Explore Florida's Cultural Coast
The Florida Cultural Coast designation refers specifically to Sarasota County, and the infrastructure behind it is real. The county maintains a museum circuit, performing arts venues, and gallery district that collectively exceed what most Florida cities outside Miami can offer.
Art Museum
John and Mable Ringling Museum
One of the premier art collections in Florida. European masters, a circus museum, the Ca'd'Zan mansion, and 66 bay-front acres.
Performing Arts
Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall
The landmark lavender clamshell building on Sarasota Bay. National touring productions run from October through June in one of the Gulf Coast's most distinctive venues.
Botanical and Art
Marie Selby Botanical Gardens
Bayfront gardens integrating large-scale art installations with one of the world's most significant living orchid collections.
Theater
Asolo Repertory Theatre
Professional regional theater operating inside a historic Italian theater interior. The Asolo produces its own season and hosts national touring productions.
Contemporary Art
Sarasota Art Museum
Contemporary art inside the beautifully restored 1926 Sarasota High School building. The architecture is the permanent collection.
Circus Arts
Circus Arts Conservatory
The Sailor Circus has been performing since 1949. The conservatory trains students and produces performances that connect Sarasota directly to the Ringling circus heritage.
The Ringling Complex
The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art is the institutional anchor. The estate includes the museum of art with its European master collection, the Ca d Zan mansion, the Circus Museum, and 66 acres of grounds on Sarasota Bay. The Ringling Causewaybrid-art connection between the Ringling Bridge and the bayfront gives the complex a relationship to the water that few inland art institutions can replicate.
Performing Arts
The Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall on the bayfront hosts national touring productions throughout the season. The Asolo Repertory Theatre produces its own professional stage productions and brings in national touring companies. Florida Studio Theatre in downtown Sarasota runs multiple stages simultaneously, including a cabaret program that operates year-round. The Circus Arts Conservatory teaches circus performance skills and produces the Sailor Circus, a student performance that has run continuously since 1949.
Galleries and Studios
The Burns Court neighborhood and the Towles Court Artist Colony in downtown Sarasota are the primary gallery districts. Towles Court holds regular open studio events on the third Friday of each month during the season. The gallery density along Main Street and Palm Avenue supports a First Friday gallery walk format that has become a regular downtown social event.
Editor Picks
Editor's Pick
Florida Resident Monday at the Ringling
Florida residents enter the entire Ringling estate for free every Monday. If you are a Florida resident and have not done this yet, you are leaving significant value on the table.
Best Kept Secret
Towles Court Open Studios
Third Friday of each month during season. Sarasota's artist colony opens its studios, pours wine, and sells work directly. No curation, no gallery markup, and genuinely interesting work.
Can't Miss
Ca'd'Zan Mansion Tour
John Ringling's pink Venetian Gothic winter home on Sarasota Bay. The interior is extraordinary: hand-painted ceilings, custom tilework, and an organ that still plays.