I'm kind of conflicted with this review because while the house's architecture and decor are…read moregorgeous, there wasn't enough explanation throughout, and the "staff" was awful (instead of being at the front desk, they were sitting in the office watching TikTok on full volume. With that aside, it's free and has A/C, and worth a visit.

The house is open Tuesday-Saturday 11-4 and is $5 to non-SLU students (SLU students are free)…read more It's going to take you at least an hour to truly see the house. If you can bring a group of 8, a tour can be arranged, otherwise a very informative self-guided tour binder is available to you as well. Samuel Cupples was a man in the right place at the right time and built thriving businesses during a boom time in Saint Louis. There's so much more to read about him: http://www.slu.edu/cupples/history/samuel-cupples The house, though, is an amazing story. Not just for the amazing art, crystal, and antiques it hosts, but for it's very architecture. Built in the Romanesque style and with purple limestone, the home is majestic today...one can only imagine how it looked when it stood alone. When SLU started to expand, and the new buildings obstructed his view of the river, Cupples never forgave them and gave massive amounts of money to Wash U and stipulated that the home could never be sold to SLU. Clearly that got circumvented as the decades wore on (it now sits on the SLU campus). If you give yourself two hours, I think you'll really get a great "first taste" of its magnificence. PS Here's a bit more about the architecture: http://www.slu.edu/cupples/history/architecture-and-design

The Fine Art Department at St. Louis Community College at Forest Park has an exceptional figurative…read moreart program and their Contemporary Art Gallery reflects that passion and dedication. Strong regional and national artists along with faculty and student shows make this a "don't miss" stop when in the Lou. The annual student show is always quite impressive.

How can one review the Great Gondo? Gondo is the grandfather of DIY galleries in St. Louis. Shows…read moreare not curated - this is art in the raw. Like the work or not, Gondo is out there keepin' it real. The best times to be here are when the neighboring galleries and shops open on the same night. The owner is an artist and true supporter of the arts. He lives upstairs and it's a labor of love. I just used a lot of cliches to describe a place that defies cliche.

fort gondo is one of saint louis's many alternative art spaces where emerging artists can show…read moretheir work. because there is little review of artists' work by the owner, the artwork can be hit or miss, but there's bound to be something of interest in one of the three galleries on the block.

The Millstone Gallery is located in the Center of Contemporary Arts [COCA], but I am not so sure…read morethat a lot of people know about this little gem. Admission is free, and they always have great exhibits going on. The current exhibit features a St. Louis artist names Peter Shank that is fanciful, colorful and most interesting. This is another one of those galleries that does not suffocate you while you are trying to enjoy the displayed art, and I am most grateful for that fact. Visitors are free to wander about, studying the art at their own pace.

This museum is fantastic…read more The exhibitions are interesting and they're always changing, so you could come in one day and realize that the entire interior architecture has altered just to showcase new pieces! There was a contemporary video installation, a space-graffiti artist, 19th century American landscapes, and modern Japanese design in the couple months I've been familiar with Kemper. And that's not including the permanent collection, which has Picasso, de Kooning, Warhol, Rosenquist, Wesselmann... The staff are very helpful and extraordinarily knowledgeable, too. There are lectures and events pretty frequently, at least once a week, so there's always something to check out. Very dynamic space.

We stopped in the Kemper after strolling through WashU's campus. This is a beautiful art museum…read morethat's free to the public! We were treated warmly and the attendant shared a bit about the main floor and the lower and upper levels. It was mostly empty so we were able to take our time. This is a smaller art museum but they have a solid selection, cafe and a little art store. We enjoyed our visit and will back.

I attended First Friday Gallery night a few weeks ago and stumbled upon Bruno David Gallery! What a…read moregreat space with such unique artwork. Upon arriving my friend and I walked in and noticed that all the people from gallery night were obviously here as well. There must have been 50 people in the front room alone! As I began browsing I saw such unique pieces of artwork and caught myself staring at some for what felt like hours. I was honestly lost in his artwork! We made our way through the gallery discovering pieces of art on every wall. The vibe was so casual and the crowd was just great. I really enjoyed the artwork I saw as well as the interactions I had with some of the crowd. I know I want to go back another day when it isn't so crowded so that I can explore the gallery again.

Perhaps the best of the commercial galleries in STL, lots of interesting work here from local…read moreartists with an emphasis on those with a WU Art School connection. Well designed use of space into smaller exhibition areas and even a room for video works.

Concrete Ocean is a cool art gallery at the intersection of Jefferson and Shenandoah. We happened…read moreto be driving by one night and saw what looked like one hell of a party, complete with hula hoopers and a fire pit. Intrigued, we wandered in. Hello yummy free hors d'oeuvres! We spent about an hour checking out the art and chatting with Bryan, the super-nice owner. The space is really cool and has huge windows facing Jefferson. On one side is "mojo studios" complete with funky furniture and a splatter-painted floor. The other side is more of your typical art gallery. They have openings on fridays every 2 weeks and we've been back a few times. Who doesn't love art openings? Super cheap date and easy way to instantly feel sophisticated!

The owner is a jerk. So my city ransacked last night by rioters after what started as a peaceful…read moreprotest. Many windows were broken out in downtown businesses. I live downtown just a block away and I wanted to help paint the board ups. I don't currently have paint at my house but when I heard paint was being delivered for folks to come and paint the board ups, I headed out. Bryan, the owner of this gallery was there with a design in his head that would cover every single broken window on the street. Also, his design was very juvenile and crappy compared to the board ups that have been painted on Delmar. He wouldn't let anyone touch anything and we were certainly am emphatically told we were not allowed to paint. We were allowed to clean up after him if we wanted to. Ha! Screw that! I am an artist. I would've been a wonderful asset to this project. The only reason he's doing this is because he wants exposure for his gallery. I get that most artist are not team players and are used to working alone but this is a community event and should've involved all the people in the community that wanted to be there. When I arrived there were at least a dozen people there to help. When I left about 20 minutes later, when I realized I would have no input or ever see a paintbrush in my hand, there were two people left-- NO THANKS! I will never patronize this man's gallery or patronize him as an artist. Shame on you!

This is one of my favorite events to attend! I have gone pretty much every year and I always have a…read moregreat time! Schlafly usually has a few beers to sample and of course they have a few you can purchase to enjoy while shopping. They also have food to purchase outside so that you don't have to go inside the restaurant if you don't want to. There are hundreds of local vendors selling different types of art. I think every year I find a new artist to buy something from. This year, I purchased some really cool wall art and my husband purchased a retro poster. I also purchased some local earrings for a friend that I know she will love. This is a good event to attend if you want to get out of the house and wander. No need to purchase anything, but you probably will. It's also a good place to purchase gifts for people at. I usually buy birthday presents and sometimes Christmas gifts here as well. Schlafly has had some really good beer specials in the past. You can purchase a pack of beer for just $5! I recommend going on the first day if possible or early on the 2nd day because they usually sell out by the third day. Oh, and they have live music and sometimes fun games to participate in as well. Art Outside has my vote and I look forward to next year!

This was a great casual art fair with a great variety of categories. A great way to enjoy art and…read moremeet the artists. They are very open to questions and some even had freebies! Location couldn't be better, giving you the chance to observe some local art with a local beer in hand!