We visited the Wally Workman Gallery for the first time during their First Tuesday event. This is a…read moresmaller, lovely gallery. I would recommend stopping by for a visit and then heading to dinner reservations nearby for a cute date night! Every employee I encountered was very kind.

Have you seen this cute house of a gallery???…read more How adorable it is!! The architecture alone drew my husband and I in, but the art and welcoming environment made us stay! The associates here are super welcoming and friendly, and all share tons of valuable knowledge on the art and surrounding community. They were more than happy to share with us the history of the gallery space, as well as any information we requested on the art.

After my experience yesterday at a contemporary art gallery, I decided to venture out and expand…read moremy art gallery network. This curiosity led me to West Chelsea Cellars Contemporary gallery on 6 th. Street. They also have a presence in New York's Chelsea district. The gallery focuses on contemporary art pieces, highlighting works of artists such as Andy Warhol and Damien Hirst. They also focus on emerging and mid-career artists. I was immediately greeted at the entry by a gallery staff member. He then told to peruse the art works at my leisure. The building is spacious with a great deal of room between the exhibits. The floor to ceiling windows facing 6th street generates a great deal of natural light. The art works are in a large range of price points, provided upon request.

I have been to this location twice and had a good experience everytime. The artists showcased are…read morealways amazing! The set up always sync up with the art. Eventbrite is a great way to check out their public exhibitions. I highly recommend if you want a calm activity and enjoy seeing art.

The food (tacos) were highly disappointing at La Pena! I was attending a conference in Austin and I…read moredid a quick search during lunch hour to see what places looked great and were close to me. La Pena stuck out to me, cool place with beautiful artwork. I figured it would be a fun place to kill time before the next workshop. I was unfortunately wrong. This place was bizarre. I walked in and it was empty, just one woman behind the counter. There was no kitchen I could see so was wondering where the tacos came from. They are evidently catered in. They only had one type of taco left and it wasn't even late in the day, carne which was disappointing. A guy came out with another case with some black bean tacos so I took one of each. I was so confused as to where these tacos came from. I took a seat and unwrapped the tinfoil around my measly tacos and add salsa which was the best part. The woman who worked behind the counter was not inviting in the slightest, it almost felt like she didn't want me to be there. There was no music playing, no one in the joint and the woman working started vacuuming the space when I was still there which was so loud. I quickly grabbed my stuff and headed out. Really disappointing, and not quite sure what it even was. Two stars for the art.

Was visiting Austin for QuiltCon and wanted to try somewhere local for breakfast since we had time…read morebefore our flights. Their breakfast tacos are top notch, absolutely delicious and really affordable. The art was really cool and we loved the tradition of the exhibit. Would definitely recommend stopping by this gem!

I love the work Stephen features in his gallery. You might want to call ahead to be sure the…read moregallery is open before going. But then, once there be prepared to be amazed - especially the Texas themed works.

Stop here every time we hit Austin. An amazing collection of Kate Breakey photos, books , and art…read moreshowings by the elite of TX artists. Stephen will gladly tell you tales of old Austin, who , what & where of Austin. I could listen to him for hrs. Don't be intimidated. Art is to be admired even if you can't afford it. Five stars.

This place is tied with Anthropologie for my wife's fave purveyor of dresses. Deanna and Jessa…read moreremember her preferences, even. The dresses are all handmade and artisanal or whatever, but this five-star review is for the amenities. First of all, the panhandlers who love to harass and congregate outside the CVS haven't followed me into the store here, so the hobo shielding is strong with this one. The seating arrangement is also exquisite--the perfect iPhone Throne for, let's face it, probably dudes like me who wouldn't have come here on their own accord. Since it's a single-seater (with an ottoman!), the capacity is far more limited than the long bench at Outdoor Voices, so if you and I end up here at the same time, we'll need to fight for it. No face shots, please, and leave my Yelpin' hand be.

The dresses and clothes here are all made in-store and by hand. Each dress is unique. You'll see…read moreall of their fabric rolls in the back as proof that they cut and sew the clothes here. The dresses mostly run over $100 and aren't exactly my style. The prints are mostly fun and colorful and almost 60s-70s ish. I found their sterling silver jewelry and earrings to be more interesting. They had lots of unique flower shaped earrings that ranged around $32-44. They also sell kids clothes and gifts. The interior was a little dark. The dresses were mostly made of stretchy or comfy fabric. The dresses are more casual in nature (wrap dresses, summer dresses). They also sold bathing suits for around $80. I don't know if the bathing suits are made in-house.

This is hands down one of my favorite Austin museums. It's not a large space which allows you to…read morespend time appreciating the art even more. I like that you can see pieces from local artists. So much color and beauty to this important cultural museum. What a wonderful way to immerse yourself in beauty and love. It's one of the places I love to take friends and family when they visit from out of town.

