[designer]

I'm searching for a smaller cultural (artsy) town
25 or so miles outside of Tulsa or Oklahoma city. I guess Norman would be
one possibility but I would imagine that the university is the biggest thing
happening there. I now live in a small southern New Mexico town and I really like it but with gas continually going up I am starting my search in other states where housing is affordable. One person here mentioned that I should
check out Guthrie. Good medical would be a plus but if I'm close to one of
the two larger cities it would not be quite as important. The further east
I look I notice that the towns are very close together compared to the
west until you get to the west coast. I guess I should ask also which of
the two largest cities would have the best culture/art? I'm sure this
is a very subjective question and I have been to the Philbrook Museum
in Tulsa and I was impressed.

Thanks

[Synopsis]

Originally Posted by designer

I'm searching for a smaller cultural (artsy) town
25 or so miles outside of Tulsa or Oklahoma city. I guess Norman would be
one possibility but I would imagine that the university is the biggest thing
happening there. I now live in a small southern New Mexico town and I really like it but with gas continually going up I am starting my search in other states where housing is affordable. One person here mentioned that I should
check out Guthrie. Good medical would be a plus but if I'm close to one of
the two larger cities it would not be quite as important. The further east
I look I notice that the towns are very close together compared to the
west until you get to the west coast. I guess I should ask also which of
the two largest cities would have the best culture/art? I'm sure this
is a very subjective question and I have been to the Philbrook Museum
in Tulsa and I was impressed.

Thanks

There are a lot of options near both cities. My preference would be Tulsa, but that's my preference for a lot of other areas. Tulsa has a lot of culture and art museums due to the old money that established the city in the 20s. The art deco presence in Tulsa is second to none, and although I realize this has nothing to do with your specific question, the fact that the city is home to so many artistic treasures speaks of the area's artistic flavor.

But, it depends on whether you'll be a working artist or not. If you'll be a working artist, you'd need to find which city has the most workshops and networking for those types.

I suggest you visit William Franklin Studios. This guy is a working artist in Tulsa and he might give you better insight.

[Goodpasture]

Frankly I don't think you will be finding much of any town in Oklahoma to compare to where you are. That area you live in is a magnet for artists. The biggest difference in the attraction is the light. New Mexico's crisp, clear light is unique......so unique that it drew artists from all around the world. Georgia O'Keefe would be a prime example. I was visiting (this is 20+ years ago) with Peter and Michael Hurd, Henriette Wyeth, Ted Robinson, Gary Freudenberger, and a couple of other Roswell/Ruidosa artists and they were comparing areas they had all worked in other than the Hondo Valley, and all agreed that the light there was the prime attraction. Oklahoma's humidity and lower altitude makes all the difference. In Tulsa we are at about 600' altitude, in Roswell you are at 3500 feet......and Roswell is pretty low for that area.....I think Hobbs is over 4000'.

That being said, if I were looking for a small community where I could get a place cheap, get relatively inexpensive energy, and have access to a nearby arts aware community, I would look very closely at Pawhuska. Okemah, Tahlequah, and Vinita also come to mind. You do need to remember that this part of the country is VERY Native American oriented, so there is a lot of popular mediocre pseudo-spiritual art being generated. There is also some pretty good stuff, and there are quite a few people in the area that do know the difference. Between Gilcrease and Philbrook, there is a keen awareness of quality. But I have noticed that mediocre artists can make a living if they put enough buffalo or wolves in the clouds.............

