An artist friend of mine once advised me to invest in art. It will nearly always appreciate in…read morevalue apparently. If I save up enough money, I would buy my art here, at Elphick's. Everything that I see in this shop inspires me. I know that art is objective, but there is something about the contents of this shop that make me think that anything brought here would be a wise purchase. On a Sunday the artist, Sharon Elphick is often here. She sells her work here. They are large prints, or on canvas of patterns of letters, textures, numbers, skies, buildings. They are truly beautiful, and well worth seeing. She also sells work from other artists here. (and runs a blog about all the art in the shop - check out her website blog for more details). One of my favourite prints in this shop is by a label called Dandy Star. It is just a simple print with the letters LOVE emblazoned across it, and call me a sucker for modern art, but I L O V E it too.

This is a fabulous little gallery shop. What attracted me was the work of artist, Jen Franklin. I…read morewas impressed at how supportive they were of their local artists and were knowledgable about their education, background and style. The staff were very friendly and helpful. I visited this gallery while on holiday and I bought a cool book on bubble lettering for a gift to my niece. This shop has great art work, it's very streamlined and has nice gifts. Looking forward to visiting this street and this gallery shop on my next holiday to London.

The Fountain gallery is an asset to Bridge Road. We need somewhere like this. Although it is a…read moresmall shop it is amazingly effective. The premise is that it is a cooperative art gallery. It is collectively run by 18 artists who showcase their work here on alternate times. The Fountain Gallery also have guest artists. Usually each artist is allocated a certain period of time in which to showcase their work. I believe that the times are not fixed. Most artists seem to take it over for about a month. During this time they oversee the gallery, so customers can come and talk to the artists about their work. The art comes in a mixture of forms. Generally it is painted work, most in watercolours, sometimes there are photographers who exhibit their work. Occasionally there are potters. Although the gallery closes at 6, I have often walked past and seen open evenings, it is worth phoning ahead to find out what is on.

If you're a fan of accessible art and like making new discoveries this is a lovely little gallery…read morethat warrants a regular visit. It's a co-operative of many artists so the exhibitions change frequently and, as a bonus, are run by the artists themselves. Come here to enjoy the art in relaxing surroundings, perhaps with a glass of wine to enhance your pleasure. Talk to the artist and buy anything from a postcard to a limited-edition print or even a full-blown oil painting or sculpture. If you want to turn yourself into a work of art you can sometimes buy, or commission, a pretty piece of original jewellery too.

I went to view the degree show of design students from Central Saint Martins College of Art and…read moreDesign. The 2 storey plus basement gallery space is a large warehouse building reinvented to a gallery space like many in the area. Very basic in layout, the students had enhanced the scale of space with their artifacts. Large iron columns dominate the space which are painted in silver, but the generosity of light illuminating the gallery is not common. Its the selling point I see for the gallery and is also one of the biggest in the vicinity. The management is very friendly and accomodating, a few props stored in the gallery are of good use in exhibitions at no added cost. The idea of converting 2 Victorian warehouses inot gallery space, artists studios, banqueting, conference and screening rooms including rehersal space is a bonus. Even if your not going to view an exhibition this centre has a bohemian cafe, great to network within the circle of profession.

We held our Central Saint Martins degree show at this venue and it's quite fantastic in that they…read moreallow you to set up your walls/paint/demolish as you wish granted that you pay for the privilege, of course. With that said, it's a big and somewhat accessible venue and easy to get to from Central London.

The Fieldgate Gallery is a non-profit gallery in trendy East London, next door to art supply shop…read moreAtlantis. It puts on a wide variety of shows from video arts to sculpture. It's a great space, surprisingly big from it's single doorway entrance, and full of interesting and exciting contemporary art.

From attending a recent opening night here, I got the impression that this venue hosts work by…read moreemerging artists. Quite a large space, with three artists showing work in this particular exhibition, including sculptural installations, photography and film. I wasn't too keen on the sculptures - they looked like something you would see in an art college undergrad studio - but then again, maybe this guy was an undergrad art student - in which case, fair play for getting the gig, etc. Notably, Sheena Macrae's "Drink" video installation was quite cool - featuring all the excerpts from the "Dallas" TV series where the characters are drinking.

