Pavlov Art Gallery

I was visiting Solvang for the weekend with my boyfriend. We bumped into this gallery on the way to one of the many bakeries in town. I was interested in the gallery because I knew there was abstract art in there (my favorite!). Chris (the owner) came to ask us if he had a favorite to which I said «All of them.»
My boyfriend saw his biography on the wall and started reading it to me. It turns out Chris is from Macedonia, I’m originally from Bulgaria so I got excited and I asked him if he knew Bulgarian (he did). I bought two pieces of his art and we had a great conversation about Europe and European history and where he lived, communism, what schools he’s been to all around the world, how he met his wife, and etc. He had such a big smile and sparkle in his eyes while we were talking. My boyfriend and me thought he was absolutely delightful. After we left, my boyfriend said: «I think this might’ve been the best part of visiting Solvang.» We both really enjoyed talking to him.

This dude is a piece of work himself. He carries himself in a very arrogant and ignorant manner, he’s very discriminative. I visited his shop with my family, looking to buy btw and didn’t even get a «hello.» I was in there about 15 minutes when he literally ran to assist two elderly Asian women as soon as they entered the door. I tried lookig at him in the eye and couldn’t even get that courtesy. What a despicable person.
UPDATE** After reading some reviews I decided to turn around a pay him another visit and give him a piece of my mind (in the most civil way). His better half was there and she was definitely his better half it seemed to me. Maybe she brings out the best in him and/​or maybe he’s just a coward. Whatever it is, they assured me it was a misunderstanding and he wasn’t racist. Maybe just discriminative against who he feels can and can not or perhaps will not pay for his work. He said he was an immigrant himself, tried to relate as far as accents and friends but I’m not an immigrant nor am I Mexican but I wasn’t there to start a war. I simply wanted to let him know it was wrong and I did feel better afterwards. He seemed entirely different to me the second time, a lot nicer and down to earth and I’m not sure if it was a show for his wife but I really don’t care. She did say he was anti social however there’s not many conclusions; either his apology was sincere or he was a coward to admit it, whichever is fine with me. I probably wouldn’t have said anything but all members of my family saw and felt criticized. People mistake being upfront with being irrational and out of place for standing up for yourself. There’s a difference between speaking your mind and causing a scene.

We were interested in a piece and asked a question. The owner was extremely rude and unprofessional. We left immediately. We do not give business to owners who do not know how to treat customers.
Update: Chris is clearly a very talented artist and his work is reasonably priced. He sincerely apologized to me about the incident. I believe everyone deserves a second chance. If I visit Solvang, I will stop by his gallery again.

Very approachable guy. Friendly and talented!
No, he is not racist! (another post) I am not «white» and he took time to answer all of my questions. He was friendly to my child too.
He took the time to explain his work and he didn’t mind a bit that I was asking very elementary questions. Thank you!
I will be looking forward to emails of his future work.

Jerks. Racist gallery. Discriminates if you are not white. Visited day after thanksgiving and the guy was on guard as if we were there to steal. I think u get the point.

Pavlov is a great guy, does wonderful art, & his shop/​gallery is simply marvelous, as well as a great bargain, in Solvang!
Pavlov walked out the back of the store, complete with a paint covered apron, to warmly greet us. He explained his art, how well he makes his handmade frames, & we had a really nice pleasant conversation. He is a warm, talented, honest, intelligent, & interesting young man. It was a pleasure to meet him & to purchase one of his smaller handmade framed prints, which was a bargain at about $ 110.
Pavlov has all kinds of his art around the gallery that range from the frugal unframed prints to larger more costly paintings that adored the wall.
He is somehow able to provide fine art at very reasonable prices.
I think this was one of the best highlights of visiting Solvang.
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The little shops that were near to Pavlov were far nice than those right on the much more touristy streets in Solvang.
My advise is not to bother with the tourist versions of «ethnic» food,
but stick with exploring the more quiet roads that are populated with really cool little shops, that either feature local art,
or unusual goodies like real imported wood Cuckoo-​Clocks.

As Edgar noted, a refreshing break from the candy shops and tourist trinkets. Chris’ work is refreshing and easy on the eyes. We found an original piece of his that both the wife and i agreed on at first sight. Chris is very personable and its nice to invest in good people. Next time your cruising down the 101, take an extra 30 minutes and swing by his Gallery in Solvang, well worth the stop. Buy one of his books if nothing else, his collection of images are quite unique.

We were in Solvang with several couples for wine tasting, shopping and great eating. I stopped into this gallery because our friends are art collectors and purchased paintings and prints from this gallery in the past and during this trip. I was very skeptical because I hate abstract art. Both my husband and I were shocked at what great stuff was in the gallery. We wound up buying two massive paintings and five framed prints. My only regret is that I did not buy more, but I will return in the near future to do so. The prices were great, and the owners are so helpful. Chris and Iris, the owners, delivered the paintings to my home in Encino for free. Both my husband and I are handicapped, and they even hung the art for us. We go to galleries and art shows often, and we rarely find anything worth buying. This gallery is a rare find and mandatory stop for anyone going to the area.

Beautiful art gallery! It is definitely a cool location worth checking out if you’re in the area.

We also stumbled on this place recently and was drawn by the interesting paintings. However, the owner’s attitude left much, much much to be desired. When we asked him for information on techinque, for example, he responded with «I don’t divulge my secrets»… givemeabreak here… to my eye, he’s using a knife technique (okay, so I paint a little, but don’t know everything…) — but what is so secret about that? The attitude was horrible and very arrogant.
Now to his defense, he may have potentially been put off since my friend was saying that his work looks alot like mine and he didn’t life that. I dunno.
Nonetheless, I would never consider giving my money to buy something from anybody that had such an attitude.

This place is awesome and totally unexpected in Solvang. Modern paintings with bright colors that are at the same time calming. The gallery owner, who is also an artist, was there when we were and my husband and I binged and ended up walking away with 5(!) paintings. Pavlov has some real talent and represents his cousin, who also had some nice work hung in the gallery. A must if you are in the area or if you are looking for fine art at fine prices.

Short Version: Nice stuff!
Long Version: This store was an unexpected find in the middle of tourist Solvang, with tourists running around trying to achieve a higher understanding of what it is to be Dutch. The art here is perfect, perfect for decorating a home in bright colors that are at the same time unobtrusive. They are nice and relaxing works that are not demanding, but do display a group of artist that do know what they are doing and are much more talented than a group of people with a hobby. The artists that are collected here all have a lifetime of training and are very serious about their work, and create pieces that everyone can enjoy. The chief artist and owner of the shop himself was there when I went, and was a really relaxed guy who was generous with his time in sharing his work without being pushy or needy about making a sale. If you’re in the market and in the neighborhood, check’em out.