Canopy is such a cool place and Austin is lucky to have an event like Open Canopy at this creative…read morecampus each month! In East Austin, you can find this complex full of art studios of various mediums sprawling over several buildings. They have a big parking lot but if you go during Open Canopy, we saw people waiting for spots. There aren't enough spaces for all the humans! However after parking, the area doesn't feel congested with human traffic so that's a good thing. Canopy has their very own coffee shop full of drinks & eats, so fear not if you come here hungry. Check the Sa-Ten listing for reviews on the eatery/beanery. Again I was lucky enough to be in town during Open Canopy which happens the first Saturday of every month from 1-4pm. I found there near opening and found it only got busier as the day went on. Not only were many of the Art Studios open, but also most of the shops, plus they had live music! I was not expecting a DJ, nor to see so many cute dogs roaming around, but was pleasantly surprised. There were so many talented artists with their pieces on display. I took a couple business cards and hope to buy a few things. I was happy to see so many forms of art for sale, as well, with some real creativity and fun on display. Not just paintings, but jewelry, decor pieces, 3d works, weaving, tons of different types of things. I saw many of the artists eagerly chatting about their work, while my introvert self shuffled through each studio. And that was okay, too, by the way. Artists were pleased to just say hi & bye, definitely no sales- stuff going on here. It was truly like walking thru art galleries. People watching was fun here, too. I've heard the who's who of the creatives in Austin convene at the monthly Open Canopy. Best of Austin for sure. Free & fun events for the win!

What a serendipitous stumble. I had lunch across the way at the adorable cafe Sa-Tén on a random…read moreSaturday, and we peeped a big crowd lingering outside this modern and simple little art studio and found a free exhibit that led to a whole adventure to find even more free exhibits right around the corner! This event is called Open Canopy which happens on the first Sat of each month which is such a nice community event. Basically Canopy features a huge amount of artists in this artsy compound, countless studio offices in a handful of buildings (I believe there were 5 areas you could go to and some were occupied). Definitely peruse and even pick up some pieces if you fancy anything, there's something for everyone here. Pottery, paintings, sculptures, textiles, and much more artsy offerings. It feels like an elevated art fair you get to walk through.

A keystone of the ATX Art Scene, recently celebrating 15 years, with proclamations from the City of…read moreAustin and the State of Texas! Jill's astute curatorial eye produces astonishing dialogues between artists from Austin and beyond. Put grayDUCK openings on your calendar!

3.5 This is a really nice local gallery. It is small but…read moreworthwhile to see. When you go in the entrance they will have two laminated packets with the current artwork and another with a paragraph or two from that artist explaining who they are and a little bit about their pieces. It doesn't take too long to look through everything so I would recommend stopping by if you have the time or are in the area. Also, it is free.

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.

This review is for the ceramics course offered at Dougherty!…read more First off, I loved my instructor H.R, she was super knowledgable and eager to help everyone. She honestly made the experience great, and I would give her 5 stars any day. We were allotted a few open studio hours during the course to come in and work independently. These were pretty strictly monitored, and the weekend time slots tended to fill up quickly (understandably) For the price that I paid, I was pretty pleased with taking classes here however I would add some caveats: 1. There are a lot of restrictions here (glazes are pretty limited, you cannot make pieces larger than 8 in, can't bring in most outside glazes that are runny) 2. There were a lot of different skill levels in my class. A majority of the students seemed to be repeating students from the previous cycle, and had a lot of wheel experience. There were only 1-2 people in my class who were beginners. If I hadn't already had some exposure to the wheel, I think I would've been completely lost as most of the class time was spent on demos that the class requested instead of set lessons. If the cost wasn't almost half of what other studios in town were charging, I would probably go to another studio because of the above reasons, but honestly the deal is too good to complain. If you're able to get off the waitlist and get a class here, I'd recommend trying it out if you have some experience already! Otherwise I would try to take a more beginner friendly class elsewhere first

We came here to see a local theater company put on a musical comedy about the Servant Girl killer…read morefrom Austin in the 1880's. It was quite fun and pretty clever. Murders and Moontowers is the name. The center is clean and well lit. Welcoming is the term I think of, inside at least. It's a bit hard to see if you are not paying attention and parking is not great. Not the worst but crowded. Inside had interesting local art, I have some pictures, and a few benches. The theater room is decent sized and you can see and hear pretty well. We were in row 3 or 4 to the right if on stage. The troupe was good and there were some clever songs. It is about an hour and while the murders do factor in its mostly about the growing city and political dealing. I know it's an art center first but two quick things. The chairs are awful. They took me out of the play several times as I could not get in a position that didn't cause pain. Two: I can go without a snack or food but I need liquids. Water, soda, something. If you don't want to sell it allow us to bring lidded bottles or Yetis. Yeti like cups wouldn't leave trash and would allow for less issues. But that said I really otherwise enjoyed this. Shana, the woman who married me, agrees place is very cool. The cast signed a book we had on the killings which was cool. The songs were mostly fun and entertaining. The cast did a good job and told a fun story in just an hour. There were a few things that felt a little out of place but overall it was a good time.

