The Lake Wales Arts Center is located in a former historic mission style, Holy Spirit Catholic…read moreChurch. The church architect was Peter Cornelius Samwell of Winter Park and the landscape architect and decorator was A. E. de Leon. R. W. Burrows Construction Company built the Catholic Church in 1927. For the next sixty years the church congregation steadily grew until finally it reached capacity in 1988 and moved to a new church on 9th Street. Mrs. Frances Donnellon Updike, a parishioner and Ann W. Norton, an artist and educator, co-chaired a movement to raise the money to purchase the old church and transform it into the new home of the Lake Wales Arts Council which was founded in 1972 to promote arts in the region. Throughout the 1990's, the Arts Center expanded its programming by adding performances, exhibitions, summer camps, and community art education. By 2001, $1.4 million was raised for structural restoration and a new addition. The Michael Crews Education Wing and Gallery opened in 2001, named in honor of one of the Arts Council founders. In 2011 Polk County State College took over the building and renovated it. They held college classes and art events but they returned ownership back to the Lake Wales Arts Council in 2018. Today the Lake Wales Arts Center serves as a regional destination for visual and performing arts. They offer many free events throughout the year including concerts with partners like Bok towers in the Updike Concert Hall, in the grassy courtyard, and in the outdoor seating area. They also have art exhibitions, workshops, classes, festivals, and community events. Annual events include an international photo competition, black history month exhibit, and Hispanic heritage month exhibit. Art from seasoned and emerging artists is displayed in the Michael Crews Fine Arts Gallery. Art is rotated every 1-2 months. They offer the most publicly accessible pottery wheels in Polk County and they have the only publicly accessible stained glass studio in Central Florida. They are the home of the Lake Wales Chorale, a group of community voices that have toured internationally. On a recent trip to Lake Wales I was able to pop in for the free art exhibit Sacred currents Spirituality in African Art. I love how the Lake Wales Arts council was able to turn this historic church into a cultural resource for this community.

Fantastic display of horns throughout history from all over the world. Great after school…read moreprograms for arts and cultural enrichment. Wonderful upbeat environment with all kinds of concerts and performances. Highly recommended.

Melange is a really cute antique shop in Lake Wales in a very unexpected location. The sign for the…read moreactual shop says that the building is a law or real estate office, but it's a perfect place to house antiques! It also contains a small custom framing shop. As most places, it's really hot in here so take a fan to enjoy your experience properly. The husband and wife team are very personable and comfortable with their customers. They can be somewhat hard to find but once they spot you they will welcome you and answer any questions you have. It was unfortunate to hear that due to the coronavirus, they may be going out of business. If they do, it will be a shame but if they don't, I hope people in the area (and those visiting) will stop and buy something! It broke my heart to leave this gorgeous leather push-pin sofa that was something you would see at Restoration Hardware, for $900! And I'm sure they would've negotiated! Unfortunately the owner was not able to reach the person selling the sofas but such a shame! Hopefully they are in business when I return in a few weeks! Support local everyone!

I love this place!! Antiques and wine the best!…read more The husband and wife team are outstanding. I say give them a try. The weekly events and a daily wine bar. Their located in the heart Lake Wales, FL

Jacqueline was very professional, and as a client, I was very impressed with the time she took to…read moreunderstand what I really wanted in the painting. She always made sure to communicate with me if I asked her any questions, and to just let me know how the piece was coming. I knew the final product was going to be great just from previous examples of work that I saw on her website, but I was simply blown away when she delivered it to me personally. It affected me emotionally how she was able to capture the energy of the person in the painting, which I really wasn't expecting. Jacqueline comes highly recommended. Thank you!

From the owner: Creating the art you want to see on your walls. Specialized in portraits, landscape, surrealism,…read moreabstract, and commission work. Professional with over 20 years experience.

