this mural is by Robert E. Smith. He's my favorite local artist. His work is charming and full of life…
share one of your favorite local treasures with me for a chance to win a set of my illustrated sock monkey stationery…
XOXO. elsie
local art i love….
99 Comments
One of my favorite local treasures would be the Georgia Aquarium and the High Museum of Art. Local artists would include REM, my mom, etc.
i use to live in minneapolis and followed adam turman’s work all the time.
his prints and paintings are amazing and i am so in love with how he portrays my [old] city.
http://www.adamturman.com/
im still trying to discover what and who are local to me. so, for now, you and rachel are about as close as i get to local. both of you have such amazing and inspirational ideas. i can honestly say that i love everything that you all create. if my wallet matched my love of your guy’s stuff, i’d own atleast one of everything in the rva store. im so sad that i cant even afford but a few of the things i love.:( it makes for good day dreaming though!!! 😉 lol
ah!
i love this photo:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/elizabethhaley/3584907879/
its in lebanon, mo.
I love a set of mosaic murals under the railway bridge in Kingston (England not Jamaica!).I think the local art college made them. They are super sparkly and really brighten up the place! x
I love local artists! One of my favorites is Greg Latza, he is an amazing photographer! He captures the beauty of South Dakota better than anyone else. Love him. Check his stuff out at http://www.peoplescapes.com/.
She doesn’t live locally anymore but she is a local girl!
LOVE her paintchips and Etsy shop*!*
http://claireteschel.wordpress.com/paint-chips/
this is my favourite local artist. her photography is amazing. I think it’s fresh, with an old world feel. Makes me feel warm and lovely.
http://www.marcypenner.com
http://gypsypete.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/verlichte_atomium001.jpg
This is the local treasure of Belgium.
It’s called the Attomium
My favorite local artist is Cristina Acosta 😀 http://www.cristinaacosta.com/
Her art is beautiful and happy!
this one is not really a local artist, but where i live, we have this famous wallpaper factory. 🙂 it´s super inspiring to go and look the wallpapapers every now and then.
http://www.tapettitalo.fi/luettelot_en/collections.php
Ok. I have two! First, the poet Ted Kooser (http://www.tedkooser.net/) whose poems are SO sweet. and the second is a friend of mine, Renee Welstead –photographer. They are surreal portaits and they are beautiful!!
(http://www.reneewelstead.blogspot.com/) She also does nonprofit work overseas, love her stuff!
Sarah M
Lincoln, NE
My town isn’t very artistic, lol. There is an old ‘junk’ store, however, that I absolutely LOVE going into! He finds old things left behind in old factories, stores, an such (like old doors or letterpresses, cash registers…just random things). I’m always so inspired when I come out of there!
I do live close to Chattanooga, TN…and I LOVE going to the Hunter Museum and the TN Aquarium. It’s so peaceful there and helps when you want to just think. 🙂
Sorry, I don’t have any pictures linked up or I would share!! :/
My favorite local treasure? I am not familiar with any local artists in my area… Does ones natural environment count? (If you could see these mountains you would completely understand!)
Hi Elsie,unfortunatley my little town (named Vizzini) doesn’t have all this modern art or murals.It’s one of the most ancient towns of sicily(1300) so all we have are churches and anciet constructions.
The only cute pic i found is one of our car rally of “Fiat 500” (little cute cars) that we do in my town every year. the colours are brilliant and the cars are so cute. I think this a form of art too.
Here’s the link were you can see them
http://www.foto-sicilia.it/fotografia.cfm?id=105764
I met a family through a church they started called “Bohemian church” They are AMAZING people and do art together as a family here’s their etsy:
http://www.hancockfamilyart.etsy.com
it’s just incredible to me how close this family is, i’ve never seen anything like it. currently they are living on a bus!
this is my favorite local treasure.its a mural painted by a local high school teacher,mary ellen shevalier.the theme of the mural will is “giving from the heart.” it includes praying and extended hands, doves and faces.
My town isn’t too “artsy”, but they recently added an always-rotating series of sculptures on one street in our historic downtown. Modern metal art in the center of every block. Love it! No pics handy, though.
my fave local artist (in Des Moines, IA) is Frank Hansen. we are lucky to own one of his paintings and I’m just in LOVE with his work.
http://www.moberggallery.com/hansen_portfolio.shtml
I am soooo lucky to be surronded by so many local artists!! My favorite local hot spot for art is the St. Louis City Museum 🙂 looooove it, so inspiring 🙂
I don’t live in our “big city” but we have some great streets in Winnipeg, Osborne, Corydon, and they are so full of life, cute things and fashionable shops that are so so inspiring.
