Laundromat’s Awash With Art

Billed as the “world’s first combination Laundromat and art gallery,” Launderland, at 12505 S. Beach Blvd., is stuffed with more than 100 “thrift store” paintings and lithographs. As hokey as they come, the amateur scenes range from an all-blue lakeside with a pagoda to a flock of fierce-looking sea gulls, from fishermen at sunset to kids in yellow slickers.

Launderland owner Jerry Longeuay says there are enough works that “if you spend 30 seconds looking at each one, your washing and drying will be done.”

He purchased the art at garage sales and from “a grandmother down the street,” with the idea that it would appeal to adults and children tired of simply watching their clothes spin around. (On a recent Monday morning, however, the lone patron was engrossed in a Spanish-language program on TV).

The works are not for sale, Longeuay says, and since the Laundromat is self-service--with no attendant on the premises--he realizes that customers might walk off with their favorites. Unfazed, he has devised a monthly “art trivia” game about the collection with modest cash prizes mailed to winners ($1 for guessing three out of four queries; $5 and $25 for weekly and monthly drawings).

And, oh yes, it costs 75 cents for a large wash, 10 and 25 cents for a load of drying. Marked by a sign that simply reads “Coin Laundry,” Launderland is in a mini-mall at Beach Boulevard and Lampson Avenue and is open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily. (714) 897-7739.