Third Fridays Get Bigger and Better Each Month — And This Weekend is No Exception

78th Street Studios includes more than 50 venues (artist studios, galleries, boutiques and more) spread out over 170,000 square feet on four floors, under one roof. It’s all free and open to the public from 5 to 9 p.m. on the Third Friday of every month. These open houses seem to keep getting bigger and better every month. Crowds have reached 1500+ attendees during recent Third Friday events.

Still need a reason to stop by tonight’s Third Friday open house at 78th Street Studios? Well, we’ve got a dozen of them for you. It all takes place Friday, March 20 from 5 to 9 p.m., unless otherwise noted.

Art + Philanthropy
(smARTspace, Suite 116)
The first floor’s central space will host Art + Philanthropy, an evening of art and poetry to benefit the Community West Foundation. The event will raise funds and awareness for homeless families in Cleveland. Katie Daley, Russell Vidrick and RA Washington will participate in poetry slams at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Ravenna Micelli will be broadcasting live on oWow Cleveland from 6 to 8 p.m. Selections from Lydia Bailey’s Portraits of the Homeless photography series will be on view throughout the space. The event is free, but monetary donations, as well as physical donations of cold weather items (coats, socks, gloves, hats, scarves, blankets, etc.) will be accepted. (http://www.communitywestfoundation.org/events/socksplus?)

Cleveland Creates
(ARTneo, Suite 016)
If you missed the opening of Cleveland Creates, you’ve got another opportunity to see this juried collection of local artists. The exhibition was designed to showcase the quality of work being produced by the region’s talented artists, and it does just that. Featuring 57 works by 53 artists, Cleveland Creates includes a large portion of the local art community. Andy Dreamingwolf won first place, second place went to Jason Milburn and Laila Voss was awarded third place. The exhibition and award winners were selected by jurors Helen Forbes Fields, Loren Naji and Christina Vassallo. Cleveland Creates runs through Apr. 19, so you’ll have one more chance to see it next month too.  (http://bit.ly/CLECreates)

Six in Studio
(Cleveland West Art League, Suite 110, 6 to 10 p.m.)
Each spring, Cleveland West Art League (CWAL) invites a guest curator to select six artists for a month-long art experiment. The six selected artists use CWAL’s gallery as a shared studio space. This year’s guest curator is Arabella Proffer, and she has selected Abby Blake, Marissa Bona, Gabe Kenney, Carmen Romine, Catherine Spencer and Theresa Yondo. During this Friday’s opening reception the artists will begin their proposed projects. Over the course of the next month, they’ll work together to create an entire body of new work. At next month’s closing reception (Fri. Apr 17, 6 to 10 p.m.), the artists will present the results in a final exhibition. Stop by this Friday to see it all begin. (http://www.clevelandwestartleague.com/)

Blah Blah Blah
(FORUM artspace, Suite 103, 6 to 9 p.m.)
FORUM artspace recently celebrated its 5 year anniversary. This Third Friday, they present Blah Blah Blah, featuring the paintings of Ben Weathers and the assemblages of Jamey Hart. Weathers formalistic approach explores the boundaries of painting as a medium. Hart’s mixed media works communicate his experience through the use of found materials. Both artists are currently living and working in Cleveland. Enter through their door in the parking lot near the W. 78th Street entrance. (http://www.forumartspace.com/)

Forest City Armada
(Micro Art Space, Suite 108)
Micro Art Space’s latest resident artist is Rob Millard-Mendez of Evansville, IN. For his two-week residency in Cleveland, Millard-Mendez is creating a large-scale sculptural installation inspired by his interest in art history, mythology, science, American Folk Art, existentialist philosophy and post-structuralist theory. Millard-Mendez has exhibited in over 400 shows in galleries and museums in all 50 states. He received his M.F.A. in Sculpture from UMASS Dartmouth in 1999, and currently serves as Associate Professor in the University of Southern Indiana’s Department of Art in Evansville, Indiana.  (http://www.microartspace.com/march-2015-artist-in-residence/)

Cleveland School 2015
(Kenneth Paul Lesko Gallery, Suite 212)
It’s no secret that Cleveland has a rich history of arts and culture. If you’re a fan of local history and local art, you can’t miss the latest exhibition opening this Friday at Kenneth Paul Lesko Gallery. Cleveland School 2015 is a collection of some of the most influential and important local and regional artists of the early 20th century. The exhibition features work by Henry Keller, George Adomeit, William Sommer, Frank Wilcox, Clara Deike, William Grauer, Natalie Eynon Grauer, Peter Paul Dubaniewicz, Joseph Jicha, Paul Riba and more. Cleveland School 2015 runs through May 9.  (http://www.kennethpaullesko.com/)