The LBI works on the basis of being a not-for-profit organisation, offering a broad annual arts…read morebased event programme and an ultramodern contemporary gallery space. Their aim is to showcase both well known and emerging artists, and to nurture the wider significance of the communitiy's creative society. If you turn off the main road just head for the imposing industrial looking building with the multicoloured facade ahead (it's impossible to miss). Each of the Edwardian windows on the three story building has a glowing light installation behind, giving a striking and often changing (as each can work independently from one another) show. The building itself is a massive visual spectacle. I've only ever visited for temporary exhibitions that are held on the ground floor in the swish gallery space. I really like the vast white walls and dark wooden floor whilst the different leveled ceiling gives it an interesting dimension. At the side of the gallery the Courtyard Cafe stays open until 6pm although a couple of times I've visited it's stayed open much later offering dark rum and brownies to accompany the late night events. This is the sort of touch that makes an exhibition that little bit more enjoyable. I don't usually head West for my exhibition fixes and from asking around I've found that few of my friends know about this lovely place. I've always been the first to take people and I'll continue to do so because it really is a little gem. The Foundation not only offers innovative exhibitions in a fantastic space, but it's constantly (and modestly) working away with London's artistic community to promote culture, creativity and education. This is something well worth celebrating in my book.

LTB is a bit off the beaten track and a little hard to find, but once you get here it's totally…read moreworth it. The space itself is pretty striking architecturally speaking with it's red brick exterior and arched windows. The interior is a beautifully designed state of the art white space. It's such a pleasure walking around viewing art in such a spacious building. They often have interesting workshops here which you can find out about on their website! When you are done with the art you can hang out in the cafe lit by skylights, sip coffee and talk about art. What a lovely way to spend an afternoon.

This Mayfair gallery with big name artists on show (Picasso, Dali, Kounellis) is worth keeping on…read morethe radar. I was there recently for the launch of their The Unseen Dali: Drawings, Paintings, Sculptures exhibition which was cool to catch but didn't blow me away or anything. Let's face it Dali's brilliant and all but we're all pretty well acquainted with his undoubtedly prodigious output of surreal art. Still, next time I find myslef rambling about Mayfair, I'd be pleased to pop in just to see what they've got on (fingers crossed they'll do a Picasso show soon-ish).

I have walked past this gallery many times, but I had never really taken the time to see what they…read morehad to offer. As I wet in I wasn't surprised, it is just not the kind of art I can truly appreciate and enjoy. However, I can understand why they might be very successful in more commercial arenas. Such as, taking up commissions to decorate the interiors of an office building, or art of government institutions, or banks, or any of the sort. I wouldn't personally pay £3,000 for a painting of the sea, which was what Rebecca Lardner proposed with her work 'Coastal Life'. Nevertheless, 'To the Limit' by James Blinkhorn touched on a more resonant matter; the sprawl of urbanisation, traffic, air pollution, some in black and one which were quite striking. The space it self is not big and you may get distracted from some black columns in the outside structure of the gallery, takes a bit away from the work. Even so, it never hurts to have a look at other people's art regardless of whether I personally like it or not, they must be doing something right if a gallery is willing to have their work for sale.

Great place to go when you have a spare moment whilst on Chiswick High Road. Always a great…read moreselection of art work on display and most pieces are reasonably priced. Staff are amazing, always offering Proseco, champagne and nibbles. Many a lunch break has been spent in the lemongrove and not a moment wasted

Reliable gallery on Albermarle Street (the Picadilly end), which specialises mostly twentieth…read morecentury art including Picasso, Chagall and Matisse as well as impressionist works. The gallery has a continuously changing stock of paintings, so it is always worth popping in to see what they have on the walls. It also has an interest in Scandinavian art, something of a rarity for galleries in the area. They also have a steady schedule of exhibitions, including Boaz Vaadia currently, and with Warhol, Henry Moore, Arman and Marquet as previous shows, you can sense the breadth of their collection. Friendly staff and a welcoming space.