invasion of the lame-ass galleries
on my weekend bike trips downtown i liked to stop by the old cafe bassam on market st. and 4th after lunch, since i knew i could always grab a table in the sun and drink one of the wide variety of teas that they offered - even iced. but after the building it resided in was bought by a new owner, they were unceremoniously tossed, along with the other tenants. while i commend the owner for fixing up the building, and i understand that rents needed to be more in line with standard rates downtown, that doesn't ease the pain of realizing what was once a relaxing, unique fixture of downtown has now become just another touristy art gallery. actually two - shorelines gallery and sticks, but you can pass between them once you're inside. seriously, i've never seen this much overpriced tourist crap outside of seaport village. i'd be hard-pressed to put a single item i saw there in my house, but then we all have our own taste when it comes to art.
unfortunately, this is one of the negatives related to downtown's improvement. rising rents end up pushing out some really cool places that helped define the area. gaze across the street at hooters, or walk up the street to rock bottom brewery, and you can see the writing on the wall: the gaslamp has become all about visitors, and not locals. and that's ok, since there are other options nearby. strolling through east village, you can see all the potential it has as a very livable area, with its own set of unique businesses. east village tavern and bowl was packed with a mixed crowd watching football, and we grabbed the last table in the new zanzibar nearby, well after the lunch hour. not one cheesy gallery in sight however.
cafe bassam has moved to moved to hillcrest/bankers hill, it appears. downtown's loss is uptown's gain.
posted by Paul Jamason @ 12/02/2007 11:47:00 PM
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I am amused by the observation that the art at Shorelines is 'crap' or overpriced. Since the entire purpose of this gallery was and is to give San Diegans, not tourists, access to QUALITY, well priced original art, i would hope that the writer might take the time to consider that he is lambasting the artists, not the rent rates or the owners. We have American artists from more than 40 states and we have worked very hard to keep prices down and to work with the art community.
well if i owned a gallery and someone said the art was crap i would be offended, so i'm sorry if i hurt any feelings. everyone has their own taste regarding art, and what i saw (and see on your website) is just not my style. personally, i prefer more edgy work by artists from the urban core of san diego, shown at galleries like magpie, gallery 680, mesh in north park, ray at night galleries, and SDAI. these artists have also been featured in publications like sd city beat.
my point was that to me, san diego already has enough galleries that feature art like that shown in shorelines, many of which are in seaport village. and those galleries often cater to tourists and people who are more conservative with their art choices. i was disappointed to see what had been a pretty unique coffee/tea shop in the gaslamp be replaced with what i felt was a relatively conservative gallery, and how this was another sign of a gaslamp quarter that is losing its edge.
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