Sunroom Café, 638 State St.
Nestled above Steve and Barry’s on State Street, the Sunroom Café’s wood floors, wicker chairs and earthy marble tabletops create a remarkably warm and homey atmosphere. The space is small and intimate, which, coupled with the simplicity of the white walls and bare wood fixtures, leaves the restaurant without a trace of pomp or pretension. The café also offers frequently changing art exhibitions, currently a collection of artistic photographs of dogs. Featured in unique framing and compositions that compliment the characteristics of each breed and the personality of each pup, the colorful mutts are enough to brighten any afternoon meal.
—Emma Condon
Fair Trade Coffeehouse, 418 State St.
Fair Trade Coffeehouse, in addition to having some of the best coffee and atmosphere in Madison, also features a rotating series of artwork hung throughout the shop. The owner, Lori Henn, said the idea to display art came when the carpenter who built Fair Trade’s wonderful, long wood counter offered her some samples of artwork by his wife, Jaroslava Sobiskova.
Today, Fair Trade displays paintings by a variety of local artists, helping to advertise their work to potential buyers without charging a commission. Earlier this year, Fair Trade displayed horse and native-themed painted tiles by Birgit Bach, whimsical expressionistic pieces by Gregory Wilcoxrogers and a colorful impressionist painting by Mike Konya depicting Kenyan villagers and subtitled “Local Beer Drinking.”
No matter when you visit Fair Trade, there is almost always a beautiful painting to look at while you sip your house blend.
—Stephen Dierks
Steep & Brew, 544 State St.
Found on the walls of Steep & Brew coffee shop is a line of work by local artist Kathy Shulman. Shulman’s works are created with a new medium, which was introduced with the use of digital photography in the art world. “Gallery Wraps” as they are called, are digital photographs that have been printed onto canvases that are then wrapped around stretcher bars to mimic a painting. The works are a pleasing unique blend of artistic mediums, having an appearance of a painting but the look and feel of a photograph.
Shulman’s Gallery Wraps feature exotic and bright images of architectural elements, people and landscapes from San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Images like “Blue Sky with Cosmos,” where a bright blue sky is intruded upon by spots of orange Cosmos flowers, provide a bit of color and excitement to the otherwise drab and lackluster atmosphere of the café.
—Alison Eiler