[briansgi]

I'd look in Eureka Springs Arkansas, it's a miniature version of Sedona!
Eureka Springs, The Extraordinary Escape

[designer]

You are right about New Mexico being a magnet for artists but most of
that is happening in Santa Fe and even Ruiodoso is having some problems
as far as sales go. I spend a lot of time in the Santa Fe galleries and if
you really stop and notice where most of the art is produced that is being
featured, you will find it comes from all over the country and even China.
I do contemporary realism which is not all that popular here in New Mexico
and the light is not a factor at all. I used to do southwest type of work
which meant I was painting outside a lot but now it's all studio work so I
could be almost anywhere but it would be nice to be in a art community
to have others to talk shop with now and then. My big concern here is
gas prices. I now drive 150 miles to go to a medical specialist which has
to come to a schreeching halt pretty soon. I think Tulsa is a great city
but I have never lived there. I've only been through Oklahoma City
and it seemed a little less desireable but it might be a little more contemporary with all the new things going on downtown. Also last time I was in Tulsa
it seemed to me that the downtown area was dying. Since I worked in
Architecture most of my life I have a real love with urban core Architecture.
I guess I would have to come and look both cities over. Many years ago
I lived in Kansas City near the Plaza and it has a big art scene from what I
read but it is also a lot colder in the winter. Thanks for the tip on the one
working artist and I will look up his web site and perhaps talk to him.

Thanks again for the input.

[Synopsis]

Tulsa's downtown WAS dying but over the last few years it has picked up tremendously due to the vision2025 project. Good luck wherever you end up!

PS. I love New Mexico. The weather is FANTASTIC; the mountains and desert are beautiful. It's too bad you have to move from such a beautiful place. Not that Oklahoma isn't beautiful, just in a different way. Me, I'm a big fan of low humidity and moderate temperatures.

[designer]

PS. I love New Mexico. The weather is FANTASTIC; the mountains and desert are beautiful. It's too bad you have to move from such a beautiful place. Not that Oklahoma isn't beautiful, just in a different way. Me, I'm a big fan of low humidity and moderate temperatures.[/quote]

There is no doubt that all the things you say about New Mexico are quite true
but it would be true for almost all the western states. I have lived in California, Arizona and Colorado and they all have low humidity with some
exceptions in coastal California. It is also true that New Mexico is a mecca
for a lot of artists but now many are dying off or just leaving. As I mentioned
before with gas going up all the time and with the towns and cities being so
far apart, it is starting to have a impact. Also many of the better artists
(and all people) are getting older and most of the smaller towns do not have
real advanced medical services so we have basically three areas for good medical. The Albuquerque area, Santa Fe and Las Cruces. If you don't live
near those three cities and you have a serious medical problem you might find
yourself making very long trips to specialists. For the most part all three cities do not seem to have lower priced housing available. The midwest from
Amarillo east is full of little houses priced at very moderate prices. I don't
think anybody that I know wants to move back to the humid midwest or east
but there is much more available back there especially if you are getting
up in years. Arizona around Tucson and Phoenix would be a good alternate
choice but they are very hot in the summer months and Phoenix has a very
long summer. Colorado would be a great choice but houses in the Denver
area are fairly high and they have pretty bad winters.

[Oildog]

Tulsa is a nice town. I live in Stillwater which has a university also so you will get some artistic vibe from that. Its very affordable, new house is less than $100/sq ft if thats what you want. Its an hour from OKC and Tulsa, 20 min to Guthrie.

[StillwaterTownie]

Yeah, Stillwater does have a nice outdoor arts festival every April at Couch Park.

[GirlNextDoor2]

Originally Posted by Oildog

Tulsa is a nice town. I live in Stillwater which has a university also so you will get some artistic vibe from that. Its very affordable, new house is less than $100/sq ft if thats what you want. Its an hour from OKC and Tulsa, 20 min to Guthrie.

Tulsa is a cool town for artists, especially in the area around 21st to 31st on Cincinatti (It has a name but I can't remember what they call it). There are a bunch of artsy places thru there...

As for cheap living, you can't beat the area halfway between Tulsa and OKC-- I live in Cushing and Oildog mentions Stillwater (just 20 miles away). The prices are much cheaper in Cushing when it comes to housing. Stillwater is where OSU is located, so you can imagine the artsy folk who live there!