Release Date: September 1,2023
Akron ArtWalk: Rubber City Jazz Festival Edition on September 8th
Includes Artist Vendors and Activities at Summit Artspace
PLUS events from Rubber City Jazz Festival, Akron Art Museum and Nightlight Cinema
Akron, OHIO (Aug 28, 2023) — On Friday, September 8th from 5:00 - 9:00 pm, experience Akron's quarterly ArtWalk filled with visual art, jazz, cinema, food and activities at participating locations in Akron’s Historic Arts District! Partners include Summit Artspace, Akron Art Museum, Akron-Summit County Public Library, The Nightlight, and Open Tone Music.
At Summit Artspace:
- Summit Artspace’s 20+ resident artists will open their studios to the public throughout the evening
- 15+ pop-up artist vendors will sell handmade artwork throughout the building. Vendors include: Snow, Pierce Jewelry, Cozy Cottage Ceramics, Sunlight Original Artworks , Kimberly Barth Photography, Liam Parker Photography, Dad's Trees, Mirrored K Studio, Our Saturn, P31 Art & Design LLC, Felicia Marshalle Studio, Shannon Timura, Cameron Gorman. Bob Wright, and George Erwin.
- Featured Music: Rubber City Jazz Festival 2023 and 2022 Spotify playlists
- Summer Exhibitions will be on view in Summit Artspace’s five galleries throughout the evening.
- Artists of Rubber City (AoRC) will hold a pop-up sale of its members’ artwork in the Intersections Gallery, which currently features an exhibition by AoRC Member Joe Dick
- AoRC’s The Box Gallery will feature the exhibition “Magic from the Mundane” by Lu-Anne Bole Becker, featuring assemblages and photographs.
- Activities outside the building will include arm painting with local artists Sylvia Sykes and LuLu Emanuele, as well as the creation of a mandala mosaic build from artworks created at area summer festivals throughout Summit County
- Art Expo Wall Quilt will be on view and a drawing held on 6pm (must be present to win).
- Food vendors in the Broadway parking lot will include Bereka Coffee and Ethiopian Food (vegan options), Stray Dog (hot dogs and more), Best Damn Smoked Meat, Ogarth’s Kitchen (Jamaican), Honeydew Bakeshop (vegan bakery/sweets), and El Patron. A cash bar will be available in the Akron Art Museum’s garden.
Nearby ArtWalk-related activities in and near the Main-Market Historic District include:
The Akron Art Museum will be open and free of charge from 11 a.m. - 9 p.m. including the exhibit “Keith Haring: Against All Odds” which closes Sept 24. Galleries will be open and free. Rubber City Jazz Festival will present live concert performances in the parking lot between the Museum and Summit Artspace at pm. At 7pm a music trio will play in the Museum’s garden, alongside the artwork debut of Reflections by the Safarani Sisters.
The Nightlight Cinema will screen the classic musical The Wiz (1978, Rated G) in the Akron Art Museum’s garden at 8:15pm. Runtime 2 hours, 16 minutes.
Akron Soul Train will open it’s galleries from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Celebrate the closing of three shows: "Domestic Endeavors; Feats and Service" by Kristen Cliffel, "You Are Invited; Your Hands and Mouth Are Not!" by Ewuresi Archer, and "Skin Color" by Althea Jones. Resident artist Debra DeGregorio (who currently has a solo exhibition “Disorganized Attachment” on view at Summit Artspace), will collect for her upcoming exhibition, “co≈rrelate” at Akron Soul Train.
Curated Storefront has new, active storefronts and spaces with fresh artwork to visit: at True North Akron in Northside District (110 N Main St), check out three new murals by internationally renowned artists Palehorse, Diana Paz and Joshua Hall, and L.E.O. and participate in a hands-on sculptural clay activity with artist Jennifer Masley; At the Polsky Building (225 S. Main St.) “Clayton Bailey's World of Wonders” will be open 4-8 p.m. featuring metal and ceramic sculptures of mythical creatures, robots, and Dr. Gladstone's Weird Science Laboratory experiments; and at Avant Garden ART Studios & Gallery (Bounce Innovation Hub, 256 S. Main St, Suite 409) view “Everything But the Kitchen Sink: Volume 2,” a group exhibition celebrating explorations in and across media at the Myers School of Art as well as an exhibition by the Akron Painting and Drawing League. Opening Reception 5-9 p.m.
In the Northside District, the Northside Cellar and Zeber-Martell Gallery and Clay Studio will be open until 5 p.m.
Jilly’s Music Room will host two bands: The Tenents, a rock, folk-rock, and gritty blues from the gritty town of Akron; and Mudhouse Gang, a blues/roots/rock trio based in Wadsworth. Walkups are welcome. Tickets are $5 at the door. Open from 5pm-1am.
General parking for ArtWalk is available on surrounding streets, and at participating locations. An introduction to the Akron ArtWalk participating businesses is available on Downtown Akron Partnership. A virtual guide and maps can be found on Summit Artspace’s website.
ArtWalk at Summit Artspace is supported, in part, by a grant from the Mary S. and David C. Corbin Foundation.