How I wish we had room for one of the amazing neon pieces made here. I had my eyes on a ginormous…read morecowboy boot! Anyway, even though I don't have room for neon art, we were able to do a tour of the gallery. I wish I'd taken pictures inside as well as outside but I was just enthralled with all of the amazing work and talking with the owner/artist. This is a must-see place! Just incredible.

We stopped by here for the mural on the wall, however, it started pouring raining so we ended up…read moreinside. They didn't seem too happy about that, but we're so glad we ended up in there. They have amazing pieces of art. We spoke with the artist of the mural and loved hearing his stories.

Erin (hope I spelled your name right) is so kind, patient and helpful. I was there to pick up a…read moretake home kit for a fundraiser and she was already waiting for me when I got there. She made sure I knew what was in the kit, how to use it, and gave out tips and suggestions on the possibilities the two canvases could become. It was Taylor Swift's "Lover" and I was sad my bid didn't win this kit. Highly recommend for a date night or as an auction item for fundraisers.

The most fun we've had doing art in a long time. Painting with a Twist is a fun, casual activity…read morethat fits into just about any occasion, whether it be a date night or just doing something with friends. There are a lot of class options (categorized by what painting you'll be doing) so there's good variety. We chose a very pretty painting which we did not have the foresight to realize would be pretty difficult to paint. Check-in was smooth and the studio is intimate; they also have all materials setup for you ahead of time including aprons. This is also a BYOB spot and many people had wine with them if that's the kind of twist you're looking for. Our instructor was very good during our class. She was genuinely passionate and patient with everyone, doing multiple stops and checks and reassuring us along the way that everything would be fine. This was more of an intermediate level painting that took a bit of skill and finesse so the patient attitude and slow pace was helpful in getting out paintings as close to the original as possible. The only downside to that was the activity ran well over the time we had scheduled for it (2 hours turned into 3-3.5 hours), which forced us to push back a dinner reservation we had made. That's not really a drawback if you have the time and want it to be perfect but for those maybe looking to do something after your painting then it's good to be aware of that. At the end of the event we were genuinely impressed by how well our paintings came out. The attention to detail and instruction make it so that anyone regardless of skill level can come in and put together a painting that would look good on the front of a fridge. They have many different classes and paintings to choose from and for the price it absolutely feels worth it to come back, which we will be doing soon.

ArtUs Co (abbreviated for collective), a non-profit, is a cool artistic find. The art collection…read moreis located in the Arboretum next door to Amy's Ice Cream. Their current exhibit focuses on fungi...yep fungi! Quite honestly, I've never viewed a fungi collection. It's abstract, captivating and innovative. There are different artistic pieces on both floors of the art gallery along with a gift shop on the first floor. The art pieces are atypical with bright and muted colors. The art gallery receptionist was very personable and allowed guests to enter with drinks from a nearby coffee shop. She also encouraged exploration on the second floor. Upstairs you could view some pieces still in progress. In addition, the pieces ranged from inexpensive to more pricier pieces.

This hidden little shop/apothecary/art collective doesn't seem to belong in the Arboretum, until…read moreyou look at the prices. The art is amazing and I wish I could afford any of it! You should definitely go check it out even if you can't afford to buy it either. If you are looking for high end local art, this is the spot for you! The bathrooms are clean and have such cool sinks! The little shop/apothecary is cute and has lots of options. The staff person was really friendly and helpful. Her conversation was interestingly hilarious. Ask about Britney Spears and see what happens. Really cool spot with a diverse selection of local art plus more!

I took the Intro to Blockprinting class this past weekend and overall, it was fun. I have been…read morelooking into picking up a new hobby or get into more craftin' to get in touch with my creative side. The class was $42 from 10:30a to noon. It is an open space with all sorts of art supplies, tools, and just about anything your imagination can muster up. Lots of inspiration. I was hoping to make more than just one small block and have different supplies like fabric for printing. It was very therapeutic to carve my small block. The class felt a little scattered - but it was a very easy going environment, super relaxed. Our instructor was friendly and encouraged us to tap into originality without overthinking it instead of looking up patterns or inspo on our phone. I really liked that. And she offered us all coffee, freshly made. You can basically come in to do all the arts and craft your heart desires, on a donation basis. Affordable and unique way to release your artistic side without investing too much in all the supplies and then an abandoning a hobby. I'd come back with a friend and check out a different class.

I went here as part of a work event to make lanterns for Lunar New Year . Stepping inside, I was…read moreimmediately greeted by an organized haven of craft supplies. They had construction paper, ribbons, highlighters, stamps, hot glue guns, and anything you might find at Michael's. Our instructor was very knowledgeable and showed us how she made her lanterns. She walked us step-by-step through the process. Now, I'm not a crafty person, but I was inspired enough by the ambiance and overflow of art supplies to get some creative juices flowing. At the end, I was able to create my own lanterns with some creative twists. I had a fun time and will recommend my crafty friends to check this place out!