Troy Hawkins hangs a pair of photos by Redding’s Harvey Spector at the Oregon Street Tea Company. Spector’s show will be on display all month at the business.
I sat there in the Oregon Street Tea Company sipping on a delicious iced Oolong and tried to drink in what Adam Mankoski was telling me. First, he and his Hawkman Studios partner, Troy Hawkins, want to elevate the entire north state’s engagement with art. Then, they want to fit into that tapestry of art somewhere with their own studio, gallery and classroom.
The Hawkman guys are the ones behind the new 2nd Saturday Art Hop in Redding. The 2nd Saturday Art Hop takes place from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday (Aug. 9) at various locations around town (check the previous link).
Pretty crafty move. Get us crazy about seeing more art everywhere in town. Persuade us to frequent cool businesses where interesting bands are playing. Help promote a ton of talented creative residents. Then launch a business that fits right into all of that.
I’ve seen this kind of maneuvering before. If these guys think that working countless hours for free for the sake of helping promote businesses and artists is really gonna impress anyone, well, think again. That Gandhi crap doesn’t fly around here.
Oh, wait. Actually, it’s impressive as hell. The Hawkman guys have hung art shows in 17 Redding businesses over the past couple weeks. They’re working with Enjoy Magazine. They’re working with us here on Food for Thought. They’re working with dozens of artists and business owners.
The feedback they received from the first 2nd Saturday Art Hop (wait, is that confusing?) in July has been overwhelmingly positive. They’re estimating that some 3,000 people got out and visited area businesses on July 12, a day when the glorious Shasta Taiko Drummers entertained people in front of the Cascade Theatre.
Talk to Irene Kelley over at Graphic Emporium, Mankoski said. She was lovin’ having more than 200 people flowing through her business. (Quick extra nod to Graphic Emporium for being a longtime ticket outlet and supporter of the Riverfront Playhouse.)
There was a lot of nice fallout from the July 12 event. Some guy from Ashland, Ore., rented a bus and brought a gaggle of people down from Southern Oregon. Yeah, that would be the snooty, artsy, so-decadently-rich-with-theater-options-that-you-could-puke Ashland coming down to Redding. This makes me cackle for some reason.
The Nathan’s Anthems Tattoos guys had people come in who would ordinarily never go into a tattoo shop. Now some of those people might actually ink up. Ha! The Vintage Wine Bar sold out of four dishes that night. Vintner’s Cellar looked so packed you were almost intimidated to go in.
Some elements to be aware of this Saturday: The brilliant Luke Lucas leading a workshop and public participation mural event at Old City Hall (1313 Market St.). Kids’ projects at a number of participating businesses (indicated by a kid’s handprint icon). A couple of new participants — Sweetspot and the American Cancer Society Discovery Shop.
In September, they’re talking about having fire dancers at Library Park. In October, they’ll (most likely) close off Yuba Street and have live music in front Carnegie’s (featuring this little outfit, The Jim Dyar Band — I heard they rock, dude!). In November, the Dance Project will perform a preview of their Cascade Christmas show, probably in front of the Cascade. In December, it’ll be all Christmas music by Redding Idol finalists.
It’s looking like an all-good situation, frankly.
“I think people really like the idea of a monthly art event,” Mankoski said. “They like having something to experience every month. We’re trying to make it original every month. Everyone has been amazingly positive. Business owners are really creative, and they’re always finding new ways to market themselves.”
Starting a viable cultural event and putting in so many hours to help others — that may end up being pretty creative marketing itself.
But, frankly, there’s something else here at work that’s really beautiful. It has to do with embracing cooperation. It’s about doing your own art and helping others promote and feel good about theirs. Nasty competitiveness in art circles should fade (actually, I think it kind of fades on its own). There’s nothing wrong with having selective tastes and being passionate (and maybe even a little elitist), but don’t begrudge someone else’s expression. Be a critic with class.
From my motorcycle on Wednesday afternoon (with an amazing backdrop of a wakeboarder skipping along Whiskeytown Lake), the reality of this sharing, giving ethic really hit me. It felt like a universal truth grazing my heart.
Good on you, Hawkman guys. I’ll certainly take seconds.
