The wife and I are looking for a nice painting to put above the fireplace.  Can anyone give the names of some of the better places in the city to find original art?

atmosphere &/or asterisk galleries on Professor in tremont have a range of choices and i believe one or both feature local artists.

I doubt Asterisk is the type of gallery to "hang over your fireplace" - it is more of your urban-art that is rotated on a monthly basis.  A real nice gallery in Tremont is Picadilly's that has real nice art.  Atmosphere and Eye Candy (also in Tremont) showcase a lot of local art (cleveland scenese, lake erie, etc)

Ugh... does Picadilly's still specialize in Thomas Kinkade? I think they used to carry that tripe when they were at the Galleria. I definitely agree with Atmosphere, though.

We're going for something less modern. Our home is an 1870 Victorian and there is a lot of stuff out there that would clash with our toned-down and mellow Victorian tastes.

I looked at Piccadilly's site and no Thomas Kinkade to be found, so they're fine by me! :-)

 

http://www.piccadillys.com/new/index.html

I would go on the next art walk in tremont on the second friday of the month.  not all the art is modern. You can check out SPACES too, but it tends to be modern...but sometimes you see a homage to vintage piece...oh and there is a gallery in tower city on the second floor that displays and sells the art of several local artists, many differnt styles.

I looked at Piccadilly's site and no Thomas Kinkade to be found, so they're fine by me! :-)

 

http://www.piccadillys.com/new/index.html

eeeeeeeew it looks kinkadesque...maybe the gallery is better. plus I am a modern gal.

^Yes! I can't believe I forgot them - Lake Erie Artists in the former J. Crew space. They had some pretty nifty pieces the last time I was there.

There are a few art galleries in Little Italy too

http://www.dickkleinmanfineart.com/

http://littleitalycleveland.com/gallery/galleries.html

 

or Artefino

http://www.artefinogallery.com/

 

or if you aren't partial to an original you can always get your favorite poster mounted on wood from AllPosters.com - they are reasonable and pretty nice, we have one from there.  Lastly I could always paint something for you  :-D

According to word I got yesterday, Forest City has moved Lake Erie Artists to another spot, so while you'll still find them at "The Avenue", it won't be in the J. Crew spot (at least according to my sources). I would highly recommend it, though. It's a self-run collaborative of several dozen artists, and a good percentage of their work would be appropriate as "living room art". I think that, without doubt, your best bet is to participate in the upcoming Urban Gallery Hop, which is taking place in mid-September. For $5, you'll be taken by trolley to art galleries all over the city. You'll also be able to pick up the Sparx Gallery Guide, which will give you a better idea of what kinds of collections each gallery offers. Definitely worth the time and nominal charge; if nothing else, it's entertaining. http://www.cleveland.com/sparx/galleryhop.ssf