Best Places to Take Art Lovers in Cleveland

August 19th, 2022 by

For art enthusiasts, Cleveland, Ohio, has a lot to offer. While the city is known as the birthplace of rock and roll, there are many other cool facts and features worth exploring. Home to famous artists, art spaces, and learning institutions, such as William Sommer and the esteemed Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland is a popular destination for artists and art enthusiasts alike. Whether you’re local to Cleveland or just passing through, explore this list of some of the top places to see art in the city.

The Cleveland Museum of Art

The Cleveland Museum of Art is a great place to explore talented local creators and engaging art exhibitions. Since 1916, the museum has remained committed to curating accessible art from a diverse range of artists and creatives. They offer many programs for both children and adults, and you can browse their online calendar to find out what events, lectures, and exhibits the museum is hosting. Those local to Cleveland can even become museum members and receive free tickets to special exhibitions, private invitations, parking discounts, and other benefits.

Visitors to the museum’s collections can browse for free, and you can get tickets to special events online or at the museum’s ticket office. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesday and Friday, and it’s closed on Mondays.

Museum of Contemporary Art in Cleveland

The Museum of Contemporary Art is another great place for art enthusiasts to browse some of the top photography, paintings, and mixed media pieces from modern-day artists. Unlike a traditional collecting museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art is a non-collecting museum. This means they choose to celebrate solely current artists and creatives in their inclusive art space. Those looking for contemporary art in Northeast Ohio shouldn’t miss this exciting location.

Daily admission is free, and the museum’s hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. You can find public transportation options for accessing the museum conveniently. Public parking garages and metered parking spaces are also an option for those who choose to drive to University Circle where the museum is located.

78th Street Studios

78th Street Studios is the largest art complex in Northeast Ohio and a fantastic spot for exploring art. On the third Friday of each month from 5 to 9 p.m., guests can browse the myriad galleries, studios, performance spaces, and shops along this street for free. In all, there are more than 50 venues to explore, so there is no shortage of art. You can preregister for the Third Friday art walk online or come without a prior registration.

Those wanting smaller crowds and a more intimate browsing experience can explore 78th Street Studios from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. While fewer galleries and venues are typically open, you can still see the space and explore some incredible art and studios.

Transformer Station

Another museum worth visiting in Cleveland is the Transformer Station art museum. The museum opens for the summer on July 16 and stays open until October 2. During that time, visitors can view the artwork of leading contemporary artists in the station’s historic building. Viewing the art is free, thanks to creative programming, and the museum is privately owned. Transformer Station’s location is another appealing factor of this space. Located in Hingetown on Cleveland’s west side, the spot is close to lots of shops and restaurants.

The museum’s visiting hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday. Visitors can appreciate the historic building, which owners renovated from a private substation built in the early 1900s. It’s the perfect combination of historical and contemporary, and the space strikes an exciting balance that art viewers will love to explore.

Negative Space Gallery

Negative Space Gallery is a unique art experience that offers many forms of creative expression. Visitors can enjoy the multisensory experiences of poetry, two- and three-dimensional art, music, video, and theater performances in this space. It’s a great location for artists and art enthusiasts alike because it offers performance space for artists to experiment and play with their form of creative expression and studio space for gallery visitors to appreciate the work of talented creatives.

You can attend free monthly events, Third Friday concerts, and other events at the gallery. Three resident Cleveland artists currently work in the gallery: Gadi Zamir, Tessa LeBaron, and Jessica Cricket. You can see these artists’ work and others in the studio spaces of the venue. The gallery is open from noon to 6 p.m. Thursday to Sunday.

HEDGE Gallery

Third Friday art walkers might see HEDGE Gallery as they explore 78th Street Studios, but it deserves its own shoutout. The gallery values accessibility, collaboration, and community involvement. Hilary Gent, the owner of the studio, is an artist herself, and you can see some of her work in the space. Beyond the owner’s work, visitors can view the work of 18 established Ohio artists, each with their own unique style and form of expression. The gallery even doubles as an event space.

You can check out the gallery’s website to learn about events and exhibitions and to discover what local artists are doing with the space. If you’re interested in visiting the studio, you can do so during Third Friday when visiting some of the other studio spaces along the art walk. If you just want to see the gallery on its own, you can visit from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday, 11:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday, and by appointment during other weekend hours.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our list of great art to see in the Cleveland area. If we missed a spot worth mentioning, please let us know. We’re always eager to explore art around the city and learn more about the creators who make Cleveland such an incredible place to live.

Posted in Local