20 Essential Galleries

20 ESSENCIAL Art Galleries

Representing a crucial link between artistic talent and public awareness, some art galleries are like museums, maintaining caches of masterpieces by well-known artists. Others, by fostering the creative forces of emerging or mid-level talents, influence the direction of contemporary art. Still others offer rare, specific collectibles. Whether you are looking to buy or simply appreciate art, this list will guide you to the most interesting galleries across the country.

Words by Nick Burry

01 Mary Boone Gallery

New York City
www.maryboonegallery.com
Now that SoHo has transformed into a high-end commercial area, the New York (and possibly the world’s) art gallery epicenter has shifted to the Chelsea warehouse district on Manhattan’s west side. The Mary Boone Gallery also traces its roots to SoHo, where i texhibited noteworthy works for more than 20 years. In 2000, Mary Boone Gallery opened a Chelsea venue (there is another branch uptown). The new Mary Boone is housed in a former mechanic’s workshop, and the 3,700-square-foot space lies beneath original arced wooden trusses. The spacious and well-lit gallery continues to exhibit works by some of the world’s most important and influential contemporary artists, including David Salle and Barbara Kruger.

02 Fraenkel Gallery

San Francisco
www.fraenkelgallery.com
The Fraenkel Gallery in San Francisco has been exploring the art and influence of photography for over 25 years. During that period, the gallery’s 300 exhibitions have run the gamut from photography’s early masters to its contemporary trendsetters. Several standouts include NASA’s stark lunar photography, the conceptual works of Hiroshi Sugimoto, and Ralph Eugene Meatyard’s uncanny visions of ordinary life. The quality of the exhibitions coupled with the diversity of the subject matter makes the Fraenkel Gallery accessible to both novices and experts in the field of photography.

03 Gallery 10

Washington, DC
www.gallery10dc.com
Experimental art flourishes in artist-run Gallery
10. For more than 30 years, it has been exhibiting high-quality and high-risk art in the heart of the Dupont Circle gallery district. With four separate exhibition rooms, the gallery has the freedom to create a unified show or a disjointed meandering through different media and subject matters. One previous exhibition that underscores the gallery’s penchant for the unexpected displayed a set of elegant glass vessels filled with milk.

04 Ironton Studios and Gallery

Denver
www.irontonstudios.com
Part art gallery, part artist colony, Ironton Studios provides a long-term place to work for artists in all disciplines. Located in Denver’s revitalized River North Art District, Ironton was built near the site of an old iron smelter. Naturally, the site hosts resident metal fabricators, but you’ll also find woodworkers, stone carvers and painters in Ironton’s 15 artist studios. Along with the studio space, Ironton has a landscaped garden and a gallery that is open to the public.

05 J. Johnson Gallery

Jacksonville, FL
www.jjohnsongallery.com
Located just a stone’s throw from the Atlantic, the J. Johnson Gallery brings cosmopolitan sophistication to the beach. The structure itself is imposing; the gallery is housed within a 15,000-square-foot, canary yellow Mediterranean-style building. The grandeur of the space matches the stature of the internationally renowned artists it has featured, such as Deborah Butterfield and Nabil Nahas. In September, J. Johnson presents the rainforest photography of Peruvian artist Javier Silva Meinel.

06 ArtJaz Gallery

Philadelphia
www.artjaz.com
Located in historic Old City Philadelphia, ArtJaz Gallery showcases the works of emerging and established artists of color. The name “ArtJaz” embodies the gallery’s commitment to freedom of expression and improvisation, and it is ArtJaz’s mission to promote artists who “embrace freedom, challenge boundaries and provoke feeling.” In September, the gallery showcases the works of Indian artist Salma Arastu, whose multi-layered and multicultural images of people combine Eastern spirituality with Western painting techniques.

07 Boston Sculptors Gallery

Boston
www.bostonsculptors.com
Boston Sculptors Gallery is an artist-run cooperative dedicated to the development of innovative sculpture and installment art. Every month, the gallery devotes its huge presentation space to two concurrent exhibitions by Boston artists. The gallery’s current 28 artists challenge and define the different aspects of three-dimensional art: from Lorey Bonante’s transformation of found objects, to Maggie Stark’s conceptual use of scientific glassware, to Joseph Wheelwright’s carved stone heads and tree figures.

08 Rogue Buddha Gallery

Minneapolis
www.roguebuddha.com
Founded in 2000 by painter Nicholas Harper, the Rogue Buddha Gallery is helping to transform Minneapolis’ urban geography. In the post-industrial Northeast Minneapolis Arts District (where Rogue Buddha resides), art galleries are sprouting up where empty warehouses stood.

Fulfilling its role as a trendsetting gallery in Minneapolis’ hip art scene, Rogue Buddha offers an eclectic space featuring a wide variety of media, such as ceramics, sculpture and video, while also supporting performing arts like dance and music.

09 Chicago Printmakers Collaborative

Chicago
www.chicagoprintmakers.com
The Chicago Printmakers Collaborative and gallery (CPC) is a working print shop, where visitors can observe artists practicing the same techniques that Rembrandt and Durer used. With equipment and facilities for etching, lithography, woodcuts, book art and screen-printing, the Printmakers Collaborative draws artists and students from around the world. For 17 years, printmakers from the shop have churned out everything from fine art to rock band posters, supplying the gallery with a constant stream of quality prints. CPC throws its doors open to the public on Saturdays, but since the gallery is attached to a working studio, appointments are required for the rest of the week.

