Somethings have taken longer to return from the pandemic than others. After a four-year gap, Art All Night finally returned this June. Sure, they tried to hold a virtual exhibit one year, but it wasn't the same. Then they hired a new director in June 2022, making that year impossible to pull off. Last year the new director still wasn't ready, or maybe there were things happening behind the scenes I was not privy to knowing about. It truly doesn't matter.
Part of the issue was probably related to the 2018 event when gunfire erupted. It was the first time any violence had happened at the event, but it still shook everyone to the core. The event returned in 2019 with increased security, and being shut down in the wee hours for safety. I'm surprised I didn't blog about it, but looking at what I did write about, I was so focused on my five-week trip to Israel I didn't take the time to write about it. We did not display art that year, or in 2018.
On the positive, the new venue has lots of convenient parking. It is located near downtown. Art All Night teamed up with the local restaurants (and Classics Books) to spread the foot traffic beyond the art show. Unfortunately there was a massive thunderstorm the night of the event which dampened my desire to stretch beyond the theater.
Prior to the 2018 shooting, the exhibit was run the same way. Artwork was dropped off the day before at the venue. Tags were created on the spot. Stickers were put on the back of our drivers' licenses to be used at pick up to prove it was our work. (Often those stickers stayed on our licenses until the following year, sort of as a badge of honor.) Volunteers ran the pieces to the back and chaotically hung the pieces on walls created specifically for the event, walls that were falling apart after a decade of use and (likely) poor storage. The next day we would tear through the rows hunting for our pieces. Sometimes they would be near each other, but most of the time they were not even though we dropped them off at the same time.
I past years the pop up gallery was open from 3 pm Saturday to 3 pm Sunday. We often returned a couple of times, always seeing different friends, and even noticing different pieces. For me what made it special was seeing a preschooler's masterpiece hung alongside a professional artist's work with the same level of respect and appreciation. Often the preschooler's work was listed as NSF (not for sale) or with a price tag topping seven figures. The professional artist priced theirs at a more affordable rate, though still often more than we wanted to pay.
There were other changes this year. It was only open from 3 pm to midnight, and again from 6 am to 3 pm. With a virtual show online from midnight to six (which I slept through). All of the art can still be seen on their online gallery. As in past years, they had bands performing, but in the smaller space the music was overpowering. This year they added some workshops and panel discussions in a different part of the building. The artwork was hung in the ballroom on 11 six-sided panels newly created for this year's event. Artists had to register their artwork about a week in advance and were given instructions for dropping it off. The extra hoop discouraged me from participating. I tried to encourage Ashley to show off a piece, but she has been busy and did not get around to it. She also did not have time to see the artwork.
Fearing the timing would not work out if I waited for Don, I went by myself not long after it opened. As I type this, I realize this is the first time I have gone alone, part of which is probably because I felt safer going to the new site.
I immediately bumped into Jaclyn of Trenton Sk8s fame who was walking around with her daughter. Purely by luck I was there between bands so I could enjoy the artwork. Don and I returned that night when the loudest band of the event was wrapping up (according to Chebra who was in charge of tech for the event). Don didn't even last a step before having to vacate the building. We set our alarms and returned at 7 am before the next bands started to play.
This year they had over 300 pieces of art, with lots of room for more art. I don't know how many they had in past years, but I would guess at least 1,000. I have not seen other stats. The kindest words I can use are I'm glad they are back, and this was a rebuilding year. I want them to succeed. I want them to thrive.
May next year be even bigger and better.
May we once again participate as artists.
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