My favorite local artist would have to be my mother. When I was little she decided to quit her 9-5 job and start painting. I am now 32 and she is still painting and making a living with it. You can check her out oh her blog:
http://www.catherineholmanfolkart.blogspot.com
I wish I had half of her talent. She amazes me daily with her new paintings.
Amber
An absolute favorite local artist of mine is my Mom! Here are a few of her paintings:
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n170/LauraReaux/mom1.jpg
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n170/LauraReaux/mom3.jpg
http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n170/LauraReaux/mom2.jpg
(the last one is on a huge piece of tin, mounted on wood)
Ahh! I haven’t had internet all morning and have been missing out on all the goodies! I just caught myself up, thankfully.
One of my fave local artists here in Portland, Maine is Rob Sullivan. He just had an art show called “minumentals”, 6″x6″ paintings of ordinary objects from around the home. A few of them are pretty cute! He’s a fantastic painter/illustrator and also a new member of the illustration faculty at my school, I’m so excited to have him teach me this year!
His blog:
http://robsullivanartnotes.blogspot.com/
His website:
http://web.me.com/robsullivanart/Site/Galleries/Pages/minumentals.html
http://www.lisasolberg.com/
one of my favs
JB
my favorite local artist has to be jodie allen. she is a photographer that loves loves loves color and like to use the city of st. louis as a backdrop… leading her clients on an adventure to find the coolest places to shoot. her pictures are fun and fresh and i can’t wait to have an excuse to hire her.
http://www.jodified.com
My favorite local artist is my boyfriend Grant. He is currently and Art Education major and he is great at creating anything. He once made a tiny rocking chair out of toothpicks, and one cool thing he just made is a fish out of found objects that actually lights up (one of those deep sea fish). His teacher even bought it from him. He is also an awesome painter and does custom work:)
Missoula is a VERY artistic and creative town! and i’m sooooo happy that we live here now! There are sooo many amazing artists but today my favortie is Unconventional Ida! http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5228878
she has an incredible imagination and all of her work is done on recycled wood or paper! how awesome is that?!?!?
jeremy said he has family out this way – you guys should totally come visit! xoxo!
eek! i just woke up and found all this fantastic goodness! i am really loving all the focus on artists, and am excited to check out some of the ones i haven’t seen before!
i was lucky enough to recently meet up with quite a few local artists (we are in the process of forming our very own Etsy Team!) and they are some fabulous ladies! very very talented.
I don’t really have a favorite local artist but I do have a favorite local place that displays lots of local art! 🙂
It’s called the Mansfield Art Center. And its one of my favorite places to go for inspiration in my area.
Hope you enjoy it too…
http://www.mansfieldartcenter.org/Exhibitions.html
local treasures for me:
frecklednest.blogspot.com and
lunevintage.blogspot.com
http://www.morganlehmangallery.com/dynamic/artist_artwork.asp?ArtistID=39
John Salvest, my former sculpture professor at Arkansas State University is my favorite artist, besides my students! ; )
He makes awesome objects out of collections of everyday things.
Thanks!
Kelly
favorite local art is anything by this guy:
http://www.oilocean.com
My favorite local place to go for inspiration is a yarn & fabric store called Home Ec Workshop. They have great classes and it’s just a sweet place to hang out. http://www.flickr.com/photos/kirstenwilliamson/2268411996/
i’m from cedar rapids, iowa and my favorite local artists (historically) are grant wood & marvin cone.
so much of the city i live in along with the homes, museums, fairs, school projects, etc are inspired by the work they produced. i’ve grown up with their inspiration around me and think both are amazing artists who will always bring joy and creativity to my life!
here are a few favorites i’d like to share (and no, american gothic is not one of my faves) 🙂
http://www.johnsoncountygreenparty.org/images/grantwood/stonecity1930.jpg
http://www.johnson-county.com/auditor/official/young_corn.jpg
http://jacksonsauction.com/Jun04_catalog/artistList_images/Cone.jpg
Shepard Fairy is not a Los Angeles native but he resides here now so I guess that would make him local? He’s the artist that made the famous Barack Obama’s “HOPE” piece.
http://obeygiant.com/
He does amazing work.
