2nd Friday Artwork will offer customizable Valentine's Day gifts

Jeff Elkins, The Norman Transcript, Okla.
·3 min read

Feb. 9—The Second Friday Art Walk in February will give Norman residents a chance to grab a unique gift for Valentine's Day in addition to checking out the offerings from an eclectic group of local artists.

The Art Walk takes over downtown Norman from 6-9 p.m. Friday.

This month will feature sculptors, painters, poets, printmakers, musicians and more.

The Depot, 200 S. Jones Ave., will host its inaugural Emerging Artists Exhibit in the Nancy McClellan Gallery, according to the event website. The 13 artists featured are Joy Andrews, Greta Lyn Baxter, Michael Bendure, Hayden Bilbrey, Judith Coker, Amanda Cole, Sarah Fenner King, Theresa Hultberg, Joel Melton, Javier Morales Rojas, Laura Nelson, Ariana Renee and Steve Wilson. Complimentary wine from Native Spirits will be served.

Main Street Pottery, 410 E. Main St., is the newcomer to the 2nd Friday Artwalk lineup. The store will feature pottery artists Kathy Buttry, Jo Swigart, Carla Waugh, Leslie Dallam, Roxxann Murphy, Irmgard Geul, Lori Snowden, Virginia Johnson, Suzanne DuCom, Natalie Sklaney, Suzanna Cromer Yback, Marylee Wright and Tracy Gibson, in addition to the store's owner, Katy Nikol.

Visitors to the shop can customize and glaze their own ceramic Valentine's Day heart up to $15 dollars.

"They can not only color it, but also put a special message on it," Nikol said. "Then they leave them, I'll fire them, and they'll be able to come back Monday or Tuesday and pick them up."

D.M. Wealth Management, 309 E. Main St., will host Elena Maslovskaya, a Russian artist who has lived in Norman since 2017. Her primary medium is alcohol ink and resin, but she also does sculpture painting made out of paste with fiber, using vivid colors to create home decor pieces.

Sergio's Italian Bistro, 104 E. Gray St., will host musician Jeremiah Goodblanket from 6:30-8:30 p.m., according to the event website. Goodblanket is a guitarist, singer and songwriter.

Amy Baldwin, co-owner of Artifactory, 106 E. Main St., said they also will have a wide selection of Valentine's Day gifts.

"Whether that's apparel, cards, candles, games, pillows or accessories, we have gifts for men or women," Baldwin said.

The Well, 210 James Garner Ave., will present a family-friendly night Friday. This month's celebration features word art with open mic poetry readings, according to the event website. Those who wish to participate can contact The Well or sign up on site. The Pioneer Library System will have a hands-on laser engraving program with children.

MAINSITE Contemporary Art, 122. E. Main St., will host a closing reception for Fish Without A Sea, a solo exhibition of Iran-born, Oklahoma-based artist Ghazal Ghazi. According to an exhibit summary on the gallery's website, the exhibit "explores family intimacies, and collective memory while monumentalizing the visuality of Persianate and Islamicate visual traditions like miniature painting and Iranian ceramic traditions."

OSC-Press, 315 E. Main St., will host Weird World of A Space Cowboy, a combination of both individual works and collaborations developed at Oscillator Press's Kick It and Create weekly events in this take on southern living.

The store's co-owner Eric Piper said they will have live T-shirt printing.

"You can show up, pick out a blank shirt, pick from a couple different designs, and we'll have a Valentine's Day themed one for $10," Piper said.

For a list of participants, visit 2ndfridaynorman.com.

Jeff Elkins covers business, living and community stories for The Transcript. Reach him at jelkins@normantranscript.com or at @JeffElkins12 on Twitter.