It’s quite possible that attempting to photograph all of St. Petersburg’s Second Saturday art is a fool’s errand. I mean, who is this magical person that can hit 40 galleries in four hours? If you do the math, that means you’d have six minutes per gallery. This is assuming it takes you literally no time whatsoever to travel between galleries. So when I hit seven galleries during the first Second Saturday Art Walk of 2019, I was really proud of myself. But I was even more proud of the St. Pete Arts Alliance for highlighting all the awesome art in St. Petersburg with this monthly event. Even seeing only seven St. Petersburg gallery experiences, you can see the city has a little bit of everything, from sculptures made out of flip flops to imminently affordable clay pots to high end collectible paintings. If your New Year’s resolution is to start or expand your art collection, make Second Saturday your thing in 2019.
This new venture from Jeff Schorr of Craftsman House Gallery and Leslie Curran of ARTicles gallery is billed as St. Petersburg’s only eco-boutique. Truffula specializes in earth-friendly clothing, fashion accessories, and home décor. Located in St. Pete’s Grand Central District. Credit:Jennifer RingThis crazy Octopus sculpture, found at Truffula, was made from recycled flip-flops by Ocean Sole Africa. Credit:Jennifer RingAnother one of Ocean Sole’s awesome sculptures. Credit:Jennifer RingThese stemless wine glasses, also found at Truffula, were hand-blown by Judy McManus. McManus fires her kilns with methane gas collected from a landfill near her home in North Carolina. Credit:Jennifer RingLeslie Curran’s Collectors Exchange, next to Truffula in St. Pete’s Grand Central District. Credit:Jennifer RingLeslie Curran’s Collectors Exchange, inside looking out. Credit:Jennifer RingLeslie Curran’s Collectors Exchange is full of interesting artwork you can buy right off the gallery walls. Credit:Jennifer RingThis delightfully dark painting by St. Petersburg’s Aurailieus Artist, “The Boy Who Finally Found Fear,” was for sale at Collectors Exchange when I visited. Credit:Jennifer RingSt. Pete’s Craftsman House Gallery, in St. Pete’s Grand Central District, represents over 300 local and national artisans. Credit:Jennifer RingCraftsman House’s artist-in-residence, Adam Addison, in the studio out back. Credit:Jennifer RingSome spoon holders by Addison. Credit:Jennifer RingThese rusty fish sculptures, found at Craftsman House Gallery, are by Kentucky artist Ken Roberts. Credit:Jennifer RingMugs from Ohio couple Tyson and Jessica Geib of Lollipop Pottery. Found at Craftsman House. Credit:Jennifer RingThese saltwater fish sculptures, found at Craftsman House, are by New York artists Alan and Rosemary Bennett. Credit:Jennifer RingUtah artist Fred Conlon’s Angler Fish/Hammer Head at Craftsman House. Credit:Jennifer RingThe relatively new (opened in Oct. 2017) ArtsXchange in St. Petersburg’s Warehouse Arts District has done a lot to beautify the area. Credit:Jennifer RingThomas Geer doing a live blacksmith demo outside ArtsXchange Saturday night. Credit:Jennifer RingI saw the most activity of the night here at ArtsXchange, where it was opening night for Dunedin artist Christina Bertsos’ solo sculpture show. Credit:Jennifer RingChristina Bertsos’ Coaxing Beauty: A Sculptor’s Discovery with Stone at ArtsXchange. This stunning display of sculptures will be at ArtsXchange through Feb. 3. Credit:Jennifer RingChristina Bertsos standing with her sculptures at ArtsXchange. Credit:Jennifer RingChristina Bertsos’ “Heart and Soul,” carved out of Portuguese Pink Marble. Credit:Jennifer RingRight next to ArtsXchange, MGA Studio artists are working on their own sculptures. Credit:Jennifer RingArtist Aleisha Prather standing next to a work-in-progress. Credit:Jennifer RingMGA Sculpture Studio’s current project is a large bird-like sculpture being designed and built for a St. Petersburg police department. Credit:Jennifer RingA board showing the Bald Eagle as inspiration for the sculpture. Credit:Jennifer RingMock up of another sculpture being made for the St. Petersburg police department. Credit:Jennifer RingFlorida CraftArt sells work from Florida’s fine craft artists in St. Pete’s Central Arts District. Credit:Jennifer RingInside Florida CraftArt. Credit:Jennifer RingFlorida CraftArt’s Exhibition Gallery was showing work from the Art Lofts artists upstairs. The first exhibit of 2019, called Intentions, will be on display here through Jan. 19. Credit:Jennifer RingMermaid Sculpture by Brandy Stark at Florida CraftArt Credit:Jennifer RingRebecca Skelton’s “Io Carios” at Florida CraftArt Credit:Jennifer RingAnother sculpture from Rebecca Skelton at Florida CraftArt Credit:Jennifer RingThis ocean-like table surface from Amanda Pratt was created using alcohol ink, resin, and acrylic paint. Credit:Jennifer RingBetsy Orbe Lester’s “Domestic Trappings” at Florida CraftArt Credit:Jennifer RingBetsy Orbe Lester, mixed media Credit:Jennifer RingWork from Sue Hess at Florida CraftArt Credit:Jennifer RingWork from Lakeland’s William Kidd at Florida CraftArt. Kidd’s work is inspired by microorganisms and other living things. Credit:Jennifer RingMixed media sculpture by Marilyn Rackelman at Florida CraftArt Credit:Jennifer RingUrban Planning by Carol O’Bryon was on display in Art Loft’s Intentions Above show. Credit:Jennifer RingMany artists were present in their Art Lofts studios during Second Saturday art walk, conversing with Art Walk participants. Credit:Jennifer Ring
