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<\/p>\nThe St. Petersburg Arts Alliance began the city\u2019s Second Saturday ArtWalk soon after the organization came into being in 2012.<\/p>\n
Now, as then, it\u2019s a self-guided tour of artist studios and galleries in downtown and midtown, across several districts. Often with welcoming receptions and special guests.<\/p>\n
These days, however, there are more districts (seven) and more studios and galleries (around 40, depending on who\u2019s participating each month) than existed in 2013.<\/p>\n
The Second Saturday Artwalk, said Arts Alliance executive director Helen French, has become \u201ca crucial part of our infrastructure as far as creating an arts economy and ecosystem.\u201d An estimated 3,000 people attend ArtWalk each month.<\/p>\n
Ahead of this Saturday\u2019s edition (5 to 9 p.m.), French discussed the growing popularity and inevitable expansion of ArtWalk, one of the nonprofit Arts Alliance\u2019s key programs alongside the SHINE Mural Festival, Arts for A Complete Education and the Arts Business Academy.<\/p>\n
Doors will be open Saturday in the Central Arts District, Grand Central District, Warehouse Arts District, Uptown Arts District, Deuces Live District, EDGE District and Waterfront Arts District.<\/p>\n
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Running every Second Saturday from 6-10 p.m., the Warehouse Arts District Association trolley loops every 30 minutes through the Warehouse Arts District with stops at WADA, Morean Center forClay, FloridaRAMA, Duncan McClellan Gallery, Five Deuces and more. Photo: Star Trolley.<\/p>\n
At a recent artist meet-up, French said, she heard someone say they plan their visits to St. Petersburg around ArtWalk, \u201cso they can make a whole day of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Still, she explained, \u201cWe have a very invested and savvy and smart arts community and arts leaders. We\u2019re in conversations about how to change ArtWalk \u2013 how do we respond to the moment?<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s Saturdays, it\u2019s from 5 to 9. There\u2019s something to be said about consistency and tradition; is there a need to do something different, or is it doing its job? Those are definitely discussions that we\u2019re having.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lisa Lippincott, director of Soft Water Studio in the Warehouse Arts District, said ArtWalk days are vibrant and busy days.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m always amazed at how many people we get into during ArtWalk who have never been in to the gallery before,\u201d Lippincott revealed. \u201cI would think at this point that most people who are on ArtWalk would be repeat visitors, but it is still a way for people to get out and get acquainted with the arts businesses that are out there.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes they buy things, sometimes they circle back and buy things later, but it\u2019s definitely getting people out.\u201d<\/p>\n
For French and her team, there will always be room to grow. Her most recent idea (it\u2019s in discussions) is to turn the event\u2019s name into a verb \u2013 in other words, with the catchphrase \u201cHow do YOU ArtWalk?\u201d<\/p>\n
Because it\u2019s difficult, if not impossible, to see everything in a single day, she\u2019s suggesting a method of self-curation:<\/p>\n
\u201cOn some weekends,\u201d French said, \u201cmy ArtWalk looks like a date night, and I\u2019ll pick three or four places to go specifically, because I know something is opening, or just opened the night before.<\/p>\n
\u201cOther times, if I want my kids exposed to something, I will make a different choice and go somewhere else where I know it\u2019s maybe a little more kid-friendly. Or maybe my kid\u2019s art is in a school show at the Morean. So I will make it a kid experience.\u201d<\/p>\n
The point, she made clear, would be \u201cto help our community understand how they can ArtWalk. Where they can go, who\u2019s open, how to plan your time. Get immersed in something. Go and visit a place that you\u2019ve never been before, or go to your favorite stomping ground first.\u201d<\/p>\n