While the city of Buffalo was built by the hard work and sweat of blue-collar workers, the city has developed one of the most respected and appreciated arts scenes in the country. Between the Albright-Knox Art Gallery, the Burchfield Penney Art Center and the Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center, to name a few, the city has collected work from some of the most prestigious artists around the world. Pieces by Jackson Pollock, Arshile Gorky, Andy Warhol and Jasper Johns have graced the walls of these galleries, allowing anyone to opportunity to experience incredible history and talent.
Albright-Knox Art Gallery
The Albright-Knox Art Gallery was established over 150 years ago in 1862 as The Buffalo Fine Arts Academy—the governing body of the gallery. The gallery specializes in exhibiting and preserving modern and contemporary art. Artists like Jackson Pollock, Arshile Gorky, Andy Warhol and Jasper Johns have had their world-renowned work on display at the gallery.
The building itself is also considered a fine piece of art, representing one of the most prideful moments for the city, the Pan-American Exposition. The building was designed as the fine arts pavilion for the 1901 exposition but it was completed too late for that purpose, in 1905. The building has been expanded over the years to house a growing number of works from well-respected and internationally acclaimed artists.
Buffalo Arts Studio
Buffalo Arts Studio is a collection of galleries and workspaces for artists right on Main Street, in the 15,000-square-foot Tri-Main Center complex in the middle of the city. What began in 1991 as an initiative to create a centralized location for local artists to work and collaborate together, quickly grew to become one of the most diverse locations for art and artists in the region.
Burchfield Penney Art Center at SUNY Buffalo State
The Burchfield Penney opened in 1966 at SUNY Buffalo State to highlight the work of Charles E. Burchfield. A new building was constructed in 2008 that houses the more than 300,000 visitors from all over the world. The New York Times listed the Burchfield Penney and Buffalo, NY as one of the “Top 44 Places in the World to Visit,” in 2009.
CEPA Gallery
The CEPA Gallery is housed in the Market Arcade complex in downtown Buffalo--considered itself by many a work of art—and is a contemporary photography and visual arts center. The space offers the opportunity for four unique galleries with an ever-changing variety of exhibits and events.
The CEPA Gallery attracts approximately 300,000 visitors annually.
Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center
Housed in the former Asbury Delaware Methodist Church in downtown Buffalo—now the recording studio for Ani DiFranco called Babeville—Hallwalls Contemporary Art Center strives to ‘support the creation of new works in the visual, media, performing and literary arts. Hallwalls opened in 2006 after DiFranco spent years updating the once abandoned building.
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