Spaceworks has gone viral (well almost). The popular public arts program designed to energize vacant downtown retail space through art exhibitions and performances has just expanded with the addition of four new studios on Tacoma’s Hilltop. To celebrate, the participating artists are throwing an Art Block Party on the 1300 block of Martin Luther King Way on Thursday, July 21, 5 to 8p.m., as part of the Third Thursday Art Walk. The new venues will be open to the public offering FREE tours, live music, a DJ performance and refreshments. Artists will be on hand to answer questions and offer information about upcoming events, collaborations, and ways to become involved in the Tacoma art scene. Participants include:
• Fab-5 – The graffiti incubator is launching FABITAT, an innovative creative lab aimed at inspiring underserved youth through the arts.
• Nate Dybevik – A musician, composer and apprentice piano rebuilder (training under internationally renowned expert Obi Manteufel), Dybevik will have his dismantled, vintage European piano “projects” on display.
• Toy Boat Theatre – This new theatre troupe is developing a play, Dakota’s Belly, Wyoming, by Erin Cressida Wilson, in conjunction with the theatre department at the University of Puget Sound. Show will open in August.
Spaceworks’ neighbor to the north, Fulcrum Gallery, will also be welcoming visitors to the block party with an exhibit of paintings by Peter Scheesley. Pull on your flip-flops and come out to meet the new peeps on the block!