Your significant other is right. It’s time to let the Scarface poster go. Or even the Starry Night, if you’re fancy like that. You are an adult. With a mortgage, more than one checking account, and your own health insurance. You know the difference between a 401K and a Roth IRA. You need art. Real art. Yes, Michelle Pfeiffer in that dress was art, but that’s not what I mean. Because you’re an adult, you know real art is expensive.  

Here are a few places to look for real art that won’t set you back on your savings plans.  

 

C3 Lab 

2525 Distribution St  

Charlotte, NC 28203  

Instagram: @c3lab 

C3 Lab is a multi-functional art-centered space. Operating as a gallery and as a co-working space, they host exhibits featuring local, regional, national, and international artists in styles ranging from traditional, contemporary, to hybrid art forms. The gallery’s annual art exhibit is the perfect time to browse and buy.   

This year’s theme centers on “Intersection: Personal styles, careers, and life don’t always function together in harmony, but when you intersect the common thread of the love of art throughout a creative space, with the true spirit of collaboration – an interesting collage emerges to tell a meaningful story.”  

 

Check it out Friday, December 7, 2018, from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. 

 

CPCC Holiday Art Market 

1201 Elizabeth Ave  

Charlotte, NC 28204 

CPCC Art Galleries host an Annual Holiday Art Market in Ross Gallery on CPCC’s Central Campus. Students, faculty, and other local artists will offer a wide variety of ceramics, jewelry, paintings, and photography. There’s even an under $50 section!  

 

November 5th-December 5th, 2018 

Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.  

 

ArtPop 

Currently located at:  

555 S McDowell St  

North Tower 

Charlotte, NC 28204 

Instagram: @artpopstreetgallery 

 

ArtPop is a street gallery. They feature local artists on billboards, buses, news racks, at airports — and turn the everyday “into opportunities for artistic appreciation and discovery.” Four times a year, the art of the current selection of ArtPoppers are shown, gallery-style, at Le Meridien Hotel Charlotte. Can’t wait for the next showing? Visit the ArtPop website artists’ page. From there, you can find individual artists’ websites for pricing info. 

 

Lark & Key 

128 E. Park Ave 

Suite B 

Charlotte, NC 28203 

 This lovely South End spot featuring art and craft is a great place for a novice collector to begin. Check out the website’s “Art for $500 and Under” page 

 And don’t forget that art encompasses more than 2-D works. A collection of handmade pottery mugs, vases, or bowls can be an inexpensive way to begin an art collection. 

 

Ruby’s Gift 

3204 N Davidson St  

Charlotte, NC 28205 

Instagram: @rubysgiftnoda 

This NoDa boutique showcases a variety of textiles, pottery, paintings, photography, and jewelry by local artists. 

 

Slate Furniture + Art Collective 

1401 Central Ave  

Chartlotte, NC 28205 

Instagram: @slateinteriors 

Perfect if you need to branch away from Scarface and Ikea. The Plaza Midwood furniture and art collective showcases rotating exhibitions of local talent and famous artists.  

 

Hours:  

Tuesdays – Saturdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

 

Photo by Cody Hughes @clhughes21