Dade City is now on the map for art! Sooooo impressed w/ what I saw & heard upon my visit. Months…read moreago (during the height of Covid), as I walked past this art gallery, I was greeted by the friendly owner. A lover of art (& someone who is appreciative of friendly people), I knew then I would have to return. Today was my lucky day. This gorgeous 3,000 sq ft gallery is owned by Russ & Lee Taylor-- a husband & wife team. Lee, a painter, spent many years as a local public school art teacher. Lee's medium is mixed media. Currently, 25 artists have pieces on display here & available for purchase. All but two artists reside in Florida. A few creations belong to one of my favorite artists (Lloyd Johnson of the Tampa area); they are sold here. Every piece in this gallery is handselected by the Taylor's. This gallery is perfect for anyone interested in abstract paintings, ceramics, jewelry, landscapes, leather, metalworks, mixed media, photography, sculptures, @ items of decor to brighten any home. The name of the business relates to the deep faith these business owners possess. The psalm painted within the gallery is "Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands." According to Lee, "As artists we make things with our hands, but more importantly, everything is truly out of our hands because it's in God's hands." A contributing artist here does not need to be Christian-- all (faith or no faith) are welcome for selection providing the art s/he creates offers positivity. This business is not merely a gallery. ART CLASSES are held weekdays & Saturdays for every level of artist (or future artist). There are also periodic art shows-- check out the gallery's Facebook page for more information. One dream of this lovely couple is to introduce art to the local community-- a goal they work toward six days weekly (closed Sundays). I love galleries, especially ones like this that showcase local artists from within our state. This beautiful, immaculate gallery is filled w/ breathtaking pieces that range in price from $10 upward. The space exudes incredibly positive vives-- such a welcoming physical space coupled with an exceptionally nice owner. I can't wait to return!

3D and 2D art objects mostly from local Tampa Bay artists. Various classes held each month. Very…read morenice people!

I had such a wonderful time creating my work of art here!! Ms Rachel explained everything to us and…read morewas a breath of fresh air. Aliana (owner) was our instructor and she was the best!! She made me feel as if I was a master artist and I truly am not BUT my serving tray turned out soooo good!!! Groupon has coupons that are excepted here also. Purchase the Groupon 1st and then book the reservation online to enter the discount code. Even without a Groupon the value of the items are a good deal. It was lots of fun and I left feeling accomplished.

First visit, and already planning my next! Our group booked the 12 available spots in the studio,…read moreeveryone had a great time. The hardest part is selecting project & color palette, but the staff is so helpful to guide. Then moving into the studio space, there's plenty of introduction and guidance, specially to each variety of the projects. The staff also continually checks in to make sure you're satisfied at each step. We picked up our project the following week after it dried, sealed, and was finished.

We stopped in this cool shoppe today after lunch in Dade City. We thought it was an antique store…read moreand were delighted to see that not only did they sell really unique vintage and antique items but they're mainly an art gallery and offers a custom framing service! I've been searching for a good one and wallah! I'm going back next week with a few canvas paintings I need framed and excited to finally get them framed! If you haven't been here, be sure to check it out!

Just saw 9-5. Really fun! All the actors were wonderful, but The actress playing Dolly Parton was…read morereally excellent. The venue is small. Not a bad seat in the house.

Nice intimate theatre. The show we saw lends itself well to the "theme park" style performers in…read morethe area. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the "plants" in the back laughing super hard so the audience knew when a joke was.

i came here on a day a lot of the exhibits were being worked on but i enjoyed the half off price…read morebecause of it (plus i can come back !!) this was a beautiful museum of art w/ such a variety of different types of art. i took my time as i walked around the rooms & it was lovely. they had a whole hallway dedicated to young artists which was sweet & they also have many art programs for the littles as well as adult events! i really enjoyed my time & will make another stroll soon, i'm sure of it. thank you for existing.

We came here last week for the third Thursday event. March 20 26th…read more Every third Thursday they have a free event. You can get in free to the museum all day until 8:00 p.m. Some of the artists are there and you can talk to them about their artwork. They were giving out free wine and water. Great art museum to check out once a month because they do change out the displays. We got there a little late They were closing at 8:00 p.m. and we got there at 7:30 so we had to do a quick rush through but I was so glad I got to see this and we'll come back next month.