Art and community were the focus as local artists gathered at Fullerton Pop Art, an art walk event hosted in downtown Fullerton Friday, March 6.
The second event organized by the Fullerton Art Coalition saw five artist-vendors showcase their work. A range of mediums were on display at individual vendors’ tables, including jewelry, illustration, incense formulation and taxidermy.
Attendance at the event’s beginning was somewhat sparse, picking up as the night went on, in conjunction with live music performances at the Night Owl Café. The atmosphere was relaxed, as vendors got up from their tables to converse with one another while other attendees would explore the others.
Artists set up their tables behind three Fullerton businesses: the Night Owl Café, Jaxon’s Chix Tenders/Barrel & Stave Pour House and vintage clothing store Retropolis. The rear entrances of these businesses were left open to allow interested passerby to circulate between the businesses and the event.
Organizer Lir Cook credited the ongoing collaborations with local businesses for enabling such artwalk events.
“Martin from Retropolis, obviously, is one of them. Sean from Barrel and Stave, Joe from Night Owl. They’re all a part of it,” Cook said. “If it wasn’t for them allowing the space, we couldn’t do this.”
Cook also spoke to the need for community between artists as an important drive for the event.
“I just always want to help other artists find their space to feel comfortable or to network. I’m really big on networking,” Cook said. “I like to bring all types of artists together.”
Other artists present also felt a connection with fellow creative personalities. Cat Doss-Alt, a painter who attended the event, looks forward to art walks as a place where she can meet diverse personalities.
“I like to see all kinds of people. I like to see families, I like to see young people, I like to see seniors. Anyone who wants to come,” Doss-Alt said. “I love to see the Fullerton locals especially.”
Doss-Alt sees these events as opportunities to meet individual craftmakers, with small crafts like the ones Fullerton Pop Art focuses on being her favorites. She is also longtime friends with Fernanda Michelle Chaney, co-organizer of Fullerton Pop Art alongside Cook, and found out about the event through Chaney.
In Chaney’s view, the other benefit of an art walk event is giving artists a chance to showcase their work to each other and the wider community.
“Our objective is for artists to get to show off their work, exhibit it to others that haven’t got the opportunity to see it before,” Chaney said. “And to just give college students, university students — it doesn’t even matter the age — just give them that experience and that welcoming that they’re able to exhibit work.”
Chaney’s experience with attending and planning art walks spans the breadth of Orange County: from Santa Ana to Huntington Beach, Anaheim and her hometown of Fullerton.
Having graduated from Cal State Fullerton in 2023 with her bachelor’s degree in art, she says her desire to bring artists together was present even during her time as a student, when she invited her peers to other art walk events.
Connections, according to Chaney, are not just the goal, but also the basis of planning art walks. Relationships with artists and local businesses allow for the word to be spread and for access to venues.
The next art walk held by Fullerton Art Coalition is slated for Friday, April 3, at Casa 723. The venue is expected to host 20 vendors and three additional artists.