In my town of Louisville we have a very artsy sector called the Highlands full of life, creativity, and individuals of all kinds. Here you can find a hookah bar, our first bubble tea store (which im meaning to go to!), and so many eclectic shops and resturants up and down the Bardstown Road which a trolly transports you. Here you can find tons of local artists and musicians that are inspirational!
Come hang out with us here in Lousiville!
Hey elsie,
My favorite local artist is Mark Mulfinger, and he lives right here near me in Greenville, SC. He has a little studio downtown, but I have bought enough of his art to have a studio right here in my house. 🙂
my favorite local treasure is not a contemporary one but is beautiful nonetheless. marc chagall created the stained glass windows in st stephan’s in mainz (germany). the windows are his last work, and i’ve read that he used something like 70 shades of blue in his composition. plus, chagall looked like adrian brody as a young man 😉 i’ve attached a youtube vid of the church!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKsQi2jQsco&feature=channel_page
She recently moved away, but my favorite local artist right now is Grace Grothaus. I love her city sculptures made of recycled computer pieces! You can find them here: http://www.gracegrothaus.com/gallery/sculpture
look this photo!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bearpitring/1492100954/
it’s a painted wall in my city.
very cool!
This is a favorite local artist of mine, I used to work with her hubby who now frames her work. Here is one of my favorite pieces of hers, but I could seriously buy everything she paints!:
http://www.strangeling.com/shinjukuangel.html
and this is another one I would have loved to have gotten my hands on:
http://www.strangeling.com/littleredridinghoodinautumn.html
One of my favorite places is this paper/bookmaking store.
http://www.hollanders.com
There’s a tunnel for pedestrians and cyclists connecting our neighbourhood with another, where graffiti is legal. It’s always worth a look when we’re close, often there’s some pretty cool graffiti-art to see!
http://i325.photobucket.com/albums/k375/Thinkieforums/27-3-20074.jpg
I’m sure those of us living in Springfield,MO are very much aware of the awesomeness that is Mudhouse.
My favorite concoction is the Wild Tribe Mocha/Grasshopper.
SOOOO very good for those of you who love Mint&Dark Chocolate.
Just came home from a holiday weekend and saw this fun day today here on your blog!!! So excited!!!!
No local favs here…But i love a Dutch band called Blof. Beautiful music and great lyrics!
There’s this craft store, mostly fabric and sewing stuff in Denver called Fancy Tiger. Their website is http://www.fancytiger.com/
It’s just so cute, makes me want to buy everything!
in nashville we have dragon park right near downtown. it is a giant mosaic tiled dragon that looks like he is swimming through the grass and he dips in and out and there are tiny little seats on his tail.
my favorite part is that when i was itty my mom used to take us there and we thought it was the coolest thing ever. and now- almost 17 years later- i still think it is the coolest thing ever.
My local favorite is the Getty Museum but more so for the view of the city…
El niño de las pinturas is a local artist from Granada (the city where I live here in Spain). You can see some of his job here: http://www.elninodelaspinturas.com/
He paints grafittis all over the country. Many of them are in his hometown (Granada).
Love his work!
And love this blog!!!
Well since i live in a small town, my fave would have to be the Sutter Buttes. On a clear day you can see them from miles and miles away even thought it is not nearly close to any mountain range. Seeing the Buttes always remind me of home.
so cool! I’m loving that mural.
I just moved to Colorado, so I don’t have any favorite local artists yet! :[
<3 B
my local gem is the Mima, a modern art gallery. I’m from a small industrial town so it’s nice to take look at something pretty every now and then.
http://www.theredhouse.org/
The Red House is a place that has visual art, performing art, lots of different things. It always has something exciting going on.
The other is Recess Cafe. A cafe with really old funky furniture, great coffees, good bands, free wi-fi, and some stickers. They have the vegetarian ones that say, “It hurts being plucked” and stuff. I think they’re great!
De La Vega is an insanely talented local treasure! i think you’ll love his work, he’s totally iconic in nyc AND works at his own store!
http://www.delavegainternational.com/
and other local treasure is brooklyn illustrator liz lomax- http://www.lizlomax.com
she’s so talented it’s crazy.
WATCH THIS VIMEO:
http://vimeo.com/3176682?pg=embed&sec=
tis amazing!
