My First Downtown Art Walk

And boy, do I feel like an idiot for waiting this long to actually go on one. On the second Thursday of every month, many of the art galleries in downtown participate in the Downtown Art Walk. By my count, since moving downtown, I've missed 16 downtown art walks. Now granted, last year I did so much traveling that I missed many of them because I was out of town. Anyway, enough whining...

I started the evening by wandering up Figueroa to 7+fig for the debut of their "Art Space". I have to say, I was let down. It's plainly obvious that they haven't been able to find a tenant for the space, so they decided to turn it into a showcase for art. Currently on display is a exhibition entitled Many Waters by artist Kyungmi Shin. As expected, every piece on display had some element of water involved, be it the collage from a third-world city in a tropical locale or video of a river cruise with lily-pads superimposed above the video. I'm a little surprised that they participated in the Art Walk since the venue is well off the path. In fact, if it wasn't just a little out of the way from home, I probably would not have visited.

My next stop was Weeneez at 5th and Spring. Every time I've been there, I've enjoyed their hot dogs, but this time I wanted to try a cheeseburger. Alas, earwax. Because it gets very crowded on Art Walk nights, they don't server burgers. I "settled" for an LA Hottie (grilled hot dog with chilli, cheese, peppers, and bacon) which was yummy. The restaurant also features a wall of terrific rock show posters. Sorry, no photos, because I did not feel comfortable taking photos inside. When I finished my dinner, I walked into the attached Julie Rico Gallery, which had an exhibition entitled Dreaming With Your Eyes Open with etchings by Rafael BuÒuel and paintings by Peggy Reavey.

After enjoyi9ng the exhibit, I decided to walk to the Museum of Neon Art (which used to be located across the street from my home). Unfortunately, I arrived too late. The museum had a special Valentine's Day Neon Cruise, and had closed early. (Either that, or they weren't open at all). My disappointment at missing the Neon was tempered by wandering down Broadway at the end of the evening.

Next stop was Crewest. they hosted what I thought was the best theme for the night -- Fatally Yours. It's described as a show featuring works by artists disheartened with Valentine's Day. Again, no photos, but all of the art work fit the theme to a tee. Keeping with the urban theme, my next stop was the Sphinx Studio Tattoo & Body Art Shop & Gallery. This was one of two venues where a live band was playing at its entrance. The band was decent, and the art on display inside was cool to look at.

I kept wandering down Main Street, stopping in at the Dale Youngman Gallery followed by the LAMP Art Project Gallery. The photo at the top of this post was taken outside of the LAMP Art Project Gallery.

My next stop was the corner of 5th and Main, where, outside of PHARMAKA, another band was playing. The band attracted a bit of attention. First a dancer...



And then, a couple of guys dressed for the day:



Cupid and Pan seemed to hang around the area, as they posed for photos outside of Bert Green Fine Art:





The Bert Green had a display by 3 sculptors. I enjoy looking at 3-D art (particularly when its in motion), since, from different angles, you'll see different details. Still, the most unusual display I saw during the night was next door to the Bert Green at a party rental space:



If you want to see what's decorating the ceiling, click here. As I said, definitely unusual. After leaving the space, I walked back to Spring St. and on to the 626 Art Gallery (sorry Stitch fans, but it's named for it's address, not a cuddly blue alien, though I did see a not so cuddly alien and a cuddly plush pink lion during the walk) Anyway, the exhibit (called Colors To Life Beautiful) of art inspired by The Color Purple was my favorite for the evening.

With that, I needed to head back home. If I didn't have work the next morning, I would have stayed longer. (Of course, I didn't sleep much, because I spent time catching up with Survivor and Lost and then edited the photos) On my way home, I stopped outside several of the Broadway theatres to get video of their signs:

The Palace:



The Los Angeles:



And finally, The Orpheum:



So, will I return to Art Walk? Absolutely! The next one is on Thursday, March 13. If you've never attended, you should. I have to wonder if anyone will dress up as Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, or Brutus.

Anyway, for all of my photos from the evening, check out my flikr set for the night.