RICHMOND, Ind. — The Richmond Art Museum’s annual Secret Garden Tour returns June 27-28, offering visitors access to four private gardens, plein air artists, a garden boutique and opportunities to support the museum’s educational programming.

The two-day event, a longtime summer tradition in Richmond, serves as one of the museum’s key fundraisers while connecting the visual arts with landscape design and gardening.

“Yeah, so it's a guided tour,” Executive Director Sean Dingworth said during a recent radio interview. “We have four incredible gardens on the tour this year. Also with that we have plein air artists who paint in the yards.”

Dingworth said the event includes specialty vendors selling garden-related items and artwork created during the tour.

“But it's a terrific community event. Not only does it help keep the museum admission free,” he said.

The museum expects nearly 1,000 visitors to attend this year’s tour. Dingworth described gardeners as artists in their own right.

“Yeah, well really these gardeners are artists as far as I'm concerned. And so I really encourage people to get out if you haven't tried it. We have nearly a thousand people that go every year,” he said.

The 2026 tour will also feature the return of Greg’s Antiques, known for its ironwork displays, along with Lavender and Sage of Centerville.

Beyond the garden tour, museum officials highlighted a growing lineup of events and exhibitions supported by community fundraising efforts. Earlier this month, the museum hosted a screening of the cult comedy “Napoleon Dynamite,” featuring cast members who participated in a question-and-answer session afterward.

“Yeah, absolutely. So, you know, at the Richmond Art Museum we love to do fun, exciting things,” Dingworth said. “And this was something that my staff was really behind.”

Education Director Lance Crow discussed the museum’s current exhibition featuring artist Justin Kane Elder and the museum’s summer educational programming.

Crow said Elder recently led a three-day intensive workshop for high school students as part of the museum’s art camp offerings.

“We're admission free, so bring people by, stop by,” Crow said.

The museum has already completed one week of summer art camp for students in kindergarten through sixth grade and has two additional sessions planned for July. Participants work in multiple artistic mediums, including drawing, painting, sculpture and collage.

“At the end of each of those weeks of camp, we do a student art show,” Crow said. “So the parents, grandparents, friends get invited to the museum at the end of the week and get to see a show that's put on by the campers.”

Elder’s exhibition remains on display through late July. Dingworth said the artist’s connection to Richmond reflects the strength of the local arts community.

“He had some family living here, visited Richmond, loved the art scene in Richmond, has made this his home,” Dingworth said. “And yeah, the art is stunning and it's very vibrant.”

The museum’s upcoming exhibition schedule includes “Enduring Vision,” celebrating the 125th anniversary of Tri Kappa, opening July 11 and running through Oct. 3. Richmond is one of only two Indiana locations selected to host the statewide exhibition.

“This is a collection of art that the organization has acquired over the decades of their existence,” Dingworth said. “So these are works that have not been seen in a long time.”

Additional exhibitions opening in August include “Iron Aura” and “Just Black and White,” a photography retrospective featuring longtime Palladium-Item photographer Steve Coger.

“We're really proud of that,” Dingworth said of the museum’s commitment to exhibiting local artists. “Steve is one of those amazing artists, very integral and, you know, part of our community for decades.”

Later this year, the museum will host its 128th Annual Exhibition of Indiana and Ohio Artists, one of the region’s longest-running juried art competitions.

“It's one of the top in the state,” Dingworth said. “We hand out over thirty thousand dollars in merit and purchase awards.”

According to Dingworth, the annual exhibition attracted 252 artist submissions last year and remains central to the museum’s mission.

“It's really our DNA, it's who we are,” he said. “Again, we want to showcase the art of people that live in our state.”

Crow also highlighted Pottery Palooza, scheduled for Sept. 12 on the museum’s front lawn.

“That's another fun, free event that the museum hosts right on its front lawn,” Crow said.

The Secret Garden Tour will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 27 and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. June 28.

Advance tickets are $15 through the Richmond Art Museum website and $20 during the event weekend.

Proceeds support museum operations, exhibitions and educational programming throughout the year.