Hanson Gallery Fine Art
Art Gallery · 669 Bridgeway, Sausalito, CA 94965
Verified September 2026
Hanson Gallery Fine Art has been on Bridgeway for more than 40 years, and its exhibition history reads like a modern-art syllabus. Picasso, Chagall, Calder, Jim Dine, Christo and Jeanne-Claude have all had work shown here, and the gallery has hosted Opus wine-series release parties and fundraisers for the Bay Area Discovery Museum and the Ovarian Cancer Coalition along the way. The current roster runs to around forty artists, with contemporary painters such as Chris Hanson, Jaline Pol, Carolyn Reynolds and Nuria Garcia hanging beside California landscapes by Randolph Johnson and Scott Hanson. Scott Hanson's Original 48 Plates, a wall piece built from license plates and lead on steel, is the gallery's best-known crowd-pleaser, and the gallery says this is the only place in the country to find it. The space doubles as a tasting room for Hanson of Sonoma wines, which explains why some afternoons feel more like a party than a viewing.
What To Expect
The gallery lists Picasso, Chagall, Christo and Hockney among the historic names it handles, and those are the pieces that come with serious price tags. The contemporary side is a different conversation, and the gallery itself describes some of its abstract work as approachable for first-time collectors. Staff will talk you through a piece without pressure if you're only looking. Hanson also does art consulting for homes, offices, yachts and private aircraft, so questions about scale, framing and placement are routine here. Allow twenty to thirty minutes for the walk-through, longer if you settle in for a tasting.
Getting There
Hanson sits at 669 Bridgeway on the main gallery stretch, so it slots easily into a walk north from the ferry landing. Galerie Elektra is close by, and Sausalito Center for the Arts is a few blocks farther north at 750. Bridgeway parking gets tight on summer weekends, and taking the ferry over from San Francisco skips the problem entirely.
Good To Know
Local arts listings give the hours as Thursday through Monday, 10 to 6, with Tuesday and Wednesday closed. The gallery's own site does not spell out hours, so call (415) 332-1815 before a midweek trip. The tasting room shares the space, so ask about wine when you walk in. Hanson also hosts private events, and its news page mentions a Salesforce gathering held just ahead of Dreamforce.
Our Take
If you only have time for one gallery on Bridgeway, this is the one with the name recognition to justify it. Picasso and Chagall don't turn up in many small coastal towns. Go for the big names, stay for the license-plate wall, and then walk over to Galerie Elektra if you want something bolder and more contemporary.