Charleston Art Galleries, Museums, Supplies & More

Best art galleries Charleston museums supplies classes your area

If you are trying to learn about art in Charleston you are definitely in the right place and our first section will fully cover the best art galleries and museums near you.

After that we will get into a variety of other topics like art supply stores, events, festivals, dealers, appraisers, walking tours, local sculptures and statues, art classes, studios for rent, and the top frame shops in your area.

You can jump straight to any section that interests you most by using the table of contents on the left and we are also including a Charleston art map with all of the spots we mention throughout the post pinned on it.

The Southeast is an area that we have covered often on our site.

Best Art Galleries & Museums In Charleston

If you want to check out the best art galleries and museums in Charleston you can head to:

 

The Halsey Institute Of Contemporary Art at the College of Charleston School of the Arts serves as a multidisciplinary laboratory for the creation, presentation, interpretation, and diffusion of ideas by cutting-edge visual artists from across the world.

Atrium Art Gallery is a modern and abstract gallery inspired by the ideas of John Townsend who is a native of Charleston having grown up a few blocks south of Broad Street on the historic downtown peninsula. He founded this gallery in 2002 along with his studio as a result of his lifetime inventiveness and passion of art. During your visit to this beautiful old building which is open from 10am to 5pm Monday through Saturday and from noon to 3pm on Sunday and that dates back to the 1860’s you will most likely find him producing and painting.

Corrigan Gallery is open from 10am to 5pm every day but Sunday when they are closed after beginning on September 1, 2005 at 62 Queen Street right off the corner of Meeting and Queen streets in the historic district known as the French Quarter by some. This local gallery displays works of art that are both realistic and abstract and have the beauty of old Charleston with a modern edge after having relocated to Broad Street on June 1, 2017 when a lovely garden was added to the setting.

Expect to see the work of forty well-known American and European artists of various styles at Dog & Horse Fine Art. Jaynie Milligan Spector founded the gallery in 2001 and it is a source for sporty artists, modern canvases, and classical paintings.

The Dare Gallery located in the city center features three huge rooms of artwork that represent the vibrant tapestry of southern coastal culture as well as a courtyard sculpture garden filled with vibrant modern sculptures.

Helena Fox Fine Art is open from 11am to 4pm Wednesday through Saturday and from 11am to 2pm on Monday and is located South of Broad specializing in fine American representational art in your area. The diverse collection includes works by nationally and internationally known contemporary American impressionists, lumanists, tonalists, modern realists, impressionistic landscapes and street-scapes, and marine paintings. In addition to Jonathan Green’s accessible works the studio represents or highlights other artists whose work explores topics like as work, love, belonging, and one’s relationship to the environment.

For a modern fine art gallery located in the lively gallery district and historic French Quarter head to Meyer Vogl Gallery which is open from 10am to 5pm Monday through Saturday and from noon to 4pm on Sunday. They showcase works by a variety of local and internationally famous artists as well as oil paintings by renowned painters Laurie Meyer and Marissa Vogl.

Miller Gallery is open from noon to 5pm Wednesday through Sunday and is a female-run contemporary art gallery that exhibits work by local and international artists. They enjoy offering a comfortable atmosphere for collectors to view, admire, and buy artwork by live artists by focusing on emerging and mid-career artists working in many mediums while also providing services like art consultations and advisories.

The City Gallery at Joe Riley Waterfront Park is a tangible resource and dependable venue for displaying the finest contemporary art from local, regional, national, and international artists stimulating discussion and dialogue among audiences.

Steve Hazard Studio and Art Gallery is open from 9am to 6pm Wednesday through Saturday hosting ongoing art displays of modern fine craft, including fine art for sale. Hazard’s works are on display at the gallery and working studio including 2-D and 3-D wall art, sculptures, utilitarian objects, jewelry in fused glass and etched clear glass, and welded metal furniture while art commissions and one-of-a-kind design projects are welcome.

Materials & Supplies Near You

These art stores in your area should have all of the materials and supplies you desire:

Since its inception in 1985 in Yarmouth, Maine Artist & Craftsman Supply has provided artists with high-quality materials at reasonable costs and they currently have over 20 sites around the country.

Hobby Lobby has nearly 70,000 goods in its store including home décor, seasonal décor, dinnerware, flowers, art materials, craft materials, yarn, fabric, jewelry making, hobbies, and much more.

You’re probably already know what the other chain stores like Michaels and Joann have to offer.

Shows & Events

Some of the top art shows and events held here throughout the year would be:

Spoleto Festival USA was created in 1977 as a sister event to the Festival of the Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy and it draws globally known and developing artists and performers to town from Memorial Day weekend through the first full week of June. The repertoire includes opera and theater, as well as dance, chamber, symphonic, and jazz music.

