We love art.  But we are artists, and this means we are often broke.  (What money we have, we often end up spending on our own supplies…)  Art museums are expensive, but many museums have at least one day a month when they offer free admission.

Here’s a breakdown of when and where you can see art for free*:

Asian Art Museum 200 Larkin St San Francisco CA 94102  http://www.asianart.org

The Asian Art Museum offers free admission on the first Sunday of every month.  Next free day: Sunday, January 4th, 2008.

San Francisco Museum of Modern Art 151 Third St San Francisco CA 94103 http://www.sfmoma.org

The SF MOMA offers free admission on the first Tuesday of every month.  Next free day: Tuesday, January 6th, 2008.

deYoung Museum(in Golden Gate Park) 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive San Francisco CA 94118 http://www.famsf.org

The deYoung Museum, like its “cousin” the Legion of Honor, offers free admission the first Tuesday of every month.  Next free day: Tuesday, January 6th, 2008.

The Palace of the Legion of Honor (in Lincoln Park) 34th Ave & Clement St San Francisco CA 94121 http://www.famsf.org

The Legion of Honor, like its “cousin” the deYoung, offers free admission the first Tuesday of every month. Next free day: Tuesday, January 6th, 2008.

The Oakland Museum of California 1000 Oak St Oakland CA 94607 http://www.museumca.org

The Oakland Museum offers free admission the second Sunday of every month. Next free day: Sunday, January 10th, 2008. (Please note that the Oakland Museum is currently renovating, so some of their galleries may be closed.)

*the obligatory asterisk* Free admission is subject to availability.  There may still be fees for special exhibitions.  Please contact the museums directly for details.

Despite the sunny skies we’ve had lately, it is December! And this can mean any number of things… The days are getting shorter and darker.  People get an irresistible compulsion to light candles and put up pretty colored lights.  Christmas is coming up (December 25th.) Hanukkah starts December 21st.  Winter Solstice (the shortest day of the year) falls on December 22nd. It’s a great time for having parties and giving one another gifts. We’ve got some wonderful gifts for artists and aspiring artists. Or perhaps you want to give yourself a gift.  (C’mon, you’ve earned it.)

There are some particularly good sales out there for the painters. A number of popular easel styles are substantially discounted from their usual prices, whether you are looking for a small tabletop easel like the Winsor Newton “Eden” (item# 39263, sale price $29.99) or a massive studio easel like the “Utrecht Master’s Easel” (item# 56224, sale price $459.99)  For a very solid mid-range studio easel, I would recommend either the Winsor Newton “Shannon” (item# 39267, sale price $129.99) or the “Utrecht Artist’s Easel” (item# 42638, sale price $199.99.)  Both are sturdy H-frame designs- The Shannon has the advantage of compactness, and comes already assembled.  The Artist’s Easel has the advantage of being convertible, so that you can tilt your canvas anywhere between a fully horizontal or fully vertical position. (Assembly is required.)

For people who like to sketch, we have all kinds of great pencil and pen sets on sale. Colored pencils, watercolor pencils, graphite pencils… you pick….  And for young aspiring artists we have box sets put out by Reeves and Color & Co. that come with everything you would need to get started.  (just add paper and imagination.)

We are all artists here, so we’re always happy to provide advice.  And as always, we offer gift cards in any amount that you choose.