Friday night was the April Art Hop in Kalamazoo, and there happened to be a Late-Night Food Truck Rally coinciding with this festival on the same night, so we went to check it out and had a great time. Both events are an asset to the city - they draw people downtown, and highlight some of the best that the city has to offer. Some photos that I took from both evening's events are below. I try to give credit to all artists where applicable.
The next Art Hop will be on May 5, and the next Food Truck Rally will also be in May. If for any reason you find yourself in Southwest Michigan when these events occur, I highly recommend going - it's a great way to experience the city.
Kalamazoo Art Hop
The Art Hop happens every month and usually runs from 5pm to 9pm on the first Friday of each month. Lots of bigger cities do things similar to this; the Kalamazoo one is surprisingly large for a city of its size - with 30+ venues participating this time.
From the Art Hop
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Art Hop is a program of the Arts Council of Greater Kalamazoo - an evening of art exhibits and events, one of the great things to do in Kalamazoo. It's a free event held on the first Friday of every month, it is something you can do alone, with friends or with family that’s fun, interactive, and a great way to explore our downtown. And you don’t have to be an “artist” to enjoy it.
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One of the hubs of the Art Hop is the Park Trades Center, on old, four-story industrial building converted to artist's studios and workshops. On Art Hop nights, you can wander freely through the massive structure, and artist's have their doors open to visitors.
On the first floor, you find the Kalamazoo Book Arts Center, which was hosting an 'edible book' contest. After the judging and awards, the 'books' were eaten. Some of my favorites:
Featured Book: Goodnight Moon
Featured Book: The Elegance of the Hedgehog
Featured Books: Pippi Longstocking, Goodnight Moon, The Giving Tree, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, The Hungry Caterpillar, Horton Hears a Who
Featured Book: Peter Rabbit
Featured Book: Unbroken
Points for creativity - don't want to eat any of it though.
The Book Arts Center offers classes in paper making, printing, book binding, etc. and has lots of cool old equipment. We got a little peak behind the scenes:
I love these old drawers, used for storing all 'types' of type.
Right next door in the same Park Trades structure is Glass Art Kalamazoo. Demonstrations in glass blowing and small glass working were being given. Many classes and volunteer opportunities are offered here year-round.
Adding green color to a drinking glass.
It's a two-person effort at times...
...or a four-person effort.
Some finished projects, on display.
The folks below were making Journey Beads, small mementos given to people (mostly children) who are going through difficult medical procedures like cancer treatment. They get another bead for each step of the journey. Anyone can volunteer to make these (with a little training, first).
Then there's a gallery up front, displaying some of the more impressive works that have been made in the studio.
"Lavender Dreams", Sally Pritko, artist
Motorcycle (I didn't catch the artist)
Assortment of vases
"Spikey Terrarium", Shannon Eakins, artist
Next we walked to the Arcus Gallery, where there was a juried art exhibit taking place. Located at the north end of the 'Kalamazoo Mall', the gallery is part of Kalamazoo Valley Community College's downtown campus.
"Walking Man", Oil on Canvas, Linda Manguiat-Herzog, artist
"Bonds of Nature's Law", Paper & Mixed Media, Ellie Hyde, artist
"Sullivan", Mixed Media, Susan Hill, artist
Looking north along the mall.
Looking south along the mall. Phase 2 of the Peregrine 100 project, which involves rehabbing a former bank building, is underway.
Signage above the main entrance of the First National Bank and Trust Company.
The paper is off the windows, so everyone was peeking inside:
Next stop was 'The Spirit of Kalamazoo' store, hosting work by artist Ellen Nelson. The store is in a relatively new downtown loft development which I think fits in well enough.
"The Sum of One's Parts", Part of a Series, Ellen Nelson, artist
There's always great photography at the Carver Gallery so we stopped in. My two favorites:
"Boys on the Jantar Mantar Observatory, Delhi, India '64", Norman F. Carver Jr., artist
"Boys on the Jantar Mantar Observatory, Delhi, India '64", Norman F. Carver Jr., artist
We also walked past the former Kalamazoo Gazette Building, the majority of which has been demolished for future development by Bronson Medical Group. Here's the original Albert Kahn-designed structure, which is being preserved:
The demo work looks nearly done.
You can see part of the Bronson Hospital complex in the background.
Now we wait to see what comes from the hospital. There's talk of constructing new medical lab space - I only hope that it can still be a mixed use development, with some commercial storefronts on the ground level to activate the street.
With the sun setting and the temperatures dropping, we headed over to the Kalamazoo Beer Exchange to grab a quick drink before going to the Late-Night Food Truck Rally. The Beer Exchange is housed in another old industrial structure that has been repurposed. Beer prices fluctuate in 'real time' at the bar as supply and demand influences the 'beer market'. When the stock market crashes, things get a little crazy, as prices plummet.
Image Source:
Buy Local Kalamazoo
Image Source:
MLive
Looks like the market is crashing!
Image Source:
https://juliesterling.wordpress.com/...beer-exchange/
(I cheated on those last three photos, because I was too busy enjoying a drink and forgot to take pictures of my own)
Kalamazoo Late-Night Food Truck Rally
The Food Truck Rally usually starts at 9:00pm and runs until midnight. It currently occurs five times each year, starting with the April one and ending with one in October. It usually hosts 10-12 food trucks, but as the event grows more popular, I hope they add more trucks. This event had the following trucks: Weller BBQ, Curry in a Hurry, Ol' Moose BBQ, Lazy Man BBQ, Gorilla Gourmet, Singh Cruisin Cuisine, Coffee Rescue, Bomba's, The Mak Bar, and Nick's Gyros. The pop-up event was started by a Food Truck Entrepreneur Committee, as part of larger placemaking initiatives in the city.
The event was held on Water Street, underneath a parking structure that goes over the road.
Gorilla Gourmet
Ol' Moose BBQ
Promotional Sign
Thanks for stopping by.