Buffalo Art

Something that I personally really enjoy about Buffalo is the huge art culture that the city has.  There are a lot of creative and artistic citizens of the city and it is really represented all over from the architecture of the buildings, to the local music scene and the several art festivals throughout the year.  What I will be discussing in this post are the art museums located in Buffalo, several art related events, and places to go to experience this culture that is unique to Buffalo.

While there are actually 50 private and public art galleries located in Buffalo, the Albright-Knox Art Gallery is the most well-known to the locals and visitors.  Founded in 1862, this gallery is one of the oldest public art institutions in the country.  Even the not so artistically-inclined can have a great experience here, viewing their large contemporary and modern art collection. The admission prices are ridiculously low as well ($12 for adults, $8 for students and FREE when they hold public tours).

http://www.albrightknox.org/

Two of the most popular art festivals occur during the summer months: the Allentown Art Festival and the Elmwood Festival of the Arts.  The small neighborhood of Allentown located in Buffalo attracts tens of thousands of people over the course of the one weekend in June that the festival occurs.  The festival features the arts and crafts of over 400 juried exhibitors and prizes are given to those who submit their work to the festival’s judges.

http://www.allentownartfestival.com/

The Elmwood Festival of the Arts occurs over a weekend in August on the Elmwood strip in downtown Buffalo, where over 170 vendors attend this festival to sell original art and craft pieces.  There are also three stages where over 50 singers, dancers, and bands perform.  In addition, the festival offers kids workshops, food, environmental demonstrations, and 30 local and regional organizations. 

http://eafa.techriver.net/

Another large portion of the art culture in Buffalo is live performances.  Kleinhan’s Music Hall features many musical performances throughout the year, and is most well-known for being the “home” of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra.  Shea’s Performing Arts Center (as shown in the image), on the other hand, features touring Broadway musicals and also holds special events.  Some of the most popular performances held here include Mary Poppins, Dreamgirls, Wicked, and West Side Story.

The things that I discussed in this blog are basically the tip of the Buffalo art culture iceberg.  It would take a novel and a half to talk about everything art-related in Buffalo which really shows just how large this aspect of the city is, and how important it is to its citizens.