Ablin Gallery
May 28, 2026 – September 6, 2026

In Second Nature, artists Annette Goodfriend, Ruth Tabancay, and Esther Traugot examine the natural world through a lens of both wonder and warning. United by a profound attentiveness to ecological fragility, their works blur the boundaries between science and imagination, beauty and unease. Comprised of sculpture, textile, installation, and mixed-media experimentation, works of art in the exhibition address environmental degradation, threatened ecosystems, and the interconnectedness of species. Deeply imaginative yet grounded in biological truth, these works translate lived ecological concern into poetic visual language. Together, Second Nature reframes humanity’s relationship to nature and considers what it means to care for a world increasingly shaped by human intervention. 

Blue Ribbon Circle Gallery 
May 28, 2026 – September 6, 2026

Showcasing the creativity and vision of fifteen Kern County high school juniors and seniors, this exhibition marks the culmination of Bakersfield Museum of Art’s 2026 ArtWorks program. Centered on the theme Becoming, the students explore the space between who they were, who they are, and who they are still growing into. Through personal narratives, mythology, symbolism, and emotional reflection, the works examine change, experimentation, and self-discovery. Together, this exhibition highlights the evolving perspectives of young artists while embracing the unknown of the future, remaining grounded in the present, and informed by the past. 

Lazzerini Gallery 
May 28, 2026 – January 3, 2027

Unspoken Ordinary brings together LGBTQ+ artists from the Bakersfield Museum of Art’s permanent collection whose work examines identity, visibility, and lived experience. Through familiar imagery—figures, everyday objects, domestic scenes, and coded visual symbols—these works reveal how the ordinary can carry deeper layers of memory, desire, resilience, and personal history. Whether through acts of reclamation, subtle references, or intimate narratives, each artist transforms commonplace visual language into a space for reflection and recognition. Together, these selected works underscore the profound significance embedded within the familiar and the many ways identity is shaped through both visible and unspoken experience.

Dezember/Cunningham Gallery
January 29, 2026 – August 29, 2026

The Invented Land offers an immersive exploration of transformation in California’s San Joaquin Valley, where land, water, and human ambition are inseparably linked. Drawing from her multigenerational connection to California agriculture, Ann Diener weaves drawing, sculpture, and installation into layered visual systems that reflect irrigation, infrastructure, and environmental change. Expanding on earlier iterations, this presentation introduces new works inspired by the Kern River, examining its vital role in shaping the region’s ecology, industry, and cultural memory. Maps, diagrams, and organic forms converge to trace cycles of cultivation, extraction, and renewal, revealing place as an ever-evolving construction shaped by memory, labor, and invention. 

March 25, 2026 - March 6, 2027

Seventy Years of Inspiration: The Story of the Bakersfield Museum of Art traces the museum’s evolution from its founding in 1956 as the Cunningham Memorial Art Gallery to its role today as a regional cultural anchor. Through archival photographs, exhibition histories, and key moments in the museum’s growth, this visual history exhibition celebrates seven decades of creativity, community engagement, and artistic advocacy. It honors the artists, supporters, and audiences who have shaped BMoA’s legacy while looking toward its future as a place of inspiration and connection.