Vancouver’s First Friday is always a pleasure. When we had North Bank Artists Gallery, of course, we always participated in First Friday. Now that it has closed, being among those walking through the galleries is like visiting old friends. We saw many of the same people who most often frequent the gallery walks. But this trip had a bonus.
My neighbor, Anne John, is a wonderful artist who has painted for more than 20 years. This Friday, she had a retrospective show at a new gallery in town, Art at the Cave. And, although I’ve always loved her art, for the first time I simply had to have a piece of her work. Now, if I bought every piece of art I loved, I would have to have more than two homes to display it all. So, I limit myself to only buying art that I have to have. I still have too much, but there it is.
So this painting is called Fog Moon. It’s huge: 60″ x 60″. Anne says it was inspired by a photo she took last summer as she sat on her deck when we were having so many forest fires. There was a tree in her backyard framed by an orange haze. It’s really moving to me. It was the only painting she did in 2018, and I have it. I have no idea where I’ll hang it, we have so much art. We really have to rotate what we have to display it all, so I have to put a little thought into this.
I really appreciate our First Friday gallery nights here in Vancouver. Portland has First Thursdays, but traffic makes it tricky to get to Portland, so it’s a blessing to have an art scene here. There are no more than 10 (probably closer to seven) galleries in the area. One is also a wine bar, another is a florist studio and yet another is a framing business. But the artists who are represented are terrific.
You can make a night out of a First Friday. When we first opened the North Bank Artists Gallery on Main Street, there wasn’t much there. Now there are so many nice restaurants within walking distance that you can have a lovely evening out. A little wine, a little art talk, a little shopping and then dinner.
For more information on First Friday, visit Vancouver Downtown Association (although not all galleries are on it’s hot sheet!).
rebeccaartist 