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Artspace
Category: Arts & Entertainment Museums Museums [Edit]
201 E Davie StRaleigh, NC 27601
(919) 821-2787
- Hours:
Tue-Sat 10 am - 6 pm
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
13 reviews for Artspace
Review Highlights
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"...a laid back scene, even on the super busy First Fridays." In 4 reviews -
"The gallery is a non-profit where a variety of different..." In 4 reviews -
"Two floors of exhibits and studios, most of the pieces are..." In 5 reviews
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13 reviews in English
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Review from Julia H.
9/9/2011
If you're in downtown Raleigh and want to explore the local art scene, Artspace is a must! Formerly a livery and later an early Ford dealership, the building is now a collection of artists' studios, art education space and rotating exhibit galleries. You can visit the studios of established local artists like Anna Podris and Keith Norval to admire their work and see the effort that goes in to making a good painting, but paintings are just part of the art on show; prints, sculptures in a variety of mediums, woodworking, jewelry, photography, fiber art and more are also present for your enjoyment.
In addition to being an art haven, Artspace is also a beautiful example of what can happen when art and old buildings mix! Rather than being chopped up into cramped offices or demolished and turned into tacky condos, the historic building housing Artspace has been reborn into total functionality and the space arrange to allow the architectural details and airiness to shine from gallery to studio. Conveniently located within walking distance of the Moore Square bus station, lots of parking and numerous restaurants, Artspace is the perfect destination for any visit to Raleigh's downtown! -
Review from Jeremy H.
Powell, OH
Artspace is what I call a hidden gem, places like it are usually hard to find in a city and many of the people living there don't even know about, such was the case with my visit. A friend and I were just touring the town and we got on the R Line and decided to get off near City Market and check it out and artspace was one of the places we found. If I was a resident of the city I would definitely support the artists here by purchasing their works to furnish my home.
My favorite artist here was Ann Harwell, a quilter. I was checking out the studios and I saw a painting that looked pretty cool so I walked up to see it and to my surprise it was a quilt. She uses lots of different fabrics and pieces that create a mosaic like quality, all painting a bigger picture. Then she hand quilts patterns and details into the quilt adding another dimension. I asked her how many hours one quilt took and she replied, "hundreds," and I believe it. Her quilts were priced at $6000 which seems steep but I've seen art like this cost way more and poorer quality work cost nearly as much. My favorite piece of hers was a tree in Yosemite, a downed Sequoia that I took a photo of in 2007.
My buddy got his portrait painted in an hour for $100 upstairs by an artist named Lucille Winner. He's an artist who has lived in places like Austin and was amazed at the quality of art he discovered here and once he saw her work it was the first time he really wanted to have another artist do his portrait.
All in all artspace is a great place to visit as well as some of the other artists lofts and shops in the same block. Definitely a place I will visit again. -
Review from Dawn C.
Raleigh, NC
9/18/2010
Honestly, Artspace is one of my favorite things about Raleigh. It is a cross-section of what makes the south unique and beautiful.
According to its website "Artspace is a non-profit visual art center dedicated to presenting quality exhibitions and educational programs within an open studio environment." In essence, it's a working gallery space where individual arts can work and sell art. Think shopping for a wide-range of local art in one dynamic and welcoming space.
But don't feel like it's all about acquiring your next masterpiece. There are three rotating gallery spaces plus pieces showcased throughout the building. Every time you wander through Artspace, you'll see something new.
What I like most about Artspace is that it oozes creativity. You can feel the artistic sweat in every brush stroke. These are people who are dedicated to their work and it feels good to be in that environment. You can chat up artists, asking them about their process, getting the back story on pieces and techniques.
I have not been able to explore their educational offerings, but I'm sure that each class is just as dynamic as the organization. Classes range from young artists to college-prep and adult dabbling.
My first Artspace purchase was a custom-made ring from metal artist Megan Clark. She designs fabulously affordable and organic metal jewelry. Her organic but machines style is wonderfully southern. I'm proud to wear and support a local artist.
Artspace is a cornerstone of the First Fridays art scene and has special events, like LoPop, throughout the season. Visitors can vote for their favorite piece of the evening while noshing on light fare and purchased wine.
There is always something to see at Artspace, which makes it a great wander in downtown Raleigh. -
Review from Eric M.
Raleigh, NC
9/13/2008 1 photo
I recently visited Artspace for the first time (I know I know) and I've never been to such a wonderful art gallery.
As others have mentioned, Artspace is non-profit, but it's different than a normal gallery or a museum where you just see paintings on the wall and maybe a brief snippet about the artist. Artspace provides interaction, and you really begin to feel like you're one of the artists yourself.
Recently I went to a new exhibit on printing, and the various styles involved in modern artists who use print as a medium (engravers being an example). The art I saw just blew me away. The way that artists like Oscar Gillespie and Julia Freeman have taken established methods and added amazing innovations and invented new styles was thrilling. And the coolest thing of all is that the methods that all these amazingly creative people use to make such wonderful art was all laid out for you to view.
Artspace is like a gallery, but updated for the 21st century. This is officially one of my new favorite spots in the city. You must go. -
Review from Brian W.
Raleigh, NC
11/29/2008
ArtSpace is definitely worth a look every once in a while. It's a great anchor for First Fridays, and I'm glad that such a project has thrived downtown all these years.
The trouble is that - aside from whatever show is in the main exhibition gallery - there really isn't much new stuff on display. If you go two First Fridays in a row, you'll likely see a lot of the same pieces.
