Friday night was the Second Annual ‘Tis the Secor Show at the Secor Building downtown. Highlights included an exhibit of works from 40+ local artists, open studios and live music.

One of my favorite pieces was front and center in the lobby—a portrait by Richard Reed of his friend Marty.

It’s beautifully done.

There was live music in the lobby including Toledo’s best experimental group, KDB.

After leaving the Secor show we met up with friends for drinks at Wesley’s in uptown. It’s a sure bet on Friday nights and features some of my favorite pro-Toledo decor, including the infamous “You Will Do Better in Toledo” sign, the original of which is sadly long gone.

We finished things up with a nightcap at The Attic on Adams—the new hotspot above Manos. Hope to see you there soon!

The Secor Building | 425 Jefferson St @ Superior | Downtown

KBD | myspace.com/kbdtoledo

Wesley’s | 1201 Adams Street | 419-255-3333‎

The Attic on Adams | 1701 Adams St. | 419-243-5350

On Saturday morning we drove down to Bowling Green for the Black Swamp Arts Festival. BG has one of the cutest Main Streets ever. 

There were quite a few booths… most being more craft than art, but regardless there was plenty to see. One surprisingly cute booth had little animals and creatures formed of everyday rope.

We also spent some time checking out the shows at the electronic stage. Above is HMNLCD.

The Wookalar (from Wicked Lung and the Wookalar of Columbus) played. See above. Wicked Lung did a set too.

We made sure to catch the Secret Swords show before leaving the festival.

Cheers—and thanks for putting up with the poor video quality!

Black Swamp Arts Festival | Bowling Green, OH

Last night saw the 8th Meet & Greet event merge with the Arts Zone Third Thursday Art Walk. There was a bus loop going between aprox. 8 different stops, including the Parkwood Gallery, Collingwood Arts Center, UT’s Center for the Arts, and the Toledo Repertoire Theatre. Eleven galleries were open (to walk or bus to) and we started with Space 237 which had the Toledo AIGA’s “Design What?” show up.

We choose to ride our bikes rather than take the bus, which was a lot of fun and J. joined us. Biking downtown at night was pretty great with little-to-no traffic and breezy weather.

We ran into the great Toledo ambassador, John Henry Fullen at Erie Street Market. He was hosting 2 newcomers to Toledo, Kalpak and Lars (L to R. Kalpak, Jody, John Henry, Lars).

20 North is showing a tribute/retrospective to Joe Ann Cousino right now and I totally recommend you check it out. There is some great sculpture, photos, and news clippings exhibited.

D. got a treat when walking into the Blue Heron Gallery (@ The Oliver House). A watercolor in the hallway clearly showed his grandmother’s house/spa in Grand Rapids, The Kerr House. It was obviously before the renovations that happened in the late 70s. The artist, Jim Brower, was in attendance and D. was happy to meet him. His watercolors will be showing through September 29th.

Before making our way to the after party at The Blarney, we strolled down to the Morris Street Studios. There was live music outside the studio and also at the Blarney, which was packed full of people inside and out. Again, a great night out in Downtown Toledo.

Third Thursday Arts Walks | Every third Thursday through October | Live Work Create Toledo Arts Zone

Meet & Greets | Twice a year | Various locations in Toledo

We are having some carpentry work done on the exterior of the house… trim, wood shingles, porch spindles.  We visited Architectural Artifacts, housing remnants of homes past, to check out their collection of spindles.

The second floor (where we found a new “old” door a few weeks ago) reminds me of a scene in Logan’s Run. Remember when they found the old man? Yes, that one.

There are some severely expensive objects for sale in the huge expanse of a warehouse, but there are some very fine cats to pet while you are browsing. Not that the two cancel each other out…

Architectural Artifacts | 20 S Ontario St | Downtown | (419) 243-6916

It rained on and off most of the day, but a couple of raincoats and a dash of determination remedied that. We got breakfast (or nachos for me) at the Dorr Street Cafe, then scored a great parking spot for the festival. I recognized many of the artists and crafts-folk from last year. In fact, we ended up leaving with a bench and basket from the same gentleman who sold us a table the year before.

Look at that crazy monkey atop the camel, atop the chaise. Whaaaat!

Toledo Botanical Garden | 5403 Elmer Dr. | (419) 936-2986

There is a great installation at the Secor Gallery right now (through July 12th). The Secor Gallery artists paired up with artists from the Detroit Industrial Projects to create several works within the vast space.

The show invokes “the connectivity between development and re-urbanism occurring in both Detroit and Toledo”… and presents work by Kevin Beasley, Elizabeth Bernblum, Jada Bowden, Robert Garcia, Doug Kampfer, Nate Masternack, Jody Russ, Salvatore Schiciano, Jeanette Strezinski, and Andrew Thompson.

The opening was Saturday night with The Drawers playing in the lobby. David Lynch’s Eraserhead was playing on a backdrop behind them, which I hadn’t seen since I was in high school.

There happened to be a Mud Hens game going on so a few of us stepped around the corner to watch the fireworks at the end of the game. The night was capped off with an after-party at Mickey Finns. It was packed with people, many I hadn’t seen in quite a while, and bands playing both inside and on the back patio.

Secor Building and Artist Studios | 425 Jefferson Ave. | (419) 450 3683

I stopped by the Arts Commission building today and got a chance to view the current show at the Parkwood Gallery. I fell in love with Michael Arrigo’s work. His fantastic paintings are up along with some great sculpture by Joe Meiser. 

The show is up through June 20th. 

Parkwood Gallery (ACGT) | 1838 Parkwood Ave, Suite 120 | 8:30 AM - 4:30 PM | 419-254-ARTS (2787) 

I’m sorry to have been gone for the week but it’s much colder here right now than I’d like, so maybe that worked out for the best. Looking at the forecast I see the next few days won’t be much warmer. Rather than spending free time outdoors this weekend, I might re-watch “Two Toledos”—a documentary by Jacob David and Joel Washing.

Toledo, Spain and Toledo, Ohio were the very first Sister Cities relationship in the world (1931). Both cities host thriving arts communities. “Two Toledos” tells the stories of contemporary artists living in both Toledos, highlighting well-known locals Richard Reid, Ann Tubbs, Robert Garcia and others.

Learn more about this great documentary and score a copy at TwoToledos.com.

One of the first events I attended after moving to Toledo was the Meet & Greet 2. I had no choice; my husband helped organize it. He later told me that he might feel guilty in some way if I didn’t enjoy Toledo and that prompted him to get more involved in the arts community. Sweet, right?

It’s been many Meet & Greets later and I’ve meet some really great people at these events. They happen about twice a year, with a main hub location and several area galleries connected by a bus loop. It’s presented by the Arts Commission and staffed by volunteers. Of course it’s free… and so are the drinks (at least at the main hub). Meet & Greet 7 was in the Davis Building last Friday and it was just as fun as any of the previous M&Gs with live music and a bunch of new faces. 

Pictured above are Michael Moriarty (L), owner of the Davis Building and Marc Folk (R), Executive Director of the Arts Commission.

Bookmark CallingAllCreatives.com and look out for the next event.