I visited the museum briefly during a visit to Austin, as a reprieve from the heat and to soak in…read moresome culture. The museum is very small and will not take long to peruse, even if you stop to read every single placard. The artwork is well done, and the gift shop is nice too. I bought some pretty earrings there. It's certainly worth a quick stop!

Lotus Gallery was an unexpected discovery. This gallery focuses on Asian art, antiques, and…read morehigh-end pieces. They also have a selection of furniture, jewelry, sculptures, and works of art. Lotus Gallery is connected to West Chelsea gallery. When you walk in it has the appearance of an antique store as many of the items appear aged. The number items in the room appear greater than the amount of space. However, upon closer viewing you can tell some of these pieces are ancient and the setting is perfectly representative of the pieces. The phrase, "you break it, it's yours" comes to mind when you meander through the store. Some of the items are truly ancient and can range to over $100K. Quite honestly, even if I could afford a $100K piece, I would be petrified to be around the piece in fear of my clumsy self breaking it. Lotus gallery has garnered quite a prestigious reputation due to the uniqueness and age of their curated pieces. I enjoyed viewing their pieces and will certainly return to spend even more time in the gallery.

My friend and I came to Austin for the Formula 1 race, but Lotus Gallery ended up being the…read morehighlight of my trip. I'm a 3rd generation antique enthusiast and always make an effort to explore the local haunts when traveling. When I walked in I was honestly a bit intimidated. This was no flea market junk flip.. I was instead surrounded by museum quality asian antiquities, some priced at well over $100k. It felt like being inside a museum where everything just happened to be for sale. In my pre judgement bias, I became suspicious the employee would want no part of me if he thought my pockets weren't deep enough. I couldnt have been more wrong. John, the owners son, had a limitless supply patience for my questions. I was so in awe of everything around me I spent 3 hours inside the gallery that first day, asking him dozens of questions. I was charmed to find that the gallery also had smaller and more affordable pieces, literally something for everyone at almost every price point. Every variation of Buddha from every age, vases, bronzes, busts, statues, jewelry, furniture and textiles can be found here. I fell in love with and ended up purchasing a nine, yes NINE () hundred year old Chinese bronze vase from the Song dynasty. John ended up being more than willing to negotiate on the price which put it into my price range. In conclusion, you get the feeling that this store is truly a passion project for the owner and her son John. If you like old things of beauty, history, and mind boggling craftsmanship from every corner of Asia, GO. TO. LOTUS. GALLERY. -Trevor

A good gallery to enjoy rotating modern art exhibitions…read more Every last week of the season is free, a good way to explore and get introduced to something new! We saw 3 different exhibits in one and it was a great time. The staff is very friendly and welcoming, especially valuable for when this is your first time visiting and you're not familiar with art/museums in general!

The Contemporary Austin - Jones Center is a nice, affordable stop if you're exploring downtown…read more General admission is only $10, and they offer great deals, free entry for military members, kids under 18, and everyone on Thursdays, which makes it super accessible. The museum itself is small, with two main galleries (one on the first floor and another on the second). The art is definitely on the modern/contemporary side. While the exhibits weren't exactly my personal taste, the way everything was presented was thoughtful and visually appealing. You can tell a lot of care goes into the curation. The staff were very friendly, and the space was clean and well-maintained, which made the visit feel welcoming. Overall, it's a nice quick stop if you enjoy modern art or want something low-cost to do in the area.

Spoiler Alert: not a bakery (anymore). I've walked by…read morecountless times knowing it's not a bakery, and in fact knowing it's an art gallery/gift shop. I've always wanted to check it out inside. However, when passing it was always enroute to an event at the Capitol, or other times they weren't open. Really glad I finally made it. As mentioned, it's not a bakery though it once was. In fact a Swedish bakery called this 1876 building home for nearly sixty years. Once inside, you're able to learn about Austin's Swedish immigrants (as well as others) by viewing an exhibit from the Lundberg Maerki collection. There's so much interesting history, it's just fascinating. The art gallery houses ever-changing exhibits. These exhibits all have one thing in common, the artists are over 50 years old and are local to Austin. The gift shop is more like a collective of artisan/handmade goods. Here you can find one-of-a-kind items. Things like paintings, jewelry, postcards, handcrafted gifts, etc. The artists & craftspeople selling their wares are also local. A lot of items sold here are also created by folks over 50. They have an outdoor patio space with a large mural. This is a nice place to visit whether you're local or a tourist. I will definitely go back again, especially if looking for a unique and special gift for someone. Support the arts. Support local artists. Support senior artists.

Cool piece of real estate right next to the Capitol building! Neat collection of gifts inside,…read moreranging from antique furniture to homemade ornaments to quality leather goods (books, journals, etc.). The staff here were super cool when we came in to warm ourselves up from the chilly weather during the annual tree lighting. They also had the UT game going on while we were there, Hook 'Em! Great people that work here!