Art + Bikes

Bicycles and artwork on the sidewalk during a First Friday.

Seeing stars and crowds along Congress Street this evening for the First Friday Art Walk.

Summer Sidewalks

Another sidewalk shot from the last First Friday. Always great to see so many people enjoying my little city.

'Twas a fine evening for a First Friday Art Walk. This is taken from the Sailors and Soldiers Monument in Monument Square.

Oysters to Go

A new food cart, BP's Shuck Shack, made an appearance at the July First Friday Art Walk on Congress Street. It's usually spotted around Commercial Street.  

Back on the Streets

I always find busy sidewalks to be a good sign that spring and summer is on the way. As someone who lives downtown, you really notice the difference after several months of very quiet (and less photogenic) sidewalks. Pictured below is a flock of people during the April First Friday Art Walk.

First Friday Art Walk - September 2014

These photos are a little late, but I just got around to editing them. As we are currently in the depth of winter, maybe these photos from a warmer time will brighten your day as well. These are just a few shots around Congress Square during the September art walk:

People and Statues

A view from Middle Street looking up towards Monument Square from last Friday:

Walk the Art Walk

The central portion of Congress Street was once again reserved for pedestrians for the monthly Art Walk on Friday. Here's a shot from Congress Square looking towards Monument Square:

Art Walkers

A collection of random people out and about during last month's First Friday Art Walk:

First Friday Vision

Another view from Congress Street during the  most recent First Friday Art Walk:

Art Truck

The Local Muscle moving company transforms one of their trucks into a mobile art gallery for each First Friday. Here it is on Congress Street last night:

Frozen Art Walk

An ice sculpture outside of the restaurant Five Fifty-Five . Note the temperature on the Time & Temperature sign in the background. 

Cold Friday

Tonight's First Friday Art Walk ended up being a little more quiet than the previous one, due to the extremely cold temperatures and recent snowfall. Here's Congress Square about half an hour ago:

Holiday Art Walked

A few more frames from the First Friday Holiday Art Walk last week:

Art Walk Storefronts

This first storefront belongs to Rose Contemporary, a gallery at 492 Congress Street:

And this one belongs to the Maine College of Art:

Holiday Art Walk 2013

A view of this evening's popular First Friday / Holiday Art Walk event in which a portion of Congress Street was closed off for pedestrians only. It was great to see so many people out and about enjoying the city on what turned out to be a relatively warm and rain-free evening. 

A Friday in August

Just a few shots from Congress Street during the most recent First Friday:

I saw the Art

Art in the Alley 

A First Friday Crowd, Congress & Forest Avenue

Interested in some other non-First Friday outdoor art events? Across the bridge in South Portland on August 13th is the Art in the Park event at Mill Creek Park. The 46th annual WCSH6 Sidewalk Art Festival is on Saturday  August 27th. And the 4th annual Picnic Music & Arts Festival is on the same day in Lincoln Park.

Last First Friday

Here are a couple of photos of the most recent First Friday in Portland. The first photo s at Congress Square. I like the addition of arts & crafts vendors on this stretch of Congress Street and think it would be great if they came out every Friday. 

Vendors also gather in Congress Square Plaza/Park to the left of the above photo, in front of the Eastland Hotel.

A street performance a little bit further down Congress Street. Not sure if this band has a name, feel free to leave  a comment to this post if you want to name them.

For more info about First Friday, check out the official site here. The site provides event listings, maps, and a list of participating galleries/shops/restaurants/etc. See you at the next one on August 5th!