2008 Woodie Awards
Albany art on display downtown
1st Friday exposes Albany art scene
Alyia Allen
Issue date: 12/5/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
Around the Capital Region there seems to be a bright spot light placed on local artist. For Troy it is called Troy Night Out, in Schenectady it is Art Night, but here in Albany we call it First Friday.
On the first Friday of every month the crowd down on Lark Street grows, as more people venture out to get a taste of local Albany art. Essentially this gallery tour was created by the President of the Lark Street Business Improvement District, Michael Wiedrich who saw an opportunity to make the flourishing underground art environment in Albany visible. The marrying of wine, art, and the slight chill of the evening air around five pm may just be the breath of fresh air that the Art scene in Albany needed.
"First Friday" says Wiedrich "is a way to connect downtown Albany and uptown Albany through Lark Street." As a mass venue First Friday has grown from just three galleries in the first year that it started to 30 including museums like the Albany Institute of History and Art and the New York State Museum. There are also many local galleries involved, including The Upstate Artist Guild, The Capital District of Ideas, Ballingers, and Elissa Halloran Designs.
With such a variety of venues the type of art work can range from what Wiedrich calls the "classical" in the Museums to the more "contemporary and raw" in the smaller galleries, and also a vast improvement in the quality of art presented.
From five to nine pm each gallery puts on their own show and some like in the museums also have a music venue available. There is even a trolley that runs from Lark Street to the galleries that are stationed in downtown Albany. And this December 7, 2007 will mark the last First Friday of this year in which the UAG is hosting a special Seven by Five fundraiser for next year's First Fridays.
"Our goal for the New Year is just to keep growing, and getting more people to come, it's free" says Wiedrich.
On the first Friday of every month the crowd down on Lark Street grows, as more people venture out to get a taste of local Albany art. Essentially this gallery tour was created by the President of the Lark Street Business Improvement District, Michael Wiedrich who saw an opportunity to make the flourishing underground art environment in Albany visible. The marrying of wine, art, and the slight chill of the evening air around five pm may just be the breath of fresh air that the Art scene in Albany needed.
"First Friday" says Wiedrich "is a way to connect downtown Albany and uptown Albany through Lark Street." As a mass venue First Friday has grown from just three galleries in the first year that it started to 30 including museums like the Albany Institute of History and Art and the New York State Museum. There are also many local galleries involved, including The Upstate Artist Guild, The Capital District of Ideas, Ballingers, and Elissa Halloran Designs.
With such a variety of venues the type of art work can range from what Wiedrich calls the "classical" in the Museums to the more "contemporary and raw" in the smaller galleries, and also a vast improvement in the quality of art presented.
From five to nine pm each gallery puts on their own show and some like in the museums also have a music venue available. There is even a trolley that runs from Lark Street to the galleries that are stationed in downtown Albany. And this December 7, 2007 will mark the last First Friday of this year in which the UAG is hosting a special Seven by Five fundraiser for next year's First Fridays.
"Our goal for the New Year is just to keep growing, and getting more people to come, it's free" says Wiedrich.
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