Image: Norton Museum of Art, West Palm Beach
The Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach will stage 'Art After Dark' on July 10, 2026, pairing live music, a talk on color and well-being, hands-on artmaking and docent-led tours with access to two current exhibitions. The museum says the Friday evening program runs from 5 to 10 pm, with tickets priced at $10 for adults and seniors, $5 for students and free for members.
The event builds on the Norton’s regular Friday-night format, which the museum describes as an eclectic mix of live performances, film screenings, workshops, tours and more. For this edition, guitarist Collin Holloway is billed for the music slot, while artist and environmental color consultant Jason C. Bemis will deliver an 'ArtSpeaks' lecture titled 'Color theory, art, and well-being with artist and environmental color consultant Jason C. Bemis – ArtNatureFlow'. The lecture is scheduled for 6 to 7 pm in Stiller Auditorium and requires online registration because space is limited.
According to the museum’s event listing, Bemis will discuss how color, light and space influence mood and well-being through different art forms. The talk is framed around classical theory, biophilic insights and neuroscience, with the museum saying he presents art as a dialogue between light, mind and body. The accompanying program page also notes support for 'ArtSpeaks: Jason C. Bemis' from the Gayle and Paul Gross Education Endowment Fund.
Music begins later in the evening, from 7:30 to 9 pm in the Great Hall. Holloway is described by the museum as a dynamic classical guitarist known for expressive artistry, refined tone and adventurous programming. The Norton’s event materials say he has toured in the United States and Spain, appeared at major festivals, and performed works including Vivaldi’s 'Guitar Concerto in D Major' and Aaron Kernis’s '100 Greatest Dance Hits', along with the premiere of 'Malagueña de Jotron' with the Los Romeros Guitar Quartet. His debut solo album, 'A Musical Portrait', is cited as including works by Gilardino and Graciela Agudelo.
The evening also includes open studio activity from 6 to 9 pm in Classroom 2. In that workshop, teaching artist Samantha Mensching will lead visitors in making magnetic bookmarks using collage techniques. The museum says the project draws inspiration from Dale Chihuly’s layered glasswork and the Norton’s collection, while using monochrome, analogous or complementary palettes to explore color theory.
Visitors can also join docent-led tours at 5:30 pm and 7 pm. The earlier tour offers a choice between '60 Seconds: Polaroids from the Collection' and 'Recognition of Art by Women: In Retrospect'; the later tour adds 'Highlights of the Collection' in English or Spanish alongside 'Recognition of Art by Women: In Retrospect'. Tours are limited to 25 visitors, and wristbands are to be picked up at the Membership Table one hour before the tour. Parking for 'Art After Dark' is listed at a $9 flat rate in the museum’s main lot, with Norton members parking free.
The exhibitions tied to the program are both drawn from the museum’s current schedule. '60 Seconds: Polaroids from the Collection' runs through August 16, 2026 and is described by the Norton as an exhibition about photography’s immediacy and the creative possibilities of instant film, using works from the collection. 'Recognition of Art by Women: In Retrospect' runs through September 27, 2026 and looks back on the museum’s series begun in 2011 to recognize and promote living women artists through solo exhibitions; the group presentation includes work by Jenny Saville, Sylvia Plimack Mangold, Phyllida Barlow, Klara Kristalova, Njideka Akunyili Crosby, Svenja Deininger, Nina Chanel Abney, María Berrío and Rose B. Simpson.
The museum also notes free Saturday admission for Palm Beach County residents through September 5, 2026 as part of its summer programming, with that offer made possible by the Anna-Maria and Stephen Kellen Foundation.
