The Underground: Five key places to look for art off the beaten path in Sacramento
We all have those special spots. You know the ones? The hidden holes in the wall that you hesitate to tell people about because you don’t want it overrun with people that haven’t been supporters since the beginning. It isn’t always easy to build those special kinds of connection with a place of business, but once you do, it’s hard to let other people be a part of it. With the ever-changing scene in Sacramento, many of us having watched some of our favorite best-kept secrets shut down, with a large thanks due to the rising rent and cost of living expenses in Sacramento.
In the spirit of wanting to show appreciation to the things we have while they are still around, we’ve put together a series of guides to help you find some of the best hidden gems of Sacramento in all forms. Think of it as your guide to all the awesome that you may not have heard about.
This round, I’m focusing on a few galleries that you will soon find you can’t live without.
1. The Brickhouse Art Complex
There is something beautiful about bricks. The way each one manages to fit together piece by piece to create a structure strong enough to hold up some of the boldest pieces of art, or to house some of the most powerful performances from all genres. When you walk into the Brickhouse Art Complex on 36th and Broadway, you feel exactly that. The strength and protections housed within the crimson clay walls as music and laughter bounce off the brick. Barbara Range, curator and owner, takes special care to bring in new and exciting work that creatively challenges the everyday narrative we face. With a new exhibit opening each month, and centered around all forms of creative expression, this tucked away space in Oak Park is one of the best places to spend an evening.
Web: http://thebrickhouseartgallery.com/
Street: 2837 36th St, Sacramento
2. 1810 Gallery
Nestled among a slough of warehouses on a dead-end street is one of the most glorious spaces to ever grace the Sacramento art scene; the 1810 Gallery. There hasn’t been a time where my mind wasn’t blown and my heart wasn’t filled with the beauty that blossoms from the minds of the painters, sculptors and collaborators the collective features. It hearkens back to a time of your youth, where you read fantastical tales about boho artists who lived in repurposed warehouses in New York, creating art, making music and generally living the life you dreamed. With a huge outdoor space, additional studios adjoining, and the Warhol-ian Factory style backdrop to it all, this gallery is teeming with life. While it isn’t always open to the public, they often host First Friday and Second Saturday events that are not to be missed.
Web: www.facebook.com/1810gallery/
Street: 215 14th St., Sacramento
3. Taylor’d Mind Studios
A newcomer to the Sacramento landscape, the Taylor’d Mind Studios is a one-stop shop when it comes to art in all forms. The brainchild of curator and owner Taylor Pannell, the space is a mixture of work space, boutique, venue space, cafe and yoga studio. Housed in the newly minted glass-and-steel structure known as the 800 Lofts, Pannell has managed to turn a space that could have fallen on the side of “typical” for a new downtown Sacramento hotspot — picture overly modern furniture, and underwhelming minimalist layouts — and has turned it into an artists’ haven for a new generation of Sacramento artists to find their place in the ever-evolving landscape.
Web: www.taylordmind.com/
Street: 800 J Street, Suite 521, Sacramento
4. Autonomous Love
This hidden-away spot sits on the second floor of a Victorian house, set on one of the most popular strips of midtown. Run by Paul Imagine, this LGBT+ friendly, sex positive art space combines artistic expression with the importance of sex positivity in all forms. Curating art that directly relates, in some form, to the exploring and deconstructing of gender norms, promoting body positivity, self love, and a healthy discussion grounded in sex education. The shop also acts as a retail shop during the day, offering a variety of positivity-pushing odds and ends to awaken the sex positivity in all of us.
Street: 2419 J St, Sacramento
5. The Actual Streets of Sacramento
Okay, this might be cheating a little because it technically isn’t an indoor gallery space, or a typical art spot. But the streets of Sacramento are teeming with murals and art installations that turn a quick walk through the streets into a miniature museum tour. Pieces by Shephard Fairey, Daniel Osterhoff, Phlegm, Norman Ayles, Raphael Delgado, Shonna McDaniels, Shaun Burner, BAMR and so many more can be found on corners, walls, buildings and signs on and off the grid. In fact there’s an entire site dedicated to the murals of Sacramento. Take a look here, and plan out your own personalized tour. https://findmasa.com/city/sacramento
This list could go on forever. There are so many spaces in Sacramento worthy of praise that it’s tough to even compile these kinds of lists. It is a tough job, but somebody has to do it. Stay tuned for the next round.