F A N Gallery

The owner is both low key and personable, and the space is delightful (2 floors). Most important, the selection of work is perfectly to my taste — neither too traditional nor too conceptual and avant-​guard, just fine painterly work, each artist expressing a slightly different vision, all of them very professional and very alive. I REALLY like this gallery.

I missed out on this excellent gallery the last couple of years cause it was on arch st. when I tended to only walk up 3^rd and back on 2^nd. I’m very sorry I missed this place cause the last two shows have been really really excellent. The most recent show, (Jan ’08, Lesa C. Lim) is honestly one of the best collections I’ve seen from a single artist in old city for a while. It was half sold-​out on opening night. (disclaimer: I bought two paintings pre-​opening cause that’s how much I liked her work). It’s rare to see that many paintings sold so quickly in my experience.

The thing I love the most about this Gallery is the house band that plays inside it every First Friday. they play traditional Irish Folk music that is absolutely worth checking out. since the gallery has the look and feel of an old cottage they are right in their element too, and it really makes you feel welcome.
The art is also very good too. picture a Philadelphia street that you have walked through on several occasions depicted in a traditional painting. that is usually what you are going to find, so it usually shows these areas as you have never seen them before. It also has some good sculptures and other kinds of artwork on most occasions.
The only flaw to this gallery is that it has a very thin stairwell that can make going upstairs a horror-​show experience. but the art that is upstairs can be very worth it.