I guess it's good for people who don't live downtown, and only go to the galleries every once in a while. But for those that make First Fridays a regular event, or who just spend a lot of time in the galleries in general... just stop in to see what's the featured show and then head to Lump, or the Fish Market where you'll be sure to see something new every time. -
Review from calamity chang c.
Seattle, WA
11/30/2008
Went to a wedding here in the Fall.
The space was great for a modern wedding.
Had a few great shows in the space, the staff was great. -
Review from Ron W.
A very diverse, non-profit gallery run by the artists themselves, Artspace is a great place to visit on First Friday! Two floors of exhibits and studios, most of the pieces are paintings and mixed media for your walls. First floor is primarily exhibits while on the second floor you've got the artist studios themselves. The artists typically rotate in and out over time so there's always something new to see!
I volunteer from time to time and the place can get hopping on First Fridays. We typically have some wine, beer and snacks, donation requested. And often there'll be some live music playing. So stop on by on the next First Friday and roam around a bit. I'm sure you'll enjoy the art, the space and of course, Artspace! I'll try and get some pictures next time I'm there... -
Review from Emily P.
Raleigh, NC
10/18/2008 1 Check-in Here
I absolutely love Artspace. The gallery is a non-profit where a variety of different types of artists have space to both create and display their art. One walk through the gallery and you can see some fabulous drawings, photography, paintings, sculpture, and all sorts of other things.
One unique part of Artspace is they also have a theater on site for performing arts (a rarity in an art gallery-at least in this area). Most of the artists are on hand while the gallery is open to talk with you and answer any questions you might have about their work-definitely a good feature. -
Review from Ben M.
Durham, NC
12/29/2008
Artspace was kind of a curiosity for a long time. I'd watched a couple of plays there, but never really explored it much beyond that. Eventually, I was pushed into walking though so I could see some work by a friend of a friend. Since it was on a First Friday, many of the artists were hanging out by their studios and were more than willing to talk to me about what they were up to since I'm mostly useless when it comes to looking at a painting or sculpture and reading between any lines beyond "ooh, pretty."
It's definitely a laid back scene, even on the super busy First Fridays. If you check it out at a less crowded time and happen to catch one of the artists (some even helpfully post "office hours" if you will), they're even more pleased to walk you though what they're up to.
It's a nice little downtown location that lends itself to wandering should you ever have a little time to kill. -
Review from Lauren S.
Raleigh, NC
11/6/2010
This review only regards my experience while planning an event at artspace.
The location is neat, but the communication and professionalism (or lack of) of the business manager leave a sour taste in your mouth before, during, and after your event. The rest of the staff were very nice, but when you plan an event at Artspace, you deal solely with the business manager. This made things very difficult for me, as the planner for my event. I worked with her for over 5 months, and not once did she remember my name nor would she recall any conversation we had. She is very disorganized and obviously has a lot going on without a good method of keeping it all together. I had many phone conversations with her - where I had to remind her of things she had already told me, or perhaps remind her that she had not mentioned something - although she would be insistent that she had. It was very frustrating and taxing. It required much more work and 110% dilligence on my end, which meant no down time.
On the day of my event, artwork that was to be moved for a slide show, was not. She said she would pull 5 or 6 tables out, she did not. I had to convince the security guard (you have to pay for a security guard - $25 an hour) that I needed the artwork to be moved, which on the day of your event, is not something you want to be doing. I had specifically made a special trip to Artspace the week before to take care of that, and to get it out of the way, which made this last minute process all the more frustrating.
If I had to do it over again, I would NOT use artspace. I would find another place downtown that had better customer service (which wouldn't be hard). Because of the poor customer service, the planning was extremely difficult for me throughout the entire process...even at the end. Nothing was made easy on my end. At this point, I look forward to getting my $500 security deposit check back and will put more research into my venue for my next event.
ps - I gave it 3 stars because regardless of my frustrations, I was a cool venue and my guest enjoyed their time. That aside, it was a stressful experience that is not recommended. I really feel like you can do better, especially for the cost. -
Review from Louise O.
San Francisco, CA
11/3/2007
Eclectic collection of galleries run by the artists themselves in a large 2 story building downtown. Artists are friendly and approachable. But I never know what to say to them....especially when I don't understand their art.
First Friday is fun, but can get crowded. -
Review from Sonya B.
San Jose, CA
6/15/2010
Free admission to quality art exhibits (so leave a donation) and artist studios open to the public, all under one roof!
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Review from Christina G.
Durham, NC
5/5/2010 2 Check-ins Here
Several stories of art, with many artist residency studio spaces. I paid my first visit here earlier this month during the Friday Art Walk which is an excellent time to check it out. They have some live jazz, drinks and nibbles with donations going towards funding the space and its programming. So you get to enjoy art, sip wine and feel sophisticated -- all while helping support some great local culture. For the most part, I didn't really engage with the artists; I guess I'm a little shy in that regard... don't really know what to ask. And art is so subjective (and I have ridiculous tastes!). That said, there were a few notable moments for me: meeting Casey Porn (who did one of the paintings I selected for a raffle at our last OYE; love her stuff and it was cool to see her in person and hear about the dog that's the inspiration for a lot of her work); and the bold paintings of two separate artists -- one (drat -- can't remember his name!) who uses bodies, heavy shadows and thick lines; and another, Linda Ruth Dickinson, whose paintings were series of colorful stripes that seemed like the wash of beauty in a sunrise. The latter is one of those rare times I spot art that I could actually see showcasing in my house -- unfortunately the price-points were around $4,500! Yowza. I'm always sad when art comes across as prohibitively expensive; luckily, there's Etsy to help combat that assumption.
Listed in: Triangle Art Galleries
