OT. Baltimore next week,

[iwmac]

I'll be in Baltimore next week, (Sunday the 5th to Friday the 10th.)

Hope to get to some photo galleries in Baltimore/Washington area,

and would like some input from some of the people who live in the

area as to the best ones to see. Also, if anyone is up for coffee,

lunch or drinks, etc., let me know here or by email at iwmac at

sympatico dot ca. My wife has a conference to go to, so I'm at loose

ends, no schedule...just hope to have decent enough weather to take

some pictures.

[michael j hoffman]

Check out the following links:

 

http://www.mdfedart.org/glry_city.html

 

http://www.cgrimaldisgallery.com

 

http://www.baltimoregallery.org

 

http://www.galleryid8.com

 

These are usually worth visiting.

 

Fells Point, Federal Hill and Mount Vernon will have the best galleries to offer. You could easily spend an afternoon walking about in each of these neighborhoods.

 

Baltimore's famed Inner Harbor is a tourist trap. If you are looking to do touristy things its really nice, and a walk around the Inner Harbor promenade is fun even for me, and I've lived all my life here in the Baltimore area.

 

For seafood, avoid Phillip's; Legal Seafood on Pratt Street and The Rusty Scupper on Key Highway are much better choices. For real, authentic Maryland crabs it Obrycki's or Gunnings, but crabs are not in season anyway. For a nice eclectic cafe, try Sascha's on Charles Street in the Mount Vernon district, or any of the Donna's coffe houses and cafes around town. Italian, I recommend Sabatino's in Little Italy. Irish pub, Mick O'Shea's a few blocks down on Charles. Also, don't forget to stop in at Lexington Market (closes daily at 6 p.m.) for freshly shucked oysters at Faidley's Seafood or "a large Polish with the works and mustard" at Pollock Johnny's or some fried chicken gizzards with hot sauce at Parks. Mary Mervis and the Barron's are the best deli stalls; I prefer Barron's. They're a bit funny about photography in Lexington Market, just photograph til they ask you to stop. The Cross Street Market in Federal Hill is fairly decent, but after work it fill with your townhouse/BMW yuppie types all primping and posing for one another. Harmless, but to me rather annoying. There is a wonderful lobby bar in the Wyndham Hotel just off Charles on Mulberry or Saratoga, I forget which. Great place for a night cap.

 

The Charles Theatre usually has some decent indie films, but after dark you need to keep you wits about you (not bad per se, just enough to sharpen your observational skills). The library in the Peabody Conservatory is one of the most beautiful architectural interiors in the country.

 

There is fine shopping at the Gallery at Harborplace. The funkier shops (vintage clothing and furniture) are found in the neighborhoods mentioned earlier.

 

For a general rule of thumb, stay east of Howard Street and south of Madison Street and you should get by nicely.

 

Whatever you do, have fun, hon! Oh yeah, my email is michael.j.hoffman@att.net if you have further questions. Also, I'm game for coffee on Friday (3/10). Take care!

 

Michael J Hoffman

[michael s.]

Should you get to D.C. (can be done in an hour from Baltimore, though certainly more in rush hour traffic), but between the various Smithsonians, the Corcoran, the Phillips Collection, and others, there are often more than a few exhibits worth seeing. There are a couple galleries worth checking, too.

 

I'll check the schedule, and I'd very much enjoy meeting you, Ian.

[rjm photo]

Annapolis also has many photo opportunities...a short drive from Baltimore.

[iwmac]

Michael,

 

Thanks for your reply. That is lots of great information!! We are, unfortunately, staying downtown, Inner Harbour area (not my choice.) The restaurant info is good to know. I will look at a map to get your suggestions sorted out, and figure out where things are. I know that 5 or 6 days is barely adequate to even see one or two of the major attractions, let alone several. Photo galleries are a priority. I have been in touch with, and hope to get to the Govinda Gallery.

[furcafe]

A good photo-oriented gallery in DC is Kathleen Ewing (http://www.kathleenewinggallery.com) in the Dupont Circle neighborhood (a short cab ride from Georgetown, where the Govinda Gallery is located). Right now, the big photo art show in town is the Hiroshi Sugimoto exhibit (http://hirshhorn.si.edu/exhibitions/description.asp?ID=34) @ the Hirshhorn Museum (part of the Smithsonian Institution). The major non-photo blockbuster exhibits are the Cezanne & Dada shows @ the National Gallery of Art (http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/index.shtm). If you make it down to Washington, I'd be happy to meet up & show you around the "real" DC, weather & schedules permitting.

[furcafe]

Another photo show that you might want to check out are some celebrity photographs from the Warhol Factory era @ Irvine Contemporary Art (http://irvinecontemporary.com/index.php), a couple blocks away from Kathleen Ewing.

[nasmformyzombie]

Ian, as for galleries you might also try the Maryland Institute College of Art in Bolton Hill, which is considered mid town. I'm in Seattle now, but I worked at MICA from 1999-2005. Go on line at www.mica.edu for schedules. And if you're traveling from the harbor to mid town, and you're up for some intresting cuisine---Afghan---try the Helmand Restaurant in Mount Vernon. It's not as hairy as it sounds, the tables have white linens!

[bill_barton]

Another plug for the Bars/Pubs in Fells Point not far from the inner harbor but you may want to take a cab....

 

Check out Dudas on the list, small, nice people and great food plus you won't beleive the size of the kitchen. open Mon-Sat closed on Sunday

 

http://www.fellspoint.us/barseateries.html

 

Makes me want to go to Baltimore, have fun

[SCL]

For pix: Edgar Allen Poe's grave & house - sunset/rise ethereal soft-tone shots. Near downtown, maybe you will catch the mystery person who places a rose on the grave annually (can't remember the date). Lacrosse at Hopkins. Lexington Market or any of the outdoor markets. Have a great time...lots of photo opportunities regardless of the weather. There used to be several photo galleries around the Walters Art Gallery, but I haven't been there in a couple of years.