Velveteria

Kitsch heaven. Nice gal greeted us and we were the only patrons on a Friday morning. Felt like you were in someone’s house who displayed only things that truly gave them joy whether they matched or not. Some themes. The most interesting was a little card by the front door that explained about how velvet is made. Also enjoyed the hand written stories about the artists. Blacklight room a real throwback.

I went in expecting just kitsch, but I left with a real appreciation for the art, the owners and, OK, there was a lot of kitsch too that I loved.
Velveteria is one of the coolest, weirdest and most fun ways you can spend an hour or two in Chinatown. Slung in a building midway up a random block with a neon sign sits what is the world’s foremost collection of velvet paintings (citation requested). The owners have pulled together and arranged the paintings in your standard museum categories like Polynesia, blacklight, Elvis, unicorns, tiki and erotica among others.
The owners are both super fun to talk to and you can tell that they really enjoy their collection and take pride in sharing it with others. We talked for over an hour after we’d seen the paintings and well past when they were scheduled to close.
Among the hundreds of artworks, many with hand-​printed informational signs, there was a lot of head shaking, a lot of «Oh my god! You have to see this!», as well as some genuine admiration for the skill in an art form that is often summarily dismissed as something crass or simply ridiculous.
For $ 10, it is a lot of fun! The signed copy of their book (with velvet cover) proudly sits on my coffee table today as a reminder.

This is one of the best little museums I have ever been to! If you love velvet like I do and love art then you will love this place Carl has the most amazing Stories and it’s super welcoming and super informative! Worth every penny and I would go back and bring other people to see this great little place!

If the concept of a velvet art museum appeals to you in the slightest, quit reading this review and just go already! It’s $ 10, which seems a little steep considering you can get into LACMA for $ 15 or less, but it also seems like a pittance considering it’s a VELVET ART MUSEUM. It’s small but well-​curated, with new stuff being added all the time. (New additions right now include Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton as unicorns crossing horns, and a good selection of David Bowie tributes.) The owner is really friendly, as well as a velvet artist himself! And SURELY the black light room alone is as important a piece of Southern California art as Blue Boy at the Huntington.

If you ever want to know what it feels like to live a scene from a David Lynch movie, grab a drink at Jumbo’s Clown Room and then head down to Velveteria; a mecca of all things velvet art (obviously). Located along a grimy side street in Chinatown (which in hindsight only added to its mystique), wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Was it a store? Was it a gallery? Was it a secret front for an illicit opium den? The truth may be a combination of all three.
But officially, Velveteria is Velvet Art museum as explained by Carl; one of the museum’s proprietors. Dressed that day in a leopard print blazer, Carl himself is every bit as interesting as the museum and could easily pass for a character in a Quintin Tarintino film. The guy has stories! A lot of which I could barely understand, but his passion for velvet art was obvious.
So on to the details. It’ll cost you $ 10 to pass the pink curtains of the lobby and enter the museum. While they have a smart phone cube-​slide for credit cards (which we used), I get the sense that Carl prefers cash. After paying, off we went passed those pink curtains. The bulk of the museum is contained in one large gallery space consisting of sections loosely divided up by categories like actors, musicians, pop culture figures, etc., with a little shrine set up in front of each section consisting of various chotskies.
In addition to the main gallery, there are several little nooks and rooms in the back devoted to such themes as black-​lit velvet art, Elvis (of course), and «tasteful» naked tiki art. Even the bathroom is decorated in velvet art.
Definitely a unique experience that’ll have you feeling like you’ve left in a drug-​induced haze, if you aren’t actually already. I can think of plenty of worse ways to spend $ 10.

Beautiful velvet paintings! The velvet paintings do not look that 3D as some say they do but they are glossy and have depth. The guy watching the store was a bit too nonchalant/​laidback as he didn’t offer info about the gallery (he was neither welcoming nor unwelcoming), but then, everything is explained well on the walls with several jokes, including delightfully irreverent ones. With such a beautiful place, it’s better to be left alone in contemplation anyway. Make sure to check out the back rooms! A very random hidden gem tucked in L.A.‘s historic old Chinatown. And just a random note: This place did not fit in with the Chinatown vibe at all with the exception of a painting of Chinese-​American actress Anna May Wong. It could be a gallery located anywhere. But it’s a super special gallery with a plush and slightly surreal atmosphere that you probably would be surprised existed on this Earth, fantastic!

If you’re into art, this is a great place to go. So much variety in terms of velvet paintings and you can easily spend an hour marveling at it all. Carl, the owner, was a joy to speak with as he has so many fun stories to tell.

Admittedly I am a big fan of most everything kitsch, and all things quirky. This velvet painting museum had our group of four smiling ear to ear throughout our 45 minute visit. I saw this article in the LA Times: (
) last month and sent it out to a few friends. One of them replied in a few short minutes asking when are we going.
We rounded up a few more fans of the unusual, and dropped in this past rainy Saturday, always great weather for museum visits. Carl is the owner and curator and is worth the $ 10 price of admission alone. Funny, engaging, and loves to explain as many of the pieces as you want to make time for.
Being a child of the 60’s I loved the black light room, and popped in twice to make sure I absorbed as many of the paintings as possible (see pic). Not quite as bizarre as The Jurassic Technology Museum in Culver City:
. But still a fascinating and highly recommended stop for those of you that can enjoy the unconventional places in our too often mundane world.