Each fall the Charleston Arts Festival goes down which is a multi-day event and celebration of all things art near you.

MOJA falls on Charleston just as the heat begins to fade and it means “one” in Swahili as this African and Caribbean cultural festival is held from the final weekend of September through the first full week of October featuring dance, theater, literary and visual arts, and music performances.

The Charleston International Film Festival takes place in November and will appeal to moviegoers of all ages. Through film screenings, seminars, parties, and an awards presentation this yearly 4 day festival celebrates the art and science of filmmaking while being held at the Charleston Music Hall.

Art Dealers & Appraisers

To find a new unique piece for your collection or to figure out the true value of something visit art dealers and appraisers like:

Reinert Fine Art is one of Charleston’s premier art galleries exhibiting modern impressionist paintings in oil by Rick Reinert and more than 60 other artists with distinctive and different styles.

Kevin LePrince and Vicki Robinson own and operate LePrince Fine Art which is a fine art gallery and working artist studio that represents more than 25 additional artists.

Robert Maniscalco is a local portrait artist with a national reputation because his magnificent commissioned portraits and fine art have been included in over 850 renowned private and public collections across North America since 1980. Commissioned fine art sales, painting seminars and seminars, private lessons, brush with wine painting parties, and other services are available from Robert.

James Hill constructed a new mansion on Summit Avenue to display his magnificent collection of French landscape paintings.

Don’t forget that the Miller Gallery from our initial list can also help with art consultation and advisory in your area too.

Walking Tours

Art walking tours can be a lot of fun when the weather is nice:

All 30 art galleries in the French Quarter District will be available to the public for free during the French Quarter Art Walk as East Bay, Church, Meeting, South Market, Cumberland, Queen, Chalmers, Broad, and Tradd streets are all part of the district.

The Fine Art Gallery Tour from Charleston Art Tours simplifies and expedites the process of deciding which local art galleries to visit with over 50 to choose from. They pick which galleries in your area are presently displaying the greatest work at the time of your visit so you know you will see the coolest stuff.

Sculptures & Statues

Framing art supply stores Charleston lessons near you studios

You might also want to take some photos of these statues and sculptures:

  • Confederate Defenders of Charleston at 2 Murray Blvd
  • Cassique of the Kiawah at Old Town Plantation Rd
  • Blacksmith Philip Simmons Statue at 68 Columbus St

The Fort Sumter Memorial Commission constructed the Confederate Defenders of Charleston in 1932.

The Charles Towne Landing State Historic Site has this statue of the Cassique (or Chief) of the Kiawah Indians from 1670.

The Philip Simmons Children’s Garden is a fenced-in playground located on the peninsula just off East Bay Street where there is also a half-court basketball court and a little green space.

Charleston Art Classes

You might be interested in private lessons or group classes for kids, teens, or adults but either way the best art schools in Charleston would be:

Many would tell you that the cities artistic heartbeat is the College of Charleston School of the Arts where world-class artists and scholars teach their students in an atmosphere that values experiential learning, creative collaborations, rigorous study, and a dedication to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Craft & Canvas has the supplies and know-how you need as craft workshops, painting courses, BYOB, and private parties are all available.

For the Love of Art offers mobile “paint & sip” gatherings that take people on creative excursions via canvas painting.

These last two would definitely be considered quite a bit more casual than the others.

Studios For Rent Near You

Redux at 1056 King Street is home to some of Charleston’s most innovative artists and offers art spaces for rent. Redux’s exhibitions and accompanying events serve as a resource for studio artists exposing them to visiting artists, artist talks, and most significantly the community formed with other studio artists while providing emerging and mid-career artists with access to professional artist studios 24 hours a day seven days a week.

Framing

When you need art framing in Charleston head to:

In the past we have also discussed:

Have Fun Enjoying The Charleston Art Scene

At the moment that is all we have to share about the full art scene near you. We listed the best galleries, museums, events, shows, supply stores, dealers, appraisers, walking tours, sculptures, classes, studios, and framers that you may want to check out.

If you made it this far you might just know quite a bit about the local art scene yourself. Feel free to share your own tips, or to let us know if we may have gotten anything wrong in the comments.

We hope you enjoy your time at the best Charleston art galleries, museums, supply stores, or doing whatever else you plan to do with the info.

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This post and all of the posts on our site are edited by Dan Soloman who has been a huge fan of art since he was a little kid. His mother was a good local artist, and she taught him the trade from a very early age. He studied art and its history in both high school and college, has worked at multiple galleries, and recently has begun creating and editing online content for this site and some other online media platforms.

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