La Grande Vitesse here in Grand Rapids:
http://www.bluffton.edu/~sullivanm/michigan/grandrapids/calder/vitesse.html
This man is a genius, Rien Poortvliet! Sadly, he died a long time ago, so there won’t be any new work. He was famous for his drawnings and paintings of animals and gnomes. The best way to get an impression of his work, is to Google him:
http://images.google.nl/images?hl=nl&q=rien%20poortvliet&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wi
Hope you like it!
Hello Elsie and friends, I just now finally got a chance to scroll through all of the lovely works that you have posted. I would have checked earlier; I had to get my lovelys off to school and bring one in so that he could make a volcano. It has been a lot of fun to see how you think a little. Thanks for reinspiring me to go back to my love and to play with paper and draw and create. love it.
Oh I forgot to ost a local treasure. the Fam and I recently walked along in a park on the Mississippi called Islands of peace. and took lots of pictures. Super fun.
Ooooh…there’s just so much fab local art here in Vancouver!! Hard to pick! One of my fave girls’ in Sonja Ahlers, though – http://www.makeitawesome.com/art.html
I discovered a lovely illustrated graphic novel of hers in my local library, and have since fallen in in love with her illustrations and mixed media goodness. 🙂 Lovely!
geeze, i missed a lot of posts! finally crashed at 6 this morning…didn’t expect to sleep till noon!
right now, my favorite local band is The Vettes. they’re a family of brothers and one sister…but they’re not your momma’s partridge family! check out their songs “give ’em what they want” and “animal”
lovelove!
I live near Grand Rapids, MI. Not a small town, but not a huge city. Our botanical gardens is awesome. I recommend it for anyone coming to visit here.
Morning!
My favorite local treasure is the Frank and Son Collectible Show every Wednesday and Friday in the City of Industry. It is like a Geek Mecca…comic books, Disney collectibles, wrestling stuff. It is so fun to go and see the same faces every week 🙂
http://www.fs-collectibles.com/
i live in a town right on a lake. there are 4 main towns/cities on each side of the lake (north, south, east, west)….it is actually pretty cool! in one of the towns on many of the buildings are these beautiful historically based murals:
http://www.vernonmurals.ca/
check it out! definitely a local treasure!
xo
My favorite local treasure here in Kankakee, IL is Blue’s Cafe. It is an incredible little cafe with the best food and homemade pie-love it! I also love Frank Lloyd Wright’s Bradley house which is here also. Amazing architecture.
ME! Just kidding – kind of.
One of my fav’s though is Rigel Stuhmiller, who has super sweet fruit and veggie block prints, and adorable doggy portraits. So cute!
But seriously, check out my jewelry: emilyeps.etsy.com
Thanks for all the stimulation today 🙂
Mine is my grandparents house. They live on about 100 acres of land. My dad and two aunts have about 10 acres each right next to them. The smell of that land still makes me feel home.
My fave local artists are my friends! They continue to inspire and amaze me with their creativity and craftiness on a daily basis!
And since I’m kind of a homebody my fave place would have to be the Strathcona Farmer’s Market. It runs year round (which is a big deal up north) and is the best grocery shopping experience ever!
our public library always hosts an art walk every summer that i look forward to. My favorite booth is one that sells local handmade jewelry and blown glass. It’s so magical. I love the colors, the summer air, and the smell of old books coming from inside the library. :]
<3
Elaine, Indiana
http://www.deborahart.com/
I love her stuff, she’s from Amsterdam (10km from my house) and I went to one of her expos once.
i love the UC Davis arboretum. it’s so peaceful to walk along the creek and watch the ducks.
Local treasures? Well, I’m really into the craft community here (Sacramento, CA) so I would have to say all of our talented crafters! I put on a craft show with many of them (www.indiesacramento.com) and I love them all! If I had to pick one, my newest obsession is pottery so I’d go with: http://www.laurawallstaylor.etsy.com
Love all the inspiration you’re posting!!! And the sock monkeys!
The children’s room in our library has a Peter Pan mural painted on the ceiling. I love it. It makes me happy.
this book store is a *must* visit if anyone is ever in southern ontario. it is absolutely amazing. i’ve spent full days there just soaking it all in. this is their myspace
http://www.myspace.com/citylightsbookshop
-it doesn’t do a lot for the store but if you ever want to know more about it or address email me because is soooo amazing.
Yee Haw Industries is based out of TN and I live in NC, but I found out about them at a local art show, so we will pretend they are local! You can find their site here: http://www.yeehawindustries.com/home.html and my favorite cards are these:http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=25303324. They do beautiful letterpressed cards and posters! Enjoy!
