After losing its home of nearly two decades on Main Street, a cooperative art gallery in Sebastopol has leveraged its long history of success to begin its next chapter just down the street.
Sebastopol Gallery will move into Suite 11 at 186 North Main Street in Sebastopol, where it will soon begin its 20th year in the community as an artist-owned space. The cooperative gallery will hold a soft opening celebration on Saturday, July 11 to welcome locals to check out the new gallery.
The co-op’s members were caught off guard last fall when the owner of the gallery’s longtime space at 150 Main Street notified them in November that their lease would not be renewed.
While the artists wanted to stay in Sebastopol, they were worried they wouldn’t be able to find a new location in the city, said Teri Sloat, a member artist and publicist for the gallery.
The gallery’s relocation has already garnered support from loyal art enthusiasts in the community, who have long enjoyed the selection of works by local artists and makers. Roughly 14 member artists meet monthly to make decisions about the direction of the gallery and its business, which now also has eight consignment members including woodworkers and jewelers.
Under director Katy Boggs, Sloat said the gallery’s relocation is “A great new beginning for our twentieth year.”
The new suite offers bonuses for the gallery’s future business, she said, as it includes a large space ideal for holding workshops and hosting artist speakers. The former space had limited room available for the latter, which was challenging for business. Sloat said the extra room will make it possible to earn more revenue by holding a variety of new workshops for people with different interests.
Jeweler Michelle Hoting adjusts podiums featuring felted lantern by artist Sally Kent at the Sebastopol Gallery’s new location at 186 N. Main St. in Sebastopol Thursday, July 9, 2026. (Beth Schlanker / The Press Democrat)
The Sebastopol Gallery’s new location at 186 N. Main St. in Sebastopol Thursday, July 9, 2026. (Beth Schlanker / The Press Democrat)
Artist James Reynolds hangs up his pastel drawings at the Sebastopol Gallery’s new location at 186 N. Main St. in Sebastopol Thursday, July 9, 2026. (Beth Schlanker / The Press Democrat)
Artist Chris Boyd unpacks her ceramic pieces to display at the Sebastopol Gallery’s new location at 186 N. Main St. in Sebastopol Thursday, July 9, 2026. (Beth Schlanker / The Press Democrat)
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Jewelry by Stacy Low for sale at the Sebastopol Gallery’s new location at 186 N. Main St. in Sebastopol Thursday, July 9, 2026. (Beth Schlanker / The Press Democrat)
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Jeweler Michelle Hoting adjusts podiums featuring felted lantern by artist Sally Kent at the Sebastopol Gallery’s new location at 186 N. Main St. in Sebastopol Thursday, July 9, 2026. (Beth Schlanker / The Press Democrat)
The gallery plans to begin offering “intimate” classes for up to eight people starting in August, ranging from creative writing to painting topics, Sloat added. A grand opening will follow in September.
“This is exactly what we’re looking for,” Sloat said.
Magnet for co-ops
Sonoma County has been the home of other cooperative galleries for decades. A cooperative business is typically self-run by the artists, who may show their work at the space after being accepted through an application process run by their peers. Cooperative galleries may charge percentage-based commissions, membership fees based on the space an artist occupies, or a combination of both to cover their expenses.
Businesses created to benefit a group of members operating “at cost” are typically organized as cooperative corporations, nonprofit “mutual benefit” corporations, nonprofit “public benefit” corporations, general partnerships, unincorporated associations or limited liability companies (LLCs), according to the Legal Sourcebook For California Cooperatives. Sebastopol Gallery is an LLC, which means that its ownership is governed by membership interest rather than stock to protect their assets.
Several well-known examples of artists cooperatives include Arts Guild of Sonoma which has been around for nearly 50 years since being founded as a nonprofit for artists. It was founded to exhibit the work of local artists and advance their careers, supports local and regional arts education in Sonoma Valley and participates in a range of community outreach programs to encourage appreciation of and participation in the arts.
In downtown Bodega, the Artisans’ Co-Op has for nearly three decades been a display space for more than 40 independent artists from all over the region, who create everything from ceramics, paintings and jewelry to fabrics and textiles and wood art. All artists who show work at this gallery must be accepted through an application process run by their peers, and must give back a certain amount of each sale to help support the business.
Sloat said the cooperative model at Sebastopol Gallery works because there is a strong sense of community and maintaining a sustainable business: “The arts and business can go together well.”
“The group has evolved to where we share a collective energy of success, which is so important in the art world,” Sloat said. “We just have this collective power of moving forward which has really helped this happen. We still have three of the founding members. This is the second time they’ve gone through taking a chance, the making of a building into a gallery.”
Of the move, she said “It started out as such a negative thing, and the challenge renewed our combined commitment – like taking your second wedding vows. We have this group of artists that work together well, and it really turned out to be the best thing that could have happened to us.”
Sloat said the previous gallery space was vacated several weeks ago. The 2,677-square foot building and property which the gallery previously called home sold for $890,000 in 2022 and its 2025 assessed value was $925,956, according to public records published by Compass.
Staff Writer Natalie Hanson reports on business and agriculture for The Press Democrat. She can be reached at natalie.hanson@pressdemocrat.com or at 619-665-5887.