I want to ask Unilocal to add some more stars to this review. Seriously, if you love kitsch, black velvet paintings, or points of interest that are off the beaten path, DO NOT miss this Los Angeles gem~
Great folks, great art. For $ 10 it’s one of the cheapest ways to spend an hour doing something interesting and fun in L.A.
Thanks for the great time!

This museum is a must see for your friends who seek out the ‘odd and unusual’ roadside attractions of Los Angeles.
Crammed into a tiny space one block off the main road running through LA’s Chinatown, it’s chock full of, yes, paintings on black velvet. The place raises this artistic phenomenon to an entirely new plane.
Hand over $ 10 (look, they need support, ok?), and you can browse on your own in a handful of tiny rooms chock full of velvet paintings. Some of the rooms are themed (think Elvis, nudes (adults only, please), black light), and interesting hand written descriptions tell you all you ever wanted to know about black velvet paintings.
It’s fun, it’s cute, quirky, and worth a detour. The friendly owner/​s are often there, will share their insight and knowledge with you, and talk about how they got into this crazy idea in the first place! Caren Anderson and Carl Baldwin have over 3,000 paintings, and about 450 are displayed at any time.
In addition, there are special smaller exhibits that are worth notice, usually located closer to the floor, such as a unique Unicorn Birthing Center and a special shrine to «Dog, The Bounty Hunter». Don’t miss them.
By the way, this little gem is just 2 blocks from Phillipe the Original birthplace of the French dipped sandwich), in the center of Chinatown, and near Olvera Street and Union Station… so you can make a day of it if you wish!

The collection at Velveteria is really amazing. If you have any interest in paintings on velvet, Polynesian Art, Elvis, unicorns (or even Ryan Seacrest as a unicorn), old Hollywood, black light rooms that put your old dorm room to shame, or just quirky museums in general, this will be the best $ 10 you ever spend. Be sure to save some time to chat with the owner and hear his stories of how he acquired many of the pieces.

I love this place! If you’re looking for a fun, quirky, and totally unique museum, this is it.

The owners here are completely down to earth and really cool the exhibit itself is something that should not be missed I highly recommend checking this place out. 5 stars 2 thumbs up.

This gallery is a true gem. I had never seen velvet paintings before. The colors seem to be popping out of the fabric, and looks very lively. There are paintings about lots of themes, covering everything. There were paintings of celebrities, landscapes, dogs, unicorns, pirates… They also have a room with black light where you can see come of the paintings glowing. The owners are very entertaining and passionate about their collection. We arrived there a bit late, and they very generously allowed us to stay an extra 40 minutes after the closing time. I highly recommend this to anyone interested in seeing art off the beaten path.

Tucked away on a side street in Chinatown, this gallery is absolutely a one-​of-​a-​kind. The owners are friendly and welcoming and totally passionate about the outsider art of velvet painting. For $ 10 you can take in more velvet paintings than you are likely to ever see again in a lifetime. Themes range from the South Pacific, to NBA stars, to musical celebrities, to a unicorn combovers and a chihuahas in a teacups. The gallery itself is full of whimsical objects that accent the collection. Truly a labor of love and not to be missed!

What a blast. One of my favorite art stops in LA (including the likes of The Getty and LACMA.) I read about this in the Lonely Planet guidebook and was glad I stumbled on this just outside of Chinatown. The art is funny, surreal and stunning, as is the owner Carl, who is as much a part of the quirky experience as the gallery. Highly recommended for those who appreciate the discerningly offbeat.

Velvis Lives! His address is in Chinatown. This is Americana with passion. Great owners who love what they display and who share vast knowledge of velvet art. The art work varies from high end detail to rougher edged craft, but all are delightful. Other trinkets and oddities were enjoyable too! Thanks to Charles Phoenix for the tip on this wonderful nook just a block from Phillipe’s.

I expected a lot from this place, and it surpassed even my high expectations! For fans of velvet art or kitsch in general this is a must see destination. Awesome art and the owner was so sweet!

This place is awesome! My friends and I were walking back to our car after some lunch at Chego (which you should also go to) and serendipitously managed to walk by the Velveteria. I don’t know about you, but I didn’t know much about velvet paintings before coming here and I left an expert.
Well not really, but I did see some awesome and weird stuff that was a mix of inspiring, kitschy, erotic (sorta?), and Elvis. Lots of Elvis. The staff is super nice and I don’t think they get a lot of foot traffic so go check them out!
Also, the blacklight room is not to be missed. If one engages in blacklight related activities, it is perhaps incumbent upon that person to engage in those activities prior to visiting the blacklight room and Velveteria in general.

Being the owner of a velvet painting it was a must that I visit this place and it was well worth it! I’ve never seen so many velvet paintings and from so many different genres, it was a real treat. The ladies that were working the place were knowledgeable and friendly and at the end of the visit they snap a Polaroid of you with a painting of your choice to take home, the perfect amount of cheese for this kitschy haven. I will definitely be coming back, places like this need to exist and be supported.

I’ve never learned more in one place. An eye opening experience. As a recent college graduate thirsting for knowledge, I am so grateful to have walked into the Velveteria!