My favorite local photographers:
http://pacoandbetty.com/blog/
I live in Texas in the middle of nowhere, but the county I live in was actually the first capital of the state of Texas so we have alot of history near. Brazoria County.
i love local photographers! i don’t have a link, but i live in an area with tons of beautiful fields, orchards, old buildings, etc. and there are always photographers out there taking cute pics!
mykul j is my favorite local artist! http://s90.photobucket.com/albums/k259/mykulj/
local treasure. Well in Alameda,CA…Park Street is where I love to shop & hang out. It’s a street filled with shops/boutiques and eats. Antiques, toys, trendy, stationary…clothing, very unique stuff. I love going there…I can get bubble tea, sbux, and diff. kinds of food…good food. It’s great to spend a day there.
my favorite local artist.. is my friends band
dada trash collage
if you like animal collective, then you will adore them.
they sounded so magical live that i smiled the entire time they played.
they are both currently studying in st. paul minnesota at mcnally school of music one for composing the other for performance.
i highly recommend checking them out.
also my boyfriend did all the illustration for the album : )
dadatrashcollage.com
free mp3 downloads
and also you can listen at
myspace.com/dadatrashcollage
🙂
I remember just hovering around the booth of this local photographer at many different craft shows: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5207204
Just met these crafty ladies at a show i was in!
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=21807322
🙂
My favorite local treasure would be my awesome cousin Laura!
Okay… I don’t have a local art inspiration… But this one time, my boyfriend and I found this crazy little pet store (it was called an exotic pet store) and they had every snake imaginable and all of these little creatures I had never even seen before… I found a new love for sugar gliders and now my boyfriend is obsessed and wants to buy one.
I know, totally random… But it just reminded me of this pet store lol
i love rob colvin’s landscape work.
http://data.fineartstudioonline.com/dataviewer.asp?keyvalue=6313&page=VC10054
A local treasure here in the Detroit area is Greenfield Village. It has a lot of historical sights such as Henry Ford’s Model T, but is also a really beautiful place for a photo shoot.
I live in Statesboro, GA… the town that inspired this gem by the Allman Brothers:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0P8iTHpRD8g
Even when it gets unbearably hot and the gnats are out in full force, this song makes me proud of our little slice of South Georgia.
There’s not a link to my favorite “treasure” where I live… It is a little hole in the wall restaurant called “Herd’s Hamburgers”. People come from all over to eat hamburgers there and they are the best I’ve ever had! It is such a cute, tiny place. The inside has no tables, just old school desks that line the walls. It takes at least 30 minutes to get your order because they are so busy!! Love that place!
oh my gosh that monkey is just the stinkin cutest ever!!!! I am really into local photography and there are lots of amazing artists in the area
My local treasure is For KeepSake Scrapbook store in ST. Louis. They are always filled with inspiration. (I do believe you taught a class for them once.) They are very talented women!
KElly
One of my favorite treasures is a tiny little cupcake pin that a friend gave to me! It makes me smile every time I look at it!
It came from Harley at http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5784693&ga_search_query=hdartistic&ga_search_type=seller_usernames
I have noticed his art in the Big Fat Burrito too! I will have to pay more attention of the mural when I drive by.
My fave local artist is Kristi Mashburn http://www.myspace.com/kristimashburn
My fave of hers is Skittles which isn’t posted on her page anymore.
Aww I wish he had more online to show you, b/c this one does him no justice. Jimmy Maine from Warner Robins, GA. He taught me to crochet and would visit me at the coffee shop I worked at. http://www.artsclayton.org/gallery/static_files/jmaine_01-08a.jpg
lately, a lot of space invaders are appearing on Paris’ walls… So fun to discover one !
http://space.invaders.paris.free.fr/
my name is emily and my favorite local treasure is my grandparents’ pumpkin farm in upstate new york. <3
http://www.pickapumpkin.com/
it is wonderful and cute painting by one of my relatives is all around! i love spending time there with my family and enjoying the outdoors. :]
My favourite place in my town would have to be the library. <3
A local treasure… Message Factory, a Quebec based company that makes clothes out of organic cotton and with positive messages printed on them. I love them.
Sophie
My favorite local artist is my daughter, she’s 9 and she just won national contest. Yes I’m absolutely proud of her 🙂
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3346/3542645075_26f3a75a79_b.jpg