As part of our ongoing commitment to the arts, join us for Art + Wine at the Watershed First Street Gallery with artist Ashleigh Sumner as we celebrate her new exhibition TOUCH THE SKY, on view through August 2025.

Opening reception July 19, 2025, 4:00 to 7:00 pm.
Watershed First Street Gallery
429 1st Street, Petaluma, CA 94952

“While breaking down countless Nike shoe boxes and luxury brand shopping bags, I was curious how a plain paper bag is considered trash, yet the same paper bag embossed with Gucci or Air Jordan is emotionally considered a treasure.” - Ashleigh Sumner

We first met Ashleigh at an exhibition at Themes + Projects and were immediately drawn to her and her work. Her art stood out—not just for how visually powerful it was, but for how it sparked conversations about identity, branding, and culture. We admire the way she uses her art to ask questions, share insights, and reflect on the world we live in.

In this exhibition, Ashleigh explores the emotional power of branding and how companies like Nike, Gucci, and Dior shape our ideas of success, status, and identity. In her collages she questions how an ordinary bag gains emotional value once branded, and how consumerism—originally a post-WWII American phenomenon—has become a global force, magnified by social media and digital advertising. Much like Andy Warhol’s soup cans and soda bottles, these works look at how consumerism shapes who we are and what we value.