It’s officially spring, drawing our attention to the blooming of Santa Fe’s vast, high-elevation landscape. Artists and art lovers have long been inspired by it, so too our diverse cultural influences, our rich history, and our modern, yet outpost-like vibe. Not to mention The City Different’s Territorial and Spanish Pueblo Revival architecture that we call the Santa Fe Style, our 250+ art galleries, 20+ museums, and multiple immersive experiences, as well as our robust performing arts offerings.

Are you an art lover (or an artist)? Come enjoy some art in the world's best city for art lovers amid the gentle warmth of a Santa Fe spring.


Earth Day 2024

Saturday, April 20, 10 am–2 pm

Railyard Park Conservancy

Let us rejoice in Mother Earth at the Railyard Park with the Earth Day 2024: Celebrating Healthy Soils. Come out to enjoy a wide range of family-friendly activities, including live music, compositing demos, seed-ball making, face painting, dog photo booths, bandana tie-dying, and more!


The Santa Fe Film Festival

April 25–28, daily

The Santa Fe Film Festival

Celebrating all facets of cinematic arts, The Santa Fe Film Festival honors everyone working both behind the scenes and onscreen to bring the best of film creation, production, and showings to the public. This year, the Festival hosts nearly 75 films, including Acequias: The Legacy Lives On and Cormac McCarthy's Veer. Get your tickets!


Last Friday Railyard Art Walk 

Friday, April 26, 5–7 pm

Railyard Art Walk

Enjoy a spring evening walking in the Railyard Arts District, where you’ll discover Santa Fe's leading contemporary art galleries, including Blue Rain Gallery, Charlotte Jackson Fine Art, Evoke Contemporary, form & concept, LewAllen Galleries, Tai Modern, and Zane Bennett Contemporary Art, along with the contemporary art museum SITE Santa Fe and the newest on the block New Mexico Museum of Art's Vladem Contemporary. When all of that art stirs your appetite, rest assured you are in the perfect neighborhood for a bite and a beer with new eateries on the scene.


Natural Beauty at the Santa Fe Botanical Garden

Daily, 9 am–5 pm
Santa Fe Botanical Garden


With April's arrival, the Santa Fe Botanical Garden comes alive and offers a variety of public programs that happen on the nearly 20 peaceful acres at Museum Hill, featuring native and appropriate non-native plants. Don’t miss a chance to walk the thoughtful paths through the three main gardens, Orchard Gardens, Ojos y Manos: Eyes and Hands, and the Piñon-Juniper Woodland. This wonderland is just a few minutes drive from the downtown historic Plaza.


Local Artisans at the Railyard

Every Saturday and Sunday at the Railyard
Railyard Artisan Market


Take home some fine arts and crafts from one of Santa Fe’s local artisans. Saturdays, in its 15th season is the Santa Fe Artists Market, an outdoor juried show that presents some of Santa Fe’s best in pottery, jewelry, paintings, photography, sculpture, furniture, textiles and more! Sundays, check out the Railyard Artisan Market, held in the open-air Farmers’ Market Pavilion, where you can find original, local, creative work directly from the artists, a gift for a special occasion, and souvenirs and mementos. Across the tracks, check out El Museo Cultural de Santa Fe Mercado for Americana, international folk art, vintage Western memorabilia, tribal and global fine art, as well as Native American jewelry and art, vintage and antique American and Western furniture and collectibles, books, textiles, clothing, and works of local artists, weekends through May. If you're in the downtown Plaza area, check out the weekend's Santa Fe Society of Artists, a juried group you'll find in white gallery tents in the parking lot of the First National 1870 Bank, across the street from the New Mexico Museum of Art. For a glimpse of local art markets throughout the year, see our recent blog titled Shop Local Santa Fe Artists & Artisans.