10 Morgan Contemporary Glass Gallery

Pittsburgh
www.morganglassgallery.com
Pittsburgh once glowed with the red furnaces that fueled the steel industry. The Morgan Contemporary Glass Gallery celebrates the fruits of a different type of furnace. It is dedicated to modern studio glass, featuring jewelry that ranges from beads to complex designs, goblets that are both functional and beautiful, and sculptural glass that varies from Warren Langley’s fanciful kiln-formed pieces to Martin Rosol’s geometric works. The current show, aptly named “Blown Away,” runs until October 5.

11 Dust Gallery

Las Vegas
www.dustgallery.com
If your idea of art in Las Vegas is a painting of dogs playing poker, then think again. With resorts like the Bellagio and the Wynn opening world-class galleries, Las Vegas is becoming an oasis of art in the desert. For a taste of local contemporary talent, check out Dust Gallery. Dust is one of the driving forces behind the burgeoning Vegas art scene; the gallery represents several area artists, such as Mark Brandvik and Angela Kallus, whose works reflect the pink and orange hues of the surrounding desert.

12 Diaspora Vibe Gallery

Miami
www.diasporavibe.net
Located in one of the country’s most exciting and diverse cities, the Diaspora Vibe Gallery in Miami celebrates the creativity of emerging artists from Latin America and the Caribbean. For five years, Diaspora Vibe has been working with and promoting young artists in media that vary from digital imaging to installation art. From May to October, the last Friday of the month sees the gallery unfold into a cultural gala complete with Latin and Caribbean food, music and poetry. The “Final Friday” parties also feature an artist-of-the-month exhibition.

13 Architech Gallery of Architectural Art

Chicago
www.architechgallery.com
The Second City is home to the premier gallery devoted to architectural art. The Architech Gallery focuses on design drawings for buildings and industrial objects, and historical photography dating to the golden age of city building: the mid-19th to the mid-20th century. Highlights include lithographs from Frank Lloyd Wright’s Wasmuth Portfolio and masterworks from architects of the American Prairie School. The September exhibit, “The Loop: Designing a Vertical City,” presents 150 years of design drawings and photographs of downtown Chicago’s famous Loop.

14 Jerald Melberg Gallery

Charlotte
www.jeraldmelberg.com
North Carolina may be better known for barbecue and river rafting, but the Jerald Melberg Gallery helps puts Charlotte on the international art gallery radar. The gallery boasts one of the finest collections of contemporary painting and sculpture in the country, including timeless pieces by renowned artists such as master collagist Romare Bearden and American landscape painter Wolf Khan.

15 Jeanine Taylor Folk Art

Sanford, FL
www.jtfolkart.com
Located 25 minutes north of Orlando in a 100-year-old building in Sanford, Florida, Jeanine Taylor Folk Art is devoted to contemporary works from Florida and the Deep South. Folk art encompasses all media, but is generally produced by people with little training in established techniques. Here, nine working studios surround the gallery, and visiting exhibiting artists are put up in apartments on the site.

16 Thomas Segal Gallery

Baltimore
www.thomassegalgallery.com
Rather than representing up and comers, the Thomas Segal Gallery specializes in the exhibition and sale of impressionist and modern masterworks. Since the gallery is open by appointment only, it is a place for the serious art collector. But the right patron with an eye for art will be tempted by a collection that includes works by masters such as Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg. The current exhibition, running through September, presents the romantic landscape photographs of German artist Elger Esser.

17 The Sportsman’s Gallery

Atlanta
www.sportsmansgallery.com
From equine etchings to waterfowl watercolors, 19th-century masters to contemporary artists, the Sportsman’s Gallery in Atlanta has one of the most comprehensive collections of sporting and wildlife art in the country. If their selection is lacking the perfect piece for you, the gallery will also assist in commissioning a specific work. The current exhibition, “The Sportsman’s Gallery’s Finest,” is an ideal introduction to the subject matter, showcasing a broad survey of sporting art, including paintings, etchings and sculptures of hunting, fishing, landscapes and Western and African scenes.

18 Mason Murer

Atlanta
www.masonmurer.com
With 24,000 square feet of gallery space, Mason Murer in Atlanta has room to embrace a wide range of fine art. The gallery presents an artistic tasting menu: local and international painters, emerging and established sculptors, and photographers representing all styles. In September, as part of Atlanta Celebrates Photography, Mason Murer features the work of master photographer Sylvia Plachy, who is also the mother of Oscar winner Adrien Brody.

19 McClain Gallery

Houston
www.mcclaingallery.com
With 14-foot windows and 90-foot viewing vistas, Houston’s McClain Gallery is a venue fit for a wide artistic embrace. For 25 years, the gallery has exhibited paintings, photography, sculpture, works on paper and conceptual installations from artists of New York, European, Asian and Texan origin. In September, McClain Gallery draws the focus closer to home, with an exhibition featuring Houston artist Karin Broker.

20Gallery of Functional Art

Santa Monica, CA
www.galleryoffunctionalart.com
At the Gallery of Functional Art, usability meets creativity. The pieces range from playfully absurd chairs to simple understated sconces, but the one thing they have in common is a foundation in functionality.

You could furnish an apartment from the gallery’s display of unique dressers, sofas, chandeliers and dinnerware. In addition to promoting cutting-edge artists working in a different and exciting medium, gallery director Lois Lambert will also assist clients in integrating art furniture into their homes. Housed in the same venue is the Lois Lambert Gallery, devoted to non-functional fine art.