Where in SF proper can I go to find nice art to put up on my walls?

February 6, 2013 12:33 PM

The walls of my apartment are seeming a little bare as of late, and I'm wondering where in the city I could go to pick up some nice art or prints to put up on them...

The walls of my apartment are seeming a little bare as of late, and I'm wondering where in the city I could go to pick up some nice art or prints to put up on them. Pre-framed or not, but with the option to -- it doesn't matter, as long as it's not too expensive. Used is fine too, and I'd love to hear about those options!

Yelp isn't too helpful here, since you can't really figure out just what services these shops offer, if framing's all they do or not. One place I've been to in the past and is almost 100% what I have in mind is Reprint Mint in Berkeley but I'm not feeling like schlepping it all the way out there and back again for a while.

Do your worst, green!

posted by un petit cadeau to grab bag (8 answers total)

What kind of stuff do you like? I've had good luck at City Art on Valencia, but without knowing more about your taste it's hard to say if they'll have stuff you'll like.

If you're open to random stuff, you might consider Art In A Box, which is basically an "artwork of the month" club. They're based in Emeryville, so if you find yourself over there you can duck in and take a look, but for an extra $10/month they ship.
posted by asterix at 12:43 PM on February 6

Why not on-line? I've had some great prints from Art.com.

Also, Cost Plus has a largish print department with frames, etc.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 1:50 PM on February 6

Have you thought about going to any one of the museum gift shops? Posters aren't quite as nice quality as prints, but they're cheap and you can usually get inexpensive frames online to put together yourself.
posted by that girl at 4:34 PM on February 6

Online: Little Paper Planes, 20x200 (site currently being updated).
posted by three_red_balloons at 4:56 PM on February 6

Also, Rare Device at 600 Divisadero has prints.
posted by three_red_balloons at 5:30 PM on February 6

Spoke Art on Sutter has originals and prints, and recently started doing runs of smaller, less expensive pieces. Their show "Bad Dads" is/was themed around Wes Anderson's movies and produced some really nice work.
posted by a halcyon day at 7:30 PM on February 6

The MOMA gift shop has great prints for current exhibitions, with more sizes and options on their "print on demand" computer. You have to actually go there; it's not all available online.
posted by sunnichka at 7:54 PM on February 6

I've bought some beautiful prints from Society6. They have an enormous range and do framing as well.
posted by Wantok at 8:24 PM on February 6 [1 favorite]