Process + Material
(HEDGE Gallery, Suite 200)
Process + Material is a collaborative effort between HEDGE Gallery’s owner Hilary Gent and Kent State’s School of Art Galleries’ Director Anderson Turner. The exhibition is an effort to strengthen ties between Kent State’s art program and Cleveland’s exciting art scene. Gent is a graduate of Kent State. The exhibition features 15 local artists who either graduated from KSU or are affiliated in some way with the university. Participating artists include Pita Brooks, Rebecca Cross, Dana Depew, Nicole Hanley, Ken Love, Claire Murray Adams, Michael Nold, Darice Polo, Kristin Rogers, Lesley Sickle, Andrew Simmons, Emily Sullivan Smith, Laila Voss, Joseph Walton and Royden Watson.  (http://hedgeartgallery.com/)

What’s in the Bag?
(E11even 2, Suite 112)
March’s Third Friday includes a closing reception for E11even 2’s What’s in the Bag? The exhibition pushed the boundaries of found object art. Each artist created work using random objects given to them in a plain, brown paper bag. These artists received items such as playing cards, keys, matches, hair pins, dominos, clothes pins, nail polish, scrabble tiles, plastic army men, buttons, bottle caps, tongue depressors/popsicle sticks, metal slugs and the bag itself. From this randomness, came paintings, mixed media works, photography and more. Stop by the gallery this Friday for one last chance to check out these unusual works.  (http://www.e11even2.com/)

Contemporary and Historic Women Artists
(Kokoon Arts, Suite 202)
As we mentioned in another article earlier this week, March is Women’s History Month, and in celebration, a number of galleries throughout the region are hosting special exhibitions of local female artists. Kokoon Arts presents Contemporary and Historic Women Artists, showcasing works by women artists in Northeast Ohio and beyond. Featured artists include Donna Webb (ceramics), Andrea LeBlond (ceramics, pictured), Evie Zimmer (oil paintings), Melanie Ferguson (ceramics), Karen Kunc (color woodcuts). Featured historic Cleveland artists: May Ames (etching), Grace Kelly (watercolor), Hazel Janicki (egg tempera painting) and Jean Ulen (watercolor, etching).

Speaking of women artists, 78th Street Studios’ resident women artists will be showcasing their talents throughout the night. Studios include Eileen Dorsey (Suite 105), Laurel Herbold (Suite 107), Suzie Frazier (Suite 117) and Tekler, Tatum and Jamilla (Suite 113). (http://www.kokoonarts.com/)

Hand Made 2 and Cassini & Beyond
(Tregoning & Company, Suite 101)
In the past few months, we’ve reviewed both Christopher Pekoc’s Hand Made 2 and James March’s Cassini & Beyond. In case you missed them, you have last chance to see these new works by two of Cleveland’s established artists. Pekoc’s Hand Made 2 was part of a collaborative effort with the Akron Art Museum and its Hand Made exhibition of Pekoc’s work. Pekoc uses a variety of unusual materials and techniques to create unique works harkening to antiquity. March’s latest collection of abstract paintings is a major departure from the artists’ previous work. Cassini & Beyond uses symbols of space exploration to reference his own explorations of visual space. The paintings combine abstract expressionist techniques, similar to Gerhard Richter, with elements of Op Art. Don’t miss your final opportunity to see these intriguing exhibitions. Enter through their separate entrance on the W. 78th Street side of the building. (http://www.tregoningandco.com/)

reVoice for NeoSonicFest
(Survival Kit, Suite 303, 9 to 10 p.m.)
Following Third Friday’s festivities, stop by Survival Kit on the third floor for reVoice for NeoSonicFest 2015. Survival Kit will present works composed by John Cage, Morton Feldman, Philip Glass, Ricky Ian Gordon, Stephen Greibling, Keegan Meuris, Meredith Monk and Pauline Oliveros. The compositions will be performed by Megan Elk (mezzo-soprano), Susan Fletcher (soprano), Rachel Morrison (soprano) and Lorenzo Salvagni (piano). Admission is free, but donations for the second annual NeoSonicFest will be gratefully accepted. NeoSonicFest runs from Mar. 20 to 28 at an eclectic variety of venues including Baldwin Wallace’s Gamble Auditorium, the Bop Stop, CSU’s Waetