Ocean Gallery - Ocean City, Maryland
Posted by: flyingmoose
N 38° 19.996 W 075° 05.040
18S E 492658 N 4242796
A strange gallery located in downtown Ocean City.
Waymark Code: WM133KE
Location: Maryland, United States
Date Posted: 09/08/2020
Views: 3
"Ocean Gallery has many claims to fame, among them being 1.) It is the only recycled building in Ocean City. 2.) It is the only building with its own Batmobile, at least within a hundred-mile radius (and certainly the only Batmobile that’s decorated with a keyboard, a hairdryer and other household items), and 3.) It is the only building who’s tuxedo-clad owner built a Titanic car for $28 and promptly sank it to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.
Part of Ocean Gallery’s oddness stems from these claims to fame, but it’s also odd because it’s an art gallery that’s survived on a beachside Boardwalk for over 50 years.
It’s odd because it’s one thing in town that almost everyone can agree on, a major accomplishment in itself. Aside from the errant out-of-towner clamoring “eyesore!,” Ocean Gallery is very much a beloved staple of the Ocean City Boardwalk, and has been for decades.
Kids who came to Ocean City with their families and had their picture taken in front of the Batmobile now bring their own families and recreate the picture 20 years later. And when the roar of its engine is heard from the other end of the Boardwalk, those in the know don’t wince at the Batmobile’s noise (at least, not all of the time) — they think about the crazy car and smile.
It’s an odd place, sure, but to write off Ocean Gallery as another strange staple of the Boardwalk, a crazy-but-lovable Uncle of the Boardwalk family, underscores the resiliency of the place, its employees and especially its owner, Joe KroArt. As KroArt said, the survival rate for new businesses isn’t high. In the art world, it’s microscopic. Ocean Gallery has weathered many storms, literally and figuratively, for half a century, and in 2018, it’s still standing loud, covered in neon paint and knick knacks, and proud. " - (
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