Palo Alto Public Art Program

The Rhinoceros Project (Michelle Wilson & Anne Beck ) is a participatory public art project that brings community members together through sewing circles. Participants will help build large embroidered maps tracing historic routes across California and Mexico, adding stitches that connect personal experience with layered histories of place, movement, and migration.

Palo Alto is included as a key site along these historic routes, bringing the project into direct conversation with local history and community. Participants of all ages and skill levels are welcome. No sewing experience is needed, and all materials will be provided.

Presented as part of the ArtLift Grants Program through the City of Palo Alto Public Art Program.

Workshop Schedule - All workshops take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.:

Saturday, June 20
King Plaza

Saturday, July 18
King Plaza

Saturday, August 8
Downtown Library

Saturday, September 12
Downtown Library

Saturday, October 10
Downtown Library

Saturday, November 21
Downtown Library

Join artist Zoe Caron for “Wild Color”, a series of hands-on community mural workshops at Cubberley Community Center. Designed with public participation in mind, this ArtLift project invites community members of all ages and experience levels to help bring a large-scale mural to life.

Participants will contribute to the mural through a guided paint-by-numbers process. No art experience is needed, and all materials will be provided.

Workshops are free and open to the public.

Presented as part of the ArtLift Grants Program through the City of Palo Alto Public Art Program.

Workshop Schedule at Cubberley Community Center, between the L-, E-, and F-wings:

Saturday, June 20, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.
Saturday, June 27, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.
Saturday, July 25, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.
Saturday, August 1, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.
Saturday, September 5, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.
Sunday, September 13, 11 a.m.–2 p.m.

Join artist Sophia Lee for hands-on public workshops connected to her ArtLift project, Whispers Through the Trees. Participants will create soft sculptural “fortune cookies” using reclaimed canvas, paint, and decorative materials, then add a hidden message that may be kind, playful, reflective, or quietly hopeful.

The completed pieces will become part of a public art installation at the California Avenue Caltrain Station, where community messages will hang from the trees

No art experience is needed, and all materials will be provided. This workshop series is free and open to the public.

Presented as part of the ArtLift Grants Program through the City of Palo Alto Public Art Program.

Public workshop schedule with locations:

Thursday, June 4, 12:30–2:30 p.m.
Lytton Plaza

Sunday, June 14, 9 a.m.–12 p.m.
California Avenue Farmers’ Market

Thursday, June 18, 2–5 p.m.
Cubberley Community Center (Amphitheatre lawn)

Saturday, July 11, 9 a.m.–12 p.m.
Downtown Farmers’ Market

Thursday, July 16, 12:30–2:30 p.m.
Lytton Plaza

Saturday, July 18, 11 a.m.–1 p.m.
California Avenue (414 California Avenue)

Saturday, August 15, 10 a.m.–1 p.m.
Mitchell Park

Thursday, August 20, 5–8 p.m.
California Avenue (414 California Avenue)

Thursday, August 27, 2–5 p.m.
College Terrace Library

Join us Saturday for held in Common, a participatory pop-up artwork with guest artist Angela Sanders at Plaza Ramona, one of Palo Alto’s POPOS (Privately Owned Public Open Spaces).

This activation is part of Public Benefit: Pop-Ups in the POPOS, a citywide series by artist Lisa Van Dusen . Funded by the ArtLift Grant Program, Palo Alto Public Art Program.

Add a word, share a thought, and help shape a growing community textile piece.

Saturday, May 16
11 a.m.–3 p.m.
250 University Ave, Palo Alto

Now on view in Downtown Palo Alto.

Artist Harumo Sato has completed “Pah-Pah-Pah-Pah, Jya-Jyan!” at All Saints Episcopal Church, 555 Waverley Street. Inspired by community input and the spirit of Palo Alto, the mural brings color, movement, and playfulness to the downtown streetscape.

Meet artist Phillip Hua and help shape a new public artwork for California Avenue.

Join us for a virtual introduction this Wednesday May 6 or stop by the pop up table on Cal Ave on Thursday May 7 to learn more about the upcoming mural at the Sherman Avenue Parking Garage and share your thoughts.

Join Textile Artist Jaya Griscom for an exciting series of Community Indigo Dye Events at Cubberley this spring! Be sure to attend the Indigo Dye Day on May 16th and consider also coming to a preparatory stitching or resist pattern workshop. Even if you can’t make these dye gatherings, keep an eye out for the Indigo banners we’ll create and display at Cubberley for all to enjoy!

April 26, 2026
Sewing a Dyeable Bag, Bandana, or Flag
1:00pm - 2:30pm

May 9, 2026
Folded and Clamped Resists
10:30am - 12:00pm
Stitched and Scrunched Resists
1:00pm - 2:30pm

May 16, 2026
Community Indigo Dye Day! (This is the main event!)
11:00am - 3:00pm

All events are free, part of our ArtLift Grant Program. Individual registration for each event is required to guarantee access - link to all details and Eventbrite registration via link in our bio!

Harumo Sato has officially started 🎨

Artist Harumo Sato began painting her new mural this week at All Saints Episcopal Church in downtown Palo Alto. Inspired by local life and community voices, her work is already bringing color, whimsy, and imagination to the space.

Swipe to see her in action

Step inside the studios. Meet the artists. Experience the work up close.

Cubberley Artists Open Studios
Saturday, April 25, 1–5 p.m.

Explore a wide range of practices across painting, sculpture, textiles, installation, and design. Wander through working studios, meet the artists, and see where ideas take shape.

Featuring artists across the E, F, and U wings.

Free and open to the public.

ArtLift Grants 2026 Announcement 📢
 
10 projects. 10 artists / artist groups. Commissioned by the Palo Alto Public Art Commission to support local artists creating installations, performances, or interactive works designed to bring joy and vibrancy to Downtown, California Avenue and Cubberley Community Center.

🪡 The Rhinoceros Project with : community sewing circles around town.

💡 Charles Gadeken : a grove of glowing light sculptures.

🐦 Inna Razmakhova : tiny ceramic birds hidden in plain sight on California Avenue.

🎞️ Ala Mohseni : a hand-cranked movie box at Cubberley.

💙 Jaya Griscom .griscom: indigo dye days at Cubberley.

🔥 NGC Karen: a glowing “campfire” that moves and breathes.

🥠 Sophia Lee : fortune cookies in trees, filled with messages.

☄️ Miguel Novelo : an asteroid you can summon with your phone.

🎨 Zoe Caron : community mural workshops at Cubberley.

🏠 Lisa Van Dusen : pop-ups in hidden public spaces.

Art you stumble upon. Art you can join. Art that brings people together. Stay tuned for dates, locations, and ways to participate.