Runs to December 2026.
“Norman Holloway” [Venice Art Center at Inn at the Beach]: Exhibit includes watercolor paintings by Norman Holloway. Runs to February 2027.
“Colleen Henry” [Venice Art Center at Skyport Aviation]: Runs to February 2027.
[DeSoto Arts Center]: No exhibitions reported to be opening this month.
“Are You Afraid of the Dark?” [Visual Arts Center, Punta Gorda]: In the darkness, the ordinary transforms into the extraordinary. Visit the Main Gallery at the VAC and discover how VAC artists have turned shadows into stories, mystery and wonder. Runs to Nov. 5.
“Student Show” Exhibit [Visual Arts Center, Punta Gorda]: This exhibit celebrates the work of the Visual Art Center’s students. Opened Oct. 7. Runs to Nov. 5.
“Holidays in the Halls” [Visual Arts Center]: With all artwork priced at $200 or less, this is viewers’ chance to support VAC artists during the holiday gift-buying season. Opens Nov. 24. Runs to Jan. 7, 2027.
“Sandman’s Wake” [Grand Atrium, Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center]: Raised on blue-collar roots and a strong work ethic, Jason “Sandman” Sanders spent most of his life in construction operating heavy equipment, driving rigs, and moving earth by hand. That foundation of physical labor, machinery, and raw materials remains embedded in his work. Rather than following a traditional path, he came into his practice without formal structure, building his approach the same way he learned everything else … through doing. Sanders began focusing more seriously on his artwork in 2023, carrying with him a refusal to work within a defined style. His work spans painting, metal fabrication, and mixed media, often merging industrial processes with bold imagery. Each piece is approached as its own story. Something to figure out, not repeat. Driven by a resistance to being told how something should be done, Sanders' work rejects traditional boundaries and leans into instinct, process, and raw transformation. The show’s featured work is “Our Heavy Heart,” which is made with parts salvaged from the Alliance for the Arts’ outdoor sculpture, “Car Helix,” which was destroyed during Hurricane Ian. Opens Nov. 6. Closes Nov. 24. For more, read/hear “Local sculptor Jason Sanders uses ‘Car Helix’ parts to make new ‘Our Heavy Heart’ sculpture at Alliance.”
“Creating is a Form or Rebellion” [Capital Gallery, Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center]: Self-taught Danish-Kurdish artist Ilyas Kirkan creates layered, textured collages that include white gauze headscarves, knitted lace decorations and cloths, lace net curtains, sand, gravel, leaves, glue, and paint. He says that these surfaces become physical records of memory. “White is the symbol of peace. White are the headscarves of the Kurdish Saturday Mothers, also known as the Peace Mothers – beaded with colours like blossoming flowers, each colour a hope, each hope a refusal to disappear. The textures accumulate like histories – dense, uneven, and sometimes unstable – revealing the tension between preservation and erosion. The materials carry the weight of time while resisting permanence, suggesting that memory is always changing, never fixed.” Kirkan has had numerous exhibitions of his abstract layered, textured collage-based paintings in diverse cities such as London, Brighton, Godalming, Copenhagen, Elsinore, Antwerp, Beirut, Paris, Cologne, Montreal, Tokyo, Caprinoe Veronese, Marco Island, Fort Myers, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Springs, Provincetown, Lisbon in Portugal and Lisbon in Ohio. Adding Harf Al-Batin as the 20th and Saint Petersburg in Florida to the list as the 21st city. Kirkan has twice been a part of the JAALA Art Tokyo BIENNALE at the Tokyo Metropolitan Arts Museum as well as the International Montreal Arts Festival. Opens Nov. 6. Closes Nov. 24.
