Hopefully these biker chicks won’t be there.

“Poked in the Mind’s Eye: The Humorous Perspective of Doug MacGregor”

Opening Reception: Friday, May 6th, 5:00-7:00PM
Exhibiting: May 6-28
Gallery WALK & TALK w/ Doug MacGregor: May 18th, 1:30-2:30PM

Opening Reception

 Friday, May 6, 2011 6pm-10pm.

A very special exhibition opens at daas Gallery in the month of May. This time, daas hosts a collaborative event between two of their own resident artists. Danielle Thomas, a glass and mixed media artist and her husband Troy Thomas, visual artist and assistant gallery director, will join forces to present a series of new works created just for this show. The exhibition is cleverly entitled Marriage. The title not only signifies the unification of Troy and Danielle in the month of May, but also the marrying together of the multiple mediums on display.

“To us, marriage is a piece of Art—an ever-changing canvas of bright spots, dark blobs, crazy lines, hard patches, and happy places. It is within that piece of art, that fabric of being, which we drew our inspiration for this show. It is not only about our marriage to each other, but the marriage of differing mediums to create our art. We wanted to stretch our comfort zone in our favored mediums and explore what it means to “marry” them together in a contemporary manner. The result is a vibrant display of colors, shapes, and ideas.” – says the artful couple.

Danielle Thomas is a fourth-generation artisan, with her father introducing to her favorite medium—glass fusion. Danielle draws from historical references, such as her great-grandmother’s quilts, to create her pieces. “I see scraps of glass as scraps of fabric and feel the heat sews them together, ” – says Danielle. After successful showings throughout the Florida art fair circuit, Danielle took time off to pursue other interests. She is now back to fusing.

Troy, on the other hand, did not get much exposure to art while growing up in a small town in Ohio. After a few attempts at an early age of production, he did not get serious about fine art until his return from serving in Iraq in 2005. Troy tends to prefer to paint geometrical abstractions, which stems from his keen love of Math.

As for the love story for these two, theirs is a modern version. Girl sees picture of boy on the Internet in fatigues holding an art piece he created. Girl emails boy. Boy replies. A long-distance courtship of emails, phone calls, and instant messaging ensued until the physical meeting occurred. Fireworks. They lived happily ever after.

Marriage will be on display through Friday, May 27. The daas Gallery promises another phenomenal night of great art, great friends and good wine. For more information about the event, please visit www.daasgallery.com. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 10:00am to 3:00pm.

The American Cancer Society Relay
for Life volunteers held Paint
Downtown Purple in the Fort
Myers River District from February 20
to 26. The event honors survivors, caregivers
and those fighting cancer.
Thanks in part to participating restaurants,
the event was a big success. Many
of the area businesses donated some of
their proceeds to Relay or allowed volunteers
to paint the windows of their businesses.
This year’s Downtown-River District
Relay for Life begins at 6 p.m. on Friday,
May 6 in Centennial Park.
For more information, call Don
Molloy, event chairman, at 980-1077 or
go to www.relayforlife.org/downtownriverdistrictfl

 

they are a fun loving society who enjoy, celebrate, and take pride in their rich Irish culture.

corned beef and cabbage, and drink specials all night long.   

     Fort Myers, FL; Thursday, March 17, 2011- Festivities begin at 7pm:

Start 2011 with Fort Myers Art Walk on Friday, Jan. 7 

The new year brings new art exhibits and the opening of another new gallery to the downtown Fort Myers River District in January.

The first Fort Myers Art Walk of 2011 will be Friday, Jan. 7. The monthly downtown event will showcase several new art exhibits and be followed by the expanded Saturday Art Fair on Jan. 8.

The monthly Art Walk runs from 6 to 10 p.m. on the first Fridays.

Art Walk includes more than a dozen art stops and will feature new art shows, live music, and the traditional after party. The January Art Walk welcomes another new gallery downtown. Paul Rodino is opening In One Instant on Jackson Street, just south of First Street. This new business marks the tenth art gallery space in the downtown.

Growing in participation, the seasonal Saturday Art Fair has outgrown the Patio de Leon and has expanded to nearby Dean Street (between First and Bay). The Art Fair has expanded its hours to 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and now features 25 local artist vendors.

Some highlights of the Friday, Jan. 7 Art Walk:

- Art of the Olympians: Opening reception for new show, Through the Eyes of a Child, an international children’s art exhibit. Also showing artwork of Olympic artist Pat McCormick and Olympic artist Jean-Blaise Evequoz.

- Art League of Fort Myers: Opening of paintings exhibit entitled Imagination Gone Wild.

- Arts for ACT Gallery: Opening reception for new exhibit, Show Your Self, featuring more than 40 artists. Also showing will be Stephen Gill & Rhonda C. Long.

- Coloring The World: Opening of Sculpture on Steroids featuring the art of Mac Worthington.

- daas Gallery: Opening reception for exhibit by Portuguese master artist Ric Moreira.

- Gallery Showcase and Information Center at IberiaBank (Bayview Court at First Street). Art Walk T-shirts are available at this location as well as buttons, maps and brochures.

- HOWL Gallery/Tattoo: The Captiva Skimboard Art Show comes to Fort Myers, showcasing South Florida artists. Plus, new work by HOWL artist Matt Lackey and others.

- In One Instant: Grand opening features the artwork of photographer Paul Rodino.

- The Oasis Condominiums: A new exhibit featuring festive décor by artist Jackie M. Schuette.

- Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center: Exhibit featuring the beauty and mystery of the female body by photographers Doug Heslep and Jonathan Kane.

- Space 39 Gallery:  Opening for Rockets, Robots, Donuts, featuring new visual works by R. Jackson.

