Franklin Bowles Galleries

This gallery is currently hosts original art works of Salvador Dali and LeRoy Neiman.

Ok, here we go. The one star is strictly for one employee.
I was there yesterday ⁶⁄₆. I just stopped by SF from Oakland and realized the Dali Exhibit, which got me all happy. I stopped in, the place is nice and free… as an exhibit dealing in artwork should be, so this was cool.
The older gentleman was greeting everyone as they walked by his desk, asking them which artworks they have or haven’t collected and about their preferences… I mean very friendly and with seemingly excellent service. I was taking pictures of some pieces and when I walked further into the gallery, I had greeted the nice man with a «How are you today?». What I got in return was a cold empty glance. He looked away and ignored me. I was with my brother and mother! All three of us were in shock. 3 minutes later, an old couple walked in and he returned to his excellent customer service.
I have many issues with this, one being that the same customer service should be extended to everyone, regardless of what they appear to be, to have or not have. Everyone he greeted were all older couples. Another one is that this man will only talk to you if you appear to have money to spend and or if your a couple. I understand asking people about what art they like to «buy», especially if the establishment deals in art, but this is another problem. All this man talked about was buy, buy, and what art have you bought lately? Never mind ones views and perceptions of any particular piece or collection.
I’m sorry, but someone dealing in art should have an enhanced perception of what they are dealing with. If one truly loves something, the enthusiasm shows and one becomes very willing to share the passion with everyone. When this is true, excellent customer service follows regardless… theoretically.
This man failed to realize the obvious. Why would someone go into a gallery and spend time admiring the works with absolute enthusiasm? Why would I walk in there with a smile and go «WOW, this is fantastic!»? I’m obviously interested! But he took it upon himself to determine that I was broke… this is what it comes down to.
Pretentious snobbery? No question about it. You can tell by the fake, non-​cultural accent that Americans develop as they further lose themselves.
I’m an artist. I’m extremely perceptive and receptive to all things around me. I figured this would happen, but I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt. We didn’t even look bad, but I’m not one to play the race card. If I make money off of my art, I spend it to create more art (even to buy pieces) and not to buy fancy clothes and expensive junk. This is where enhanced perception through love the of art comes into play. If one can’t spot another’s love for the art itself, then one does not love art. It’s simple. In my outspoken opinion, this man has no place in an art gallery with works of this magnitude.
There was a young man who asked me if everything was alright. This guy was doing his job very well, by the way. To the young employee, «I didn’t mean to come off like a jerk. My intention was to set up a possibility that you might whisper it to the older guy. I had to respect my mother and the gallery by holding my tongue. When I said that he only cares about money and doesn’t give a sh. about the artist, all of the above is what I meant. Thank you for being a nice guy.»

there are a handful of art museums in this area. You can go and see Picassos and Dr Suesses and it is all free. Just walk in like you belong there and they will let you hang as long as you want.

I like the fine and classic art here. They’re having a Larry Horowitz showing.

Went here with a friend for the Eduardo Arranz-​Bravo reception.
We came a bit late, but we were able to look around and sip wine for about an hour. They theme their exhibit to fit whoever’s art will be showcased.
They have staff members who are pretty friendly and as informative as they can be.
I can’t say much because I didn’t buy anything, but I thought it was great there. It’s a good place to go if you’re interested in looking at real art.

This place is lacking in customer service. I approached the saleslady to ask if there was additional art upstairs; her response was to point at a man in the store. He came over to ask what I needed. I found her attitude both dismissive and offensive. Visit this gallery only if you are willing to put up with pretentious snobbery.