“That’s Absurd” [Main Gallery, Alliance for the Arts]: “That’s Absurd” brings together artists who embrace the space between meaning and meaninglessness, allowing for seriousness to meet humor and the ordinary takes an unexpected turn. The works in this exhibition challenge our instinct to make sense of what we see, inviting us instead to linger in the uncertain, contradictory, and bizarre. Through surreal imagery, exaggerated forms, disrupted realities, playful gestures, and inconclusive narratives, these artists approach the absurd as both nonsense and as a way of looking more closely at the world. Here, the illogical encourages discomfort to coexist with delight because the things that make the least sense may sometimes say the most. “That’s Absurd” celebrates unconventional thinking and the freedom to question, reinterpret, and simply wonder. These works ask us to loosen our grip on certainty and consider what might emerge when we stop searching for the answer—and allow the absurd to speak for itself. Opens Nov. 6. Runs to Nov. 28.
“Night Swim by Zan Lombardo” [Foulds Theatre Gallery at the Alliance for the Arts]: “For viewers who want to enjoy this art installation on a surface level, imagine standing on a dock at night, looking down at fish swimming up to underwater lights,” writes artist Zan Lombardo. “For viewers who want to dive deeper into understanding the source of this imagery, know that my daily awareness swings widely between the wild beauty of our world and sadness about the way we treat it.” In this exhibit, forward paths lead viewers to physical and aesthetic sustenance at the bar and theater while continuous scrolls encourage viewers to cherish and safeguard the wild beauty of the natural world. Opens Nov. 6. Runs to Nov. 28.
“Nude Works” [Member Gallery at the Alliance for the Arts]: This exhibition celebrates the work of artists from the Alliance’s Instructed Life Drawing and Life Drawing Lounge classes. It showcases a diverse collection of figure studies created from direct observation of the human form. Instructed Life Drawing emphasizes seeing beyond simple representation through gesture, structure, and form under the guidance of artist Francesco Gillia. Life Drawing Lounge offers a relaxed, uninstructed studio environment where artists develop their skills through extended poses and personal exploration in the medium of their choice under the guidance of artist Juli Bobman. Together, these drawings demonstrate the enduring value of life drawing as both a foundational artistic practice and a deeply personal form of expression. Opens Nov. 6. Runs to Nov. 28.
“High Five!” [The Shell Point Gallery at the Tribby Arts Center]: The exhibitions program of Tribby Arts Center opened with the Sparkle! series of 2021. Since then, the Tribby Exhibitions Program has continued to win praise and shatter stereotypes regarding the creative power of the older artist. In this annual juried and judged exhibition, Shell Point artists and writers salute the Tribby’s first five years by incorporating the theme of “high five” in their creative submissions. The results are artistically excellent and often surprising. Opens Nov. 6. Runs to Dec. 31.
“Reflections” [The Legacy and Overlook Galleries at the Tribby Arts Center]: This 2026 Legacy Exhibition honors three Tribby Legacy Artists. The photography of (the late) Don Adams and George Waters is paired with artworks created in glass and ceramics by Annie Wainwright. Selected by a committee of their peers, honorees have demonstrated exceptional artistic skills in their works and also outstanding service to the arts community of Shell Point. Opens Nov. 6. Runs to Dec. 31.
“Poets & Painters: An Artistic Collaboration” [The Corridor 2 Gallery at the Tribby Arts Center]: Every year, 20 resident painters and writers of Shell Point participate in a collaboration that encourages creativity. Working as a pair, a writer submits a poem to inspire the partner’s painting, and the painter submits a painting to inspire the partner’s poem. This exhibition will display one painting and one poem from each team, for a total of 20 works. Members of the Tribby Photo Studio photograph the paintings for inclusion, along with all poems, in a booklet that documents the collaboration. Opens Nov. 6. Runs to Dec. 31.
“Places I Remember” [Main Gallery, Cape Coral Art Center]: In this solo exhibition, Kim Carioto-Krugle shares a visual diary of her travels near and far using layered paper collages and oil paintings. Opens Nov. 6. Runs to Dec. 17.
“Merry & Bright Art Market” [Building 2 and Side Gallery at Cape Coral Art Center]: Jump start the holidays and purchase some unique gifts in this annual open call to artists sales event. Opens Nov. 6. Runs to Dec. 17.
“Art and Emotion” [Cape Coral Art League]: This juried Art Council Member Show features artwork that expresses an emotion or elicits an emotion from the viewer by the use of art elements and principles – from anger to joy, chaos to calm and the vast array of emotions in between. Opens Nov. 5 with a 5-6:30 p.m. reception. Runs to Nov. 22.