Immersive Experiences

Catacomber’s All-Ways by Edie Fake

Edie Fake's Catacomber’s All-Ways at Meow Wolf's House of Eternal Return. (Photo courtesy of Meow Wolf and Kate Russell)

Local George R.R. Martin, Game of Thrones creator was a key contributor to the original Meow Wolf, a mind-bending art immersion experience that thrives in The City Different with new rooms added to the more than 70 in the House of Eternal Return, including artist Edie Fake's Catacomber’s All-Ways. Fun for evening music performances, too, including The Santa Fe Symphony's Wind Quartet on April 9.

For some visual and performance art in motion, also inspired by Martin, check out what's on tap on Sky Railway’s new adventure trains, featuring series-related visuals from graffiti artist Joerael Numina. Choose your entertainment, including Sunset Serenade, Native American Dance, Serenta Flamenca, Margarita Rail, and roll along the 18 miles of track between the depots of Santa Fe and Lamy from the comfort a refurbished passenger car, as you feast your eyes on our exquisite high-elevation piñon and juniper landscape.


Walk Canyon Road

Canyon Road Sign


Yes, it’s just a half-mile long, and yet, there are more than 100 galleries to explore along this tree-lined, flower-forward street called Canyon Road. Take your time in and out of the charming historic adobe buildings that house some of the finest art in the world, be it contemporary, abstract, modern, expressionistic, figurative, photorealistic, digital, traditional, western or Native American. And poke around through to the back gardens, festooned in flora and sculpture. Reserve a bit more time than you think you’ll need—there are gourmet restaurants, jewelry stores, clothing boutiques, home furnishings shops, and artist studios to adore.


Treat Yourself to the Performing Arts

Lensic Theater


Be one of the many adoring fans of classical and orchestral music at venues throughout Santa Fe, including historic Lensic Performing Arts Center, where you enjoy shows throughout April, presented by the Santa Fe Symphony & Chorus, Santa Fe Pro Musica, and Performance Santa Fe.


Tour an Award-Winning Museum

IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts


Congratulations go out to this deeply deserving Santa Fe museum, listed in the USA TODAY 10BEST Readers' Choice 2024 poll on best museums in the United States: the IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Art is recognized for its display of art practices representative of Native North America, at #9. If you have kids in tow, consider the Museum of International Folk Art, with the world's largest collection of folk art!

Oh, and don't miss your chance to obsess about Santa Fe darling Georgia O'Keeffe at her very own museum. On exhibit through October 2025 is Making a Life, which explores the artist’s identity as a "maker" or an individual who carefully curated her life, personal style, and artistic practice. This intimate exhibition showcases her books, furniture, artist’s materials, clothing, and accessories.


Make Your Own Art

Santa Fe Art Classes
(Courtesy of Santa Fe Art Classes)


Why not learn a thing or two about art from behind a camera lens, at the tip of a paintbrush, through building glass designs, seated at the clay wheel, or by creating abstract oil and cold wax paintings? There’s no shortage of marvelous local instructors, artists in their own right, who adore sharing their craft with you. Check out the listings in Classes and Workshops. One of your memorable Santa Fe souvenirs could be a creation of your very own! 

And new to the downtown Plaza is a spot where you can simultaneously imbibe locally made craft beer and spirits AND make some take-home art. Check out Tumbleroot Pottery Pub, where "cocktails meet clay" or Paseo Pottery, where you can learn the basic of hand building or wheel throwing.


Hire an Art Guide

Art Tours
(Photo credit: Kitty Leaken)


Explore Santa Fe’s art scene with an expert facilitator! For instance, the guides with Santa Fe Art Tours are steeped in art history, but conduct tours with a discussion-based approach to encourage you to cultivate your own personal responses to the art. Choose from tours of our multiple museums, Canyon Road, the architecture of the Plaza; see artist studios, add chocolate or yoga to any experience, or fashion something custom. You’ll come away with some useful techniques for contemplating art and a new window into the mind of an artist. 


Get a taste of The City Different! Order your Official Santa Fe Visitors Guide now or browse our deals and specials to help you plan your next trip to Santa Fe.