Rasjad Hopkins is the guy you want to talk to if you are a fan of Dali, as he has kept himself involved with him since 1969. Very informative and willing to sit down and talk to you. I would have loved to buy a Dali, but was not quite in the market at the time. When the time is right this is definitely a place i will come back to visit

A beautiful space in the Fisherman’s Wharf/​Ghirardelli Square area and absolutely worth the visit. Like Rae gallery, the prices are quite high, but looks are free and unlike the other galleries in the area the focus is moreso on paint than on sculpture.
Most fortunately for myself, my visit to San Francisco coincided with Bowles presentation of rare works by Salvador Dali — specifically his woodcuts and etchings from the Lewis Carol themed Alice in Wonderland series. Beautifully presented and allowed plenty of space it was great to see these works in public.
Other impressive items on the walls of the gallery included works by Picasso and an entire room of Chagall.
When you get tired of stuffing your face with bread, crab, and chocolate (or simply get tired of all the tourists doing so) this gallery is an oasis of beauty, quiet, and anti-​tourism.

The one kind of purchase where I’ve never had any buyer’s remorse is the purchase of art.
Well, there WAS that time when, a few hours after returning home from an Art and Wine Festival, the doorbell rang and two guys were standing there with an 8 foot tall carved wood giraffe. Mrs. Z looked at me, I looked at her, and then we both remembered that earlier in the day, after a little too much wine, we apparently thought the giraffe would look great in our living room. We spent the rest of the day wondering if maybe purchasing an 8-​foot tall giraffe and then forgetting about it the same day was a sign that we had hit rock bottom.
It turns out that, no, we had much further to go. But I’ll tell you what. That giraffe looks awesome today and, much like the once controversial Transamerica Pyramid is now the centerpiece of San Francisco, that giraffe is the centerpiece of our living room (although I’m pretty sure the Pyramid wasn’t designed and built by a couple of drunks who, immediately upon its completion looked at each other and said, «For the love of God, what did we just do?)
And then there was the time at the Montclair Wine and… oh, never mind. But, fortunately, that shade of orange works perfectly in the kitchen.
So, several years ago, after a nice anniversary dinner at Ana Mandara, we wandered down Beach Street in the Wharf, and found ourselves poking around the Wharf art galleries, with the principal goal of amusing ourselves by snickering at the Thomas Kincaid and Erté crap (and just who is the loser who does those awful dolphin paintings?)* that passes for art in tourist destination art galleries. But, in the midst of our mockery, we both spied this great pastel of Mt. Fuji in here by a little known artist — and it immediately struck us as something we liked very much. The sales guy took it down for us and put it under a bright light in one of their viewing rooms.
Art that speaks to you right away and evokes emotion will give you many years of pleasure, subtly shifting in the way it responds to you, and the way you relate to it, and to the artist’s original intention. This piece definitely had that effect on us.
When I finally revealed to the sales guy that we were not in fact honeymooning tourists but lived 20 minutes away from the gallery, I could see his face drop. I doubt that they sell much art in here to people who live within 1000 miles. Places like this thrive on big-​spending tourists who, when back home in Toledo, buy generic toothpaste to save 15¢ a tube.
In a rare moment of good sense, we left empty handed, but not before telling the guy that although we liked the piece, it was at least 3x more expensive than we could justify or afford. I gave him my number and invited him to call me if the price should come down.
Sure enough, the phone rang the very next day.
And today it hangs in my living room, in a nicely lit spot, not far from the giraffe. And every time I see it, I get a nice little kick of pleasure. When guests admire it, I thank them, but it will take a little prodding to reveal that it came from the Wharf.
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*To be fair, there is no such crap in this particular gallery, which specializes in higher end stuff such as Chagall, Miro, Rembrandt and others, but that kind of stuff DOES pervade the wharf galleries. And there is no reason to let the facts get in the way of a good story, is there?

Sadly there is no Bob Ross or Dave Cho but what I really like about the Franklin Bowles galleries (there is more contemporary art and sculptures at the 799 location) is that its not small, stuffy, dark, and repressed.
I really appreciated the open spaces, white walls, and doorless entrance which all made it seem like the entire place kind of washed ashore from the water. The actual art in both locations is great and the open structure of the building makes it really welcoming so that you can come in and out without feeling like you are in a stuffy, repressed, and uppity place.