Art After Dark unites local businesses, artists and patrons
On the first Friday of every month, a number of downtown shops are transformed into galleries of exclusively local art for Arts Obispo’s Art After Dark. Tigerlily Salon and Spa (above) served a cake shaped and decorated to look like a human heart this past Friday. -Photo by David Jang/Mustang Daily
Well, at least for one night a month. Assets is one of more than 20 shops, cafés, salons and studios that are transformed into art galleries the first Friday of every month at Arts Obispo’s not-so-secret “Art After Dark” in downtown San Luis Obispo.
During Friday’s free event, people trickled in and out of the modified galleries, where they were served snacks, drinks and a plethora of art to look at as they meandered through downtown.
At Assets, tucked in an alleyway behind Monterey Street, the airy room’s urban mirrored and brick walls were decorated with the works of Dave Johnson, a photographer local to San Luis Obispo. The gallery, a collection of Johnson’s unique “urbex photography” of “abandoned, decayed” urban structures, was a stark contrast to the ballet barres and rolled-up yoga mats on the light wooden floors, but owner Julia Pickslay said she “loved” having her studio be a part of Art After Dark.
“I have a fitness studio here, but these walls were made for art,” Pickslay said. “It feels really good.”
The monthly event not only transformed studios, but also drew crowds into shops that they may not usually decide to explore, such as a jewelry store.
“I would never come in here on a normal day,” business administration senior Natalie Dinges said at the Kevin Main Jewelry’s Mardi Gras-themed exhibit. “I don’t need an engagement ring. (Art After Dark) is bringing me to places I’ve never been to before.”
Dinges said Art After Dark “is a neat opportunity” to “get everyone talking and feeling like a more close-knit community.” Community was a major theme at Friday’s event, as many of the featured artists were local to the Central Coast. Bello Mundo Cafe featured local artist Jordan Quintero’s latest collection of oil paintings called “Trying To Be A Tree.”Quintero said participating in Art After Dark was a way to “experience, reach out and see what the community here is all about.”The trees and landscapes in Quintero’s work, which he called “a blend of abstraction and figurative surrealism,” acted as “a homage to the Central Coast.”“I wanted to share my work with the people around here,” Quintero said.
