First Friday July Wrap-Up

The heat was certainly on at the most recent First Friday Scranton held July 6^th, 2012. With the summer in full swelter local artists served up some fine examples of artistic representation in a variety of colorful and engaging displays. Great numbers of participants reveled in the many outdoor exhibits of musicianship that beaconed them inside where they were greeted to an atmosphere of “cool” creative efforts. Of course not all were granted relief, such as the “Summer Santa” display exhibited by the Greater Scranton Jaycees. Santa was in great spirits and in full vacation mode wearing the prerequisite Hawaiian print shirt and flip-flops as he chilled in a small baby pool.  His ubiquitous North Pole cheer was present to support the Christmas parade held in downtown Scranton November 17^th. Of course he also could’ve taken a seat at the EOTC exhibit where they were raffling off hand-painted chairs, while checking who was being naughty or nice.
AFA Gallery also presented a nice relief with its “Members Show” and the grand opening of an additional space on the second floor.
“Twice a year member artists, who pay dues to the organization, get to present their most recent work at AFA Gallery which is located on the 500 block of Lackawanna Avenue.  The building is owned by Dr. Peter Cupple who is also on the board of directors.  “By also occupying the 2^nd floor, the gallery is tripling its former exhibition space” said Nicole Sawicki, Gallery Coordinator at AFA; “this is an exciting development in our community because we will be doing more to fulfill our mission of introducing this area to talented artists from the region and other parts of the United States.”
There definitely was an exciting vibe generated by opening the new space as everyone present filled their art loving cups to the brim with the wide variety of talent that was on display.
Across the street at Artworks, Sharon Cosgrove presented viewers with a sumptuous feast of bountiful colors and modern design sense. Cosgrove’s paintings filled the space nicely and provided viewers with works that ranged from lush, verdant gardens, which focused on filling the space with a harmonic use of positive and negative forms. This processed came more to the forefront in other abstract works and provided an interesting counterbalance.
Of course if pondering the aesthetic merit of such things was on your plate there were many other entertainment options, such as the “No Quarters Necessary” tribute at the Keys. The artwork harkened back to the genesis of videogames and drew their inspiration from the birth place of gaming. From allusions to Mike Tyson’s Punchout and even a custom made Donkey Kong game any noob would feel right at home.
While all of this was happening indoors, outside was a symphony of DJ’s, jazz bands, and street buskers. St. Luke’s and Wendell & Co. provided a plethora of entertaining musicians creating a fantastic ambience that you can only experience at First Friday. Of course if you happened to miss any of the shows check out the map from July http://firstfridayscranton.com/first-friday-scranton-map/ and be sure to follow First Friday Scranton on facebook, twitter, google+, linkedin, pinterest, and youtube! Additionally First Friday is holding it’s first ever photo contest. Just send your photos you snapped off at First Friday July for a chance to win a gift card to one of downtown Scranton’s great businesses. Details can be found here.