“Currents” [Dunham Family Gallery at BIG ARTS]: Following the success of “BIRDS, No Words” in 2025, BIG ARTS once again invites visitors to experience art as it unfolds. "Currents" transforms the Dunham Family Gallery into a collaborative underwater mural created by six artists over the course of almost three months. Working together on a continuous 6-foot-tall by 125-foot-long expanse of paper throughout the gallery, Shah Hadjebi, Dahye Kim, Marti Koehler, Mariapia Malerba, Wilson McCray and Macy Noll will each contribute their own perspective while building upon one another’s work, allowing the mural to gradually evolve into an immersive underwater environment. Throughout the process, BIG ARTS will share artist schedules and photos on social media so visitors can plan to stop in while artists are working or follow the mural’s progress. For more, read/hear “Four artists will turn BIG ARTS’ Dunham Family Gallery into a giant mural over six-week span beginning in August.” Runs to Nov. 8.
“Color and Shapes” [West Gallery, BIG ARTS]: Each summer, BIG ARTS Outreach Program partners with The Heights Center to provide more than 120 students in grades K–8 with hands-on visual arts experiences that encourage creativity and self-expression. In 2026, students explored the work of Piet Mondrian, Henri Matisse, Sonia and Robert Delaunay, and Jean Arp, drawing inspiration from each artist’s distinctive style to create the collaborative mural. On display to Feb. 7, 2027. Artist reception Nov. 14.
“Architecture of Human Ties” [BIG ARTS Mezzanine Gallery]: Marie-Chloé Duval examines the underlying frameworks — both physical and invisible — that organize human interaction and perception. Grounded in close observation of contemporary society, the series positions painting as a space of inquiry, asking viewers to look beyond first impressions and consider the systems that quietly shape how we relate, move, and belong. Marie-Chloé Duval, a former criminologist, is a New York-based painter who maps the unseen architectures of human connection. In her work, movement, perception, and social structures collide within fragmented, evolving compositions. Runs to January 17, 2027.
“Naturally Connected” [Dunham Family Gallery at BIG ARTS]: This exhibition features work by Katie Havener, El Levy, Ke’siah Parsons and Diana Talavera that expresses the theme that no matter where we come from, we are all connected through the people around us, the animals we share nature with, and the environment we surround ourselves with. Opens Nov. 14 with artist reception. Runs to Dec. 13.
“Arts Bonita’s Faculty Showcase” [Arts Bonita Visual Arts Center]: Opens Nov. 12. Runs to Dec. 29.
“Nocturnal Works of Art by Joel Shapses” [Naples Art District]: Naples sculptor Joel Shapses will exhibit 16 illuminated crystal and white alabaster sculptures during Naples Art District’s “Art After Dark” on Wednesday, November 4. At 82, Shapses continues to push artistic boundaries by exploring the relationship between translucent stone and light. He calls his creations “nocturnal works of art” because their visual impact is heightened in dimly lit settings where the interplay of light and stone brings each sculpture to life. At “Art After Dark,” visitors can see Shapses’ illuminated sculptures and explore his sculpture garden, which features more than 150 stone and mixed-media works. For more, hear/read “Naples Art District’s ‘Art After Dark’ to feature 16 of Joel Shapses illuminated sculptures.”
“Life Beneath the Ruins” [Marco Island Center for the Arts]: Featuring James Pryor, Judy Becker, Jean Camposano, Nancy Norman, Joel Shapses, and Dick James. Runs to Nov. 24.
Vera Ripley exhibit is in the Petit Gallery. Runs through Dec. 1.
“Day of the Dead” [Grass Wall Installation at Marco Island Center for the Arts]: Runs to Nov. 13.
Support for WGCU’s arts & culture reporting comes from the Estate of Myra Janco Daniels, the Charles M. and Joan R. Taylor Foundation, and Naomi Bloom in loving memory of her husband, Ron Wallace.
Sponsored in part by the State of Florida through the Division of Arts and Culture.
