Come out to Rappahannock this month to enjoy world-class local and national fine art art – there are fabulous exhibits at all of our galleries! It’s a wonderful time of year to come out to the County for the day or weekend, do some shopping in all of our galleries and local shops, and enjoy our restaurants, wineries, micro-breweries, farm stands, and markets.
This month features a new exhibit at Middle Street Gallery, and continuing exhibitions at Gay Street Gallery and Thornton River Art.
Of course, all of our galleries are open and filled with amazing work from local and national artists. Why not come out to Rappahannock for a beautiful weekend for your own personal gallery tour! Be sure to include stops at all the amazing shops in Washington and Sperryville. See a show at the Castleton Festival. Note that the Theater in Little Washington is closed for renovations.
There are so many options to indulge yourself in Rappahannock! Incredible art and local shops, of course, many spas offering all kinds of wonderful services, plus hiking in the Shenandoah National Park, wineries and micro-breweries, amazing restaurants, and overnight accomodations provide all the makings of a wonderful get-away from the city!
There’s something for everyone in Rappahannock!
Check out the permanent collections at these local galleries as well as the current exhibitions featured below:
Artful Friends Gallery: Located in the Marketplace Sperryville, Artful Friends is a partnership of six artists and longtime friends (including two sisters): Holly Flowers, Mary Berk Gidzinski, Nancy Kline, Patricia Reid, Beth Schmaltz and Jacque Towner. Every item for sale in their gallery is hand made by one of these artists and include fine art mosaics, creative and original textile pieces, watercolors, wearable art, jewelry, repurposed and unique functional items, and much more.
R.H. Ballard Shop & Gallery: Housed in a 1930’s building on Main Street in Washington, VA, since 1996, Ballard’s includes both a beautiful art gallery in its downstairs space as well as an award-winning shop upstairs featuring one-of-a-kind finds, table wares, European & vintage items, women’s accessories, and so much more. Ballards has won many awards and accolades, including “Best Shops in the South” by Southern Living Magazine, “Best Shops in Virginia” from THE SHOPKEEPERS, and in the press in the Washington Post and Washingtonian Magazine among others. It has also been awarded 5-stars and touted on TripAdvisor by loyal fans and clientele.
Haley Fine Art: Established in 2000, Haley Fine Art (HFA) presents its collection in Sperryville, Virginia. Ensconced in the Blue Ridge Mountains, HFA provides a quiet natural space for collectors and artists to connect. The gallery offers two to three shows annually, typically on the second Saturday of May, October and December. Decades-long relationships are the norm, Chris Stephens, Robin Purnell, Patton Wilson, Drew Ernst, Michael Fitts, BK Noh, Woody Blackwell, and Tom Mullany are among the artists represented by HFA for more than twenty years. HFA features works sold for each artist on the website—a testament to lifelong commitments.
Sperryville ARTist Cooperative & Gallery: Sperryville ARTist Cooperative/SPAC Gallery is an artist-owned studio, gallery and event showcase that features, emerging, and established fine artists, and craftsmen who celebrate the natural beauty and farmland heritage of Virginia’s Piedmont Region. This rustic yet inviting artist-operated gallery exhibits an enticing collection of multidimensional, paintings, mixed media, photography, and art of social commentary.
Here’s what’s happening this month:
Click on all images to open them larger in lightbox.
DONNA BRUNE
Group Show, Blandy Sketch Group
June 30 – July 20, 2026
Artist Reception: Saturday, July 3, 2026 from 4:30 – 6:30 pm
Shenandoah Lodge and Athletic Club
180 Bald Eagle Drive
Lake Frederick, VA 26630
540-699-3232
Hours: Mon-Tues 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, Weds-Sat 9 am – 9 pm, and Sun 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
This is a group show of the Blandy Sketch Group which meets every 1st Thursday of the month in the Blandy Library, at the Virginia Arboretum. 6 members of the Sketch Group are participating in this group show.
MIDDLE STREET GALLERY
Francie Schroeder: “Spaces”
July 3 – August 9, 2026
Artist Reception: Saturday, July 11, 2026 from 4:00 – 6:00 pm
311 Gay Street, Lower Level, facing Main Street & across from Ballard’s Gallery
Washington, VA 22747
540-227-5066
Hours: Friday – Sunday, 11:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Middle Street Gallery is a non-profit artist co-operative with over 40 years’ history in Rappahannock County. The 19 members embrace a variety of subjects, styles, and media. The backgrounds of the artists are equally varied, from members with advanced degrees in the fine arts to those who are completely self-taught. Exhibits change every 6 weeks, sometimes featuring a single member or two complementary members and sometimes presenting a group show.
Francie describes her new show: “Flat blank spaces are a challenge, a dare, an answer to a need, an opportunity. I collected images of these spaces attracted by their humor, their beauty, their messages or simply by their visual presence.”
RUTHIE WINDSOR-MANN
“From Omega to Alpha”
Ruthie Windsor-Mann’s latest book, “From Omega to Alpha,” is now available on Apple Books and other outlets! Access it via the QR code in the featured image, and check out the YouTube video below of Ruthie discussing it.
CONTINUING EXHIBITIONS
THORNTON RIVER ART
Geneva Welch
June 14 – August 2, 2026
Opening Reception: June 14, 2026, 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
37C Main Street
Sperryville, VA 22740
540-547-7845
Hours: Friday – Sunday, 11 am – 5 pm
Thornton River Art is Sperryville’s Gallery of Local Art. The gallery is a collaboration of three Rappahannock artists, Martin Woodard, Patricia Brennan and Heidi Morf, and features an eclectic collection of art from 28+ local artists including fine art, stained glass, fused glass, mosaics, pottery, weaving, jewelry, metal art, felted art, woodworking, and more.
Thornton River Art is proud to present the artwork of Geneva Welch, one of Rappahannock’s most renowned artists. Her luminous watercolors and full bodied oils capture the quiet spirit of animals and life in Rappahannock County. Influenced by Dutch and Flemish masters, her layered glazes and misty landscapes create serene, contemplative scenes. Thornton River Art will feature Geneva’s original paintings, limited‑edition prints, notecards, and hand‑crafted gifts.
GAY STREET GALLERY
Martin Woodard, Aster da Fonseca and Maureen Storey
May 16 – August 2, 2026
337 Gay Street
Washington, VA 22747
540-227-5100
Hours: Friday – Sunday, 10 am – 5 pm or by appointment 540-316-8898
Gay Street Gallery is also happy to help you by phone 540-227-5100 or email office@gaystreetgallery.com.
Gay Street Gallery presents the work of select, award-winning artists from Virginia and around the country. With a focus on representational landscape and figurative paintings, the Gallery also shows sculpture, pottery, woodwork and glasswork, and also hosts exhibitions of contemporary work in various media. In addition, the gallery continues to display work from the archives of the late Kevin H. Adams, the Gallery’s beloved and much-missed co-founder and resident artist.
This exhibit features the works of Martin Woodard, Aster da Fonseca, and Maureen Storey. The gallery also features work from other local and national artists, works from the archives of Kevin H. Adams, and selected works from the Gallery Owner’s Collection.
Images (top to bottom):
Martin Woodard
Aster da Fonseca
Maureen Storey