Valley House Gallery & Sculpture Garden

There are good reasons Valley House Gallery and its serene 5-acre sculpture garden are in North Dallas, far removed from most of Dallas' visual art action.

For one, the property was bought by artist Donald Vogel and his wife, Margaret, in 1954, partly as a rural, secluded place for Donald to paint, and partly as land for the family to grow into as the city grew. And both indeed grew: Dallas now extends several miles to the north, yet the location, about a mile east of Preston Road just north of LBJ Freeway, still evokes quaintness and solitude.

Dallas elite routinely flock to the gallery's events; in fact, current owners Kevin (Donald's son) and Cheryl Vogel have to hire Dallas police most of the time to coordinate parking. Donald and Margaret also opened the Betty McLean Gallery, the city's first private modern fine art gallery, in 1951.

Since 1978, Kevin and Cheryl have continued the patriarch's legacy by staying active in the art scene (they serve on the board of the Dallas Visual Art Center, among other posts) and keeping Valley House humming with shows featuring impressive regional and international artists living and deceased, with an emphasis on Texas Regionalist art, conservative Texas figurative art and the occasional international superstar.

Two other accomplishments of note: Valley House, which also curates museum shows, was the first gallery in the southwest to be invited to join the the Art Dealers Association of America in 1964, and the property was recently chosen one of the 50 most significant houses in Dallas.

– MIKE DANIEL