American Art Collector - Art City Focus

Tiffani Taylor Gallery

Back in the Historic District, another influential Savannah gallery owner is Tiffani Taylor of Tiffani Taylor Gallery. SCAD alumna, contemporary painter, ceramicist and Savannah Art Walk (SAW) fonder are just a few roles Taylor plays in the local art community. The entrepreneurial artist splits her time between Savannah and France, where she mentors SCAD’s Lacoste student artists. Taylor’s radiant paintings, which reveal nature’s divinity through rich texture and free-flowing expression, have been collected by the likes of Oprah Winfrey and former Vogue editor Andre Leon Talley.

Taylor’s organized Art Walk occurs the second Saturday of every month as a must do for visitors interested in personally connecting with Savannah artists. Beginning with the complimentary cocktails and artist presentations at the Hyatt Hotel, the tour includes 25 galleries within a 1-mile radius before culminating for wine pouring, a patronage raffle and an emerging artist exhibit.

“My goal with SAW is to make Savannah the premier arts destination in the United States,” Taylor boldly states. “It’s exciting to be an artist and gallery owner here, because of the magic and beauty of Savannah; it attracts an incredible amount of visitors.”

Notable stops on Savannah Art Walk include City Market Art Center, featuring two levels of artist studios and galleries, and Kobo Gallery, a quality co-op with work by local and regional artists. In the Downtown Design District you’ll find Roots Up Gallery, a stand out in Savannah’s art scene in its focus on Southern folk and outsider art. Owned by Leslie Lovell, Roots Up celebrates its fifth anniversary on May 1st with the exhibition In the Moment, featuring the nationally exhibited, untamed animal portraits of Helen Durant. Levell’s gallery offers a true flavorful taste of the South from its most honest artistic voices; its roster includes legacy fold artists of the region plus contemporary artists working in similarly soulful styles. Locals of note include Lisa D. Watson for her industrial reclaimed wall sculptures, and Savannah’s ubiquitous Panhandle Slim for his quotable pop-culture murals.