August Art Walk at the Moab Museum

The first Friday in August (5 PM to 8 PM) turns downtown Moab into an open-air gallery walk connecting seven venues where local and regional artists display rotating exhibits across multiple mediums.

Start at the Moab Museum on Center Street, where the U92: Moab’s Uranium Legacy exhibition features archival photographs and Uranium After Dark multimedia installations, then continue to Gallery Moab, the Grand County Library, Moonflower Community Co-Op, Summit Sotheby’s Real Estate Office, The Sundry, and the Moab Arts and Recreation Center (all within a square mile of each other). The free, all-ages event features artist demonstrations, raffles, food and drink at participating locations, and opportunities to meet the creators behind paintings, photography, sculpture, printmaking, and installation pieces that capture the region’s red rock landscape and cultural history. Past exhibits have included the Saltgrass Printmakers’ Erratics portfolio exploring artists’ relationships to Utah, black and white photography by Bruce Hucko, quilts from the Delicate Stitchers, and chainsaw carvings displayed outdoors.

Art Walk evenings provide a relaxed cultural counterpoint to dusty trail days and early-morning park visits, giving you a chance to experience Moab’s creative community while supporting local artists whose work reflects the canyon country aesthetic. Most galleries stay open late, and downtown patios fill with diners extending the evening into dinner hour. Sunset Grill (opened 1993) sits high above town in the former home of uranium prospector Charlie Steen, offering million-dollar views across the valley alongside fresh-cut salmon with soy-sherry cream sauce and prime rib with the restaurant’s secret seasoning blend. Moab Garage Co. (opened 2017) transforms a historic auto repair shop into a combination cafe and full-service restaurant featuring liquid nitrogen ice cream and creative American dishes served in the original garage space where mechanics once worked on cars.

The Colorado River provides paddleboarding and kayaking options right in town, while Lake Powell lies 275 miles south (4.5 hours) for multi-day houseboating and slot canyon exploration that balances art-filled evenings with water-based adventures. Lake.com lists vacation homes near Moab and Lake Powell for travelers who want to combine gallery walks with mornings on the water, creating a desert southwest itinerary that includes both cultural experiences and the kind of red rock scenery that inspires the artists whose work fills these August exhibitions.