(Above: Community Sunset in Eugene, mural by Teak/Pattrick Price, on view at 1059 Willamette St.)

Edited by Randi Bjornstad

This December, the first Friday of the month is also the first day of the month, so downtown Eugene’s First Friday ArtWalk will be here before you know it.

As usual, a good place to start is at the Farmers Market Pavilion at 85 E. 8th Ave., where the map of locations onfor the self-guided December ArtWalk can be picked up, and where some preliminary shopping can be done at the monthly Artist Marketplace before heading out to all the other galleries and shops that will be open from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. The Pavilion also will be the place to hear and dance to music by the Acoustic Sugar Beets, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Dec. 1 also is known as World AIDS Day, and HIV Alliance and Eugene PRIDE have put together a day’s worth of events to commemorate this important effort toward achieving global health. From 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Farmer’s Market Pavilion, the public can participate in a community sewing circle to help create a new Pride flag, following the theft of a cutaway portion of the original Gilbert Baker Pride Flag following this year’s Pride Festival. No sewing experience is needed to take part in the sewing project. Additional activities will include free onsite testing, remembrance presentations, and a candlelight walk around the park blocks. See more information at hivalliance.org/events or eugenepride.org/blog.

Those who need a ride to the ArtWalk can download a free LTD bus pass on the Lane Arts Council’s website at lanearts.org on the day of the event.

The following galleries and businesses will be open during the Dec. 1 First Friday ArtWalk from 5:3o p.m. to 8 p.m. unless noted otherwise in the following alphabetical listing:

Art with Alejandro (Second floor, 5th Street Public Market, 246 E. 5th Ave., Suite 224) — Winter exhibit featuring intuitive nature art by Sammy Lee and surreal visions by Ivan Beauvalet, plus new pieces by Paisley Mae and Alejandro Sarmiento. Proceeds of work by artists Sophie Navarro and Chelsea Beaudrie support a local cancer fundraiser.

ArtCity Studios on Broadway (160 E Broadway, basement level) — Holiday-themed handcrafted cards by members of  Eugene Printmakers.

Beaudet Gallery at 5th St. Makers Row (590 Pearl St, Suite 106) — Featuring  jewelry and loose stones made with December’s birthstones, tanzanite and turquoise.

Broadway Commerce Center (44 W. Broadway) — WheelHaus Arts’  Sixth Annual Winter Showcase of art by students ages 4-19 years; live music and a reception at 7 p.m.

Bumble Boutique and High St. Tonics (233 W. 5th Ave.) — Collection of fiber art by Becky Fay, titled Somatic Hue, reflecting meditation and creation during and since the pandemic.

Eugene Public Library (100 W. 10th Ave., second-floor Newspapers and Magazines Room)  — Marilyn Kent’s Wild Ideas, an exhibit of paintings, collages and found object sculptures. Meet the artist 5-6 p.m. and 7-8 p.m. with music 6-7 p.m. by West Winds Flute Choir featuring music ranging from Beethoven to ragtime.

Flux Crystals (280 W. Broadway) — Allegorical and symbolic paintings by Heather Sterling-Minder’s, often portraying the spirit and significance of friends or family members.

FUSE Jewelry Collective (112 E. 13th Ave.) — A place for jewelry lovers to learn, shop, create, and connect, featuring a showroom with work by local jewelry designers, plus live music by cellist Ben Hamilton, metalsmithing demonstrations by Una Barrett, and studio tours, and a raffle for a free metalsmithing class.

Good Creative Design (942 Olive St.) — Original art spanning generations of creativity from across the globe, from Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Eugene, to Taiwan, Japan, and across Europe, including watercolor from real life, abstract illustration, laser-cut wood designs, and mixed media..

Karin Clarke Gallery (760 Willamette St.) —  Solo show of large-scale oil paintings by Eugene artist Adam Grosowsky, titled Snow in Jerusalem, featuring works relating to the Middle East, as well as his characteristic figurative and landscape works; reception with the artist from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Mosaic Fair Trade Collection (28 E. Broadway) — Handmade, ethically sourced homewares, clothing, accessories, and unique gifts from around the world.

Museum of Techno Art (132 E. Broadway, Suite 212) — New nonprofit exhibition space for both technologically themed art and hi-tech industrial products in the historic Miner Building, with a lobby exhibition area generously provided by the owners.

One Wall Gallery at Epic Seconds (30 E. 11th Ave.) — Don Olsen’s Memory of Mud works acrylic canvases back to front and back again, building landscapes from memory and intuition, restructuring elements of natural history and pieces of Pacific Northwest history with the underlying question, “What does it mean to be from a place?”

Art by Jan Lintz, including It’s Not That Complicated, is on display at the Robert Cecil Salon

OSLP Arts & Culture Center (110 E. 11th Ave., Suite C) — Winter Bazaar items include a variety of art, crafts, ornaments, and gifts for sale, created by local artists from the community as well as participants from OSLP studio classes.

Robert Cecil Salon (545 Willamette St.) — New ArtWalk venue features Balance, a solo show of abstract oil and cold-wax paintings by artist Jan Lintz. Instagram: @Jan_Lintz_Art

Starlight Lounge (830 Olive St.) — Shadowfox presents subversive animal portraits and landscapes exploring the ubiquitous geometry of creation, dialogue between the organic and the geometric, natural and modern, translating the essence of forests and wildlife. Ages 21+.

The New Zone Gallery (110 E. 11th Ave.) — Wide variety of art handcrafted by New Zone’s local artist members, many of them with reused and repurposed materials.

City of Eugene’s Urban Canvas Murals program

  •  945 Olive St. Alley — Snake in the Grass, by Liza Mana Burns and I Got You Something by Erick Wonderly Varela
  • 941 and 957 Willamette St. Alley — Murals by Wayde Love and Mural Mice Universal
  •  1059 Willamette St. — Community Sunset in Eugene, by Teak/Pattrick Price

 

Windowfront Exhibitions (empty storefronts become galleries)

  • 824 Charnelton St. — When It Rains, oil-on-canvas paintings by Yuruhary Gallardo-Garcia depict nature as if it was perceived by a child playing outside in the rain when all is muddy, when all life is drinking and thriving in the backyard. If you pay attention and look closely, nature doesn’t ever leave you alone; it’s always there, humming, chanting, growing.
  • 260 W. Broadway — The Veil, sculptures made of chicken wire by Kimberly Strohman to bring attention to lives impacted by pregnancy and infant loss, honoring infants who taught love and grief in the same short breath.

Additional participating locations —

  • Allies LLC (200 E. 11th Ave., Suite 130)
  • Area 51 Piercing (505 Willamette St, Suite 100)
  • Books With Pictures Eugene (99-C W. Broadway C)
  • J. Scott Cellars on 5th Tasting Room (207 E 5th Ave, Suite 105)

December First Friday ArtWalk Sponsor: Eugene Ballet, presenting The Nutcracker Dec. 21-26 at the Hult Center for the Performing Arts, with live music by Orchestra Next. Information and tickets at eugeneballet.org or hultcenter.org

About Lane Arts Council

Lane Arts Council is a nonprofit organization that works to cultivate strong and creative arts communities throughout Lane County by providing high-quality arts experiences, engaging people of all ages in arts education, and encouraging artistic endeavors.