11 hours of Artwalk
By Wade Kwon
Work by Jill Marlar
Artwalk 2009 promises to be wet and wild. (It just had to rain this weekend, didn’t it?)
The free downtown event runs from 5 to 10 tonight and noon to 6 p.m. Saturday. So what are you going to do with those 11 hours?
Our marathon last-minute itinerary …
Hour 1: Don’t know where to start? How about Dave West’s picks for Artwalk, including perennial faves Charles Buchanan, Jill Marlar and Véronique Vanblaere and newcomer Abi Wright? Wait, Dave who?
Hour 2: Speaking of our friend, Buchanan promises no prints over $50, and some as low as $18. Wow!
Hour 3: It’s the 7 o’clock dinner hour, so grab a bite. Black and White has a guide to the area restaurants and bars ready for hungry patrons.
Hour 4: Drop by Greencup Books for the return of editor Todd Dills (now a Nashvillian) for the 2nd Hand event, “Extraordinary Rendition.” The reading will feature Dills, Jim Murphy, Nadria Tucker, Soapy Jones and Meeksworth. Free, but donations accepted.
Hour 5: Need more recommendations? Birmingham Weekly has picks from A to … W.
Hour 6: It’s noon Saturday! Stake out a spot at the Kidzone, behind Space One Eleven [map]. Children can make masks, tiles, murals and glasses (eyeglasses, not drinking glasses) with teachers and artists, and also have their faces painted (the kids, not the teachers or the— well, you get the idea.
Work by Nada Boner
Hour 7: So who should you see this afternoon? Deep Fried Kudzu recommends Nada Boner, Liesa Cole, Tony Rodio, Joe Minter, John Lytle Wilson, Don Stewart and Charles Buchanan. Get moving!
Hour 8: Become a video star. The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham wants to capture your vision of this city’s bright future on video, so stop by the booth [map] on Saturday.
Hour 9: Say hi to your friends. It’s easy to do while wandering First Avenue North as 10,000 other art fans stream by. (Or just follow along on Twitter …)
Work by Stephen Smith
Hour 10: Check out recommended artists like Salty ’Ham Cartooneesta Stephen Smith and painter Kate Merritt Davis.
Hour 11: Thank a volunteer. Without them, events like Artwalk don’t happen. (Of course, you can thank them any hour and every hour.)
