First Friday Art Walk – May 5, 2023

Margaret Millmore | Posted on May 2, 2023 |

Winslow Way and surrounding area, Downtown Bainbridge Island
First Friday of every month, 6 to 8 PM

Spend an evening experiencing all that downtown Bainbridge has to offer. Many galleries, shops and businesses will be participating this month showcasing the art of our talented creative community. Afterwards, stop by one of our many restaurants for cocktails, hors d’oeuvres, or dinner.

Enjoy an evening with a stroll through downtown visiting your favorite businesses and restaurants, shopping for gifts or items for yourself and your home. The walk begins on Winslow Way (near the ferry terminal) from 6PM to 8PM, see below for a taste of what some of our local businesses are doing:

Jeffrey Moose Gallery – Painter Neil Andersson and experimental photographer/printmaker Mandi May will demonstrate their craft live at the Gallery on First Friday, May 5th, 6-8pm.

Mr. Andersson will appear via Skype from Lompoc, California, in his studio painting landscapes with oil on canvas.

Ms. May will work live in the gallery, making monoprints using a gelatin plate method that does not require a press. Her subject matter will reflect the spring season.

Neil Andersson, of Tacoma, also known as a jazz guitarist and the founder of the Gypsy Jazz band Pearl Django, has had a long career as an Impressionist painter, painting chiefly Plein Air in Washington State and his new home in California. Andersson paints primarily in oils, and lately in pastels, depicting pastoral scenes of farmland, parks and coastal areas in small, richly colored strokes, emphasized by careful underpainting.

Mandi May is a photographer/printmaker living on Bainbridge Island whose work is focused on landscape and abstractions of landscape. Her surreal photos depict unexpected layers of nature simultaneously, in ways that are incongruous yet pleasing; some information is static while other elements appear to be in motion, rippling water appearing over tree lines and flowers blooming in unexpected places. The Gallery is located at 181 Winslow Way East, Suite F.

Ryderville Ink – Ten Year Anniversary Party – Tracy Lang, accomplished tattoo, wood cut and watercolor artist, whose work has won multiple awards and been exhibited at more than 60 galleries and venues throughout the Pacific Northwest since 1994 is excited to celebrate the tenth anniversary of her tattoo parlor, Ryderville Ink. The party will be held on First Friday from 5pm to 10pm. Clients come to Tracy from all over the PNW for her unique and unusual tattoo art. Tracy, husband Mark Taylor, and their daughter Quinn are also hydroponic farmers, their Vireo Farm is located at the historic Johnson Farm on Bainbridge Island (to learn more about the farm, click here – to learn more about Tracy, click here. Ryderville Ink is located at 330 Madison Ave S Suite 206 (at the corner of Parfitt Way).

KiDiMu – Join KiDiMu for First Friday Art Walk on Friday, from 1-7pm! This month they will have Monogram Tiles available to paint. All kids and kids at heart are invited to come create art and play. This is a “Pay-What-You-Will” at the door event. KiDiMu is located at 301 Ravine Lane.

Bainbridge Arts & Crafts (BAC) – Presents their Annual Student Exhibitions and Mail Art Exhibition. Mail Art is a community supported postcard art fundraising project, now in its second year. Postal marks added to each piece while enroute contribute to the texture and story of each 4”x6” work of art. Only $25 each! All funds raised support BAC’s free art education and outreach efforts.

Receptions will be held on First Friday May 5^th as follows:

Mail Art Exhibition from 6-8pm
Elementary Schools Student Exhibition from 5-6pm
Past Scholarship Winners from 5-8pm

High Schools Reception and Awards May 25^th from 5-6pm

Exhibit run dates:

Mail Art Exhibit May 5^th through May 28^th
Elementary Schools Exhibit May 5^th through May 21^st
High Schools Exhibit May 25^th through May 28^th

BAC is located 257 Winslow Way East.

Bainbridge Island Museum of Art (BIMA) – BIMA is proud to announce the unveiling of a redesigned BIMA Bistro including a new Pegasus Coffee espresso bar. The launch of the new Bistro will be celebrated with a kick-off reception on Friday, May 5^th. “Coffee and art make the perfect pairing,” said Korum Bischoff, BIMA’s Director of Communications & Visitor Experience. “For years now, one of the most frequent questions we get at museum reception is whether the Bistro has espresso. We’re thrilled that the answer will finally be ’YES.’ The redesign of the Bistro space and partnership with Pegasus Coffee will enhance the overall experience for our visitors.”

“We’re thrilled to partner with BIMA to bring together two Island institutions,” said Pegasus President and co-owner Matt Grady, “and to promote a space that Pegasus has long supported and inhabited – the intersection of great coffee, community, and the arts.”

BIMA is also welcoming back local Latin jazz musicians, WEPA! for great music from 5-8pm. Band leader Malo Castro will offer a drop-in drum demo. Grab a bite of Mexican inspired food at the BIMA Bistro, don’t forget to stop by the tissue flower station to let your creativity grow!

BIMA’s Treasure Trek: A Glass Float Seek & Keep is in full swing – Grab your galoshes and get ready to discover art where you least expect it. This spring, in celebration of BIMA’s 10th anniversary, 200 hand-blown glass orbs will be hidden on public lands across Kitsap County just waiting to be discovered and treasured by intrepid art lovers. Click here to learn more. BIMA is located at 550 Winslow Way East.

The Bainbridge Public Library is proud to present an exhibit by artist Mark Johnson – Mark will host a “meet and greet” from 5pm-7pm on Friday, May 5^th to open his new exhibit, “Misconceived”. To read more, visit our previous article on Mark here: https://theislandwanderer.com/join-the-bainbridge-public-library-for-the-may-2023-first-friday-art-walk-featuring-artist-mark-johnson/

Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty is pleased to host Kelly Johnston – Using water soluble oils and gouache, Kelly combines fluid brushstrokes and both bold and bright colors in her landscape-based paintings. Her abstract style represents the wondrous movement and depth of light on the water and the playful nature of the clouds in the skies. Realogics is located at 240 Winslow Way East.

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For up-to-date information on events, visit the Bainbridge Island Downtown Association’s online calendar at: https://bainbridgedowntown.org/events/art-walk/

Fob Fridays – many local businesses downtown are participants in Fob Fridays (Bainbridge Island Senior/Community Center members receive 10% on Fridays with their BISCC fob).

Bainbridge Island Downtown Association (BIDA) coordinates the First Friday Art Walk, as well as many other events, click here for a full list of ongoing events.

*Images and logos provided by FFAW participating businesses, artists and BIDA