- Syzygy Gallery: New exhibit featuring artwork of international artist Erich Schmidt-Unterseher.
Nearly 40 participants make Art Walk happen and they include the Alliance for the Arts, Art League of Fort Myers, Art of the Olympians, Arts for ACT Gallery and Boutique, Browtopia, Café Matisse, Cigar Bar, Coloring The World, daas Gallery, Delicious Things, Digital Data Destruction, Downtown House of Pizza, Enjewel, First United Methodist Church, Florida Repertory Theatre, Fort Myers Redevelopment Agency, French Connection, Hampton Inn & Suites, Happenings A&E Magazine, Hideaway Sports Bar, Hotel Indigo, HOWL Gallery/Tattoo, Ichiban Japanese & Chinese Restaurant, IberiaBank, In One Instant, Legacy Harbour Hotel & Suites, Market America Realty & Investments, Morgan House Restaurant, The Oasis Luxury Condos, Potomac Bead Company, Renaissance Creativity Center, River District Alliance, Red Rock Saloon, Renaissance Creativity Center, Rossy Fashion Accessories, Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, Select Transpo rtation, SKS PhotoShoot, Space 39 Gallery, Spirits of Bacchus, Starbucks Coffee, Syzygy Gallery, Twisted Vine Bistro, The Veranda Restaurant, What’s Up Dogs? and the Young Artists Awards Program.

Held the first Friday of every month from 6 to 10 p.m., Art Walk features local and national artwork in the downtown art galleries and several art stops in the Fort Myers River District. The evening culminates with an after party at 10 p.m. The January after party will be held at Spirits of Bacchus on Hendry Street.

Another highlight of the very popular evening is the weekly Friday Night Live free concert series which takes place in the Patio de Leon. Sista Sanjah (reggae) will perform from 6 to 9 p.m.

Always a collector’s item, new Art Walk buttons will be available at galleries that night. Art Walk has its own T-shirt (in red or black). Shirts are available for a $12 donation at the IberiaBank gallery showcase during Art Walk.

A free shuttle service courtesy of Select Transportation Inc., with stops planned near the art venues, and parking at the Harborside Event Center will be available for Art Walk patrons. Shuttle stops include The Oasis Condominiums, Art of the Olympians, and Enjewel on First Street.

A map of Art Walk, transportation, and parking will be distributed by participating galleries. Art Walk is a rain or shine event. Art Walk was started by a group of art galleries and art enthusiasts and debuted in October of 2008. Art Walk is a River District Alliance event. For more information on Art Walk, participating galleries and links to gallery websites, visit www.fortmyersartwalk.com.

The Nowhere Band to Perform at Music Walk

 Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center is hosting premier Beatles cover band The Nowhere Band on Saturday, December 18, during Music Walk. The show will begin at 7pm in front of the Art Center, which is located at 2301 First Street in the River District, downtown Fort Myers. There will be a cash bar open throughout the evening.

There is a suggested donation of $5.00.

The  monthly Music Walk event returns December 18th for its fifth night. The monthly Saturday event features live music at over 18 venues, including restaurants, galleries and bars, plus a variety of street performers all over the newly renovated downtown Fort Myers River District.   Music Walk Venues and performers showcase a range of music, from acoustic soloists to punk rock, piano, steel drums and saxophone. The event is the largest of its kind regionally and has helped to prove that the Fort Myers River District is the new center of arts and culture in Southwest Florida.  Music Walk is an all ages event that starts at 7 p.m. and goes until 2 a.m. at many venues.  Free parking downtown.

Music Walk partners and venues include: HOWL Gallery/Tattoo, Red Rock Saloon, Spirits of Bacchus, Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center, Space 39, daas Gallery, Cafe Matisse, French Connection Cafe, Enjewel, Happenings Magazine, Hotel Indigo, Twisted Vine Bistro (formerly H2), Indigo Room, Harborside Event Center, Coloring The World, City Tavern, Downtown House of Pizza, World Famous Cigar Bar, Hideaway Sports Bar, Morgan House, The Veranda Restaurant,  Market America Realty, and Edward Jones Financial.

The Fort Myers Music Walk debut in August was a major success, bringing out from 3,000 to 5,000 attendees.  The event is organized by Andy Howl of Howl Gallery/Tattoo and supervised by former South Beach gallery owner Dee Hohimer. Music Walk exists under the umbrella of the River District Alliance, a non-profit organization that manages downtown events and brings together business owners in the River District.

Highlights of the Saturday, December 18th Music Walk include:

Sprits of Bacchus – Jazz Fusion by Kashmir
HOWL Gallery/Tattoo – Featuring indie/punk bands Ancient Whales, Wolfhunter and HitTheHorizon! 7-10pm.
Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center – Featuring a Beatles tribute concert.
The Cigar Bar – Live music by Clockwork, outside from 7-10. Danny Shepard and Blue Mercury performing inside at 10.
Indigo Room – Live rockabilly music by Memphis56.
French Connection – Blues and Classis Rock by Mike Imbasciani.
The Veranda – Gary Goetz performs at the world famous Piano Bar.
City Tavern – Live music by Headcount, starts at 10pm
Twisted Vine (formerly H2) – Live music by Patrick Jerome
Hotel Indigo – Father Al and the Jazz Congregation on the rooftop lounge

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MUSIC WALK DATES 2010
November 20th
December 18th

MUSIC WALK DATES 2011
January 22nd
February 26th (REVISED DATE)
March 19th
April 16th
May 21st
June 18th
July 16th
August 20th (1 Year Anniversary)
September 17th
October 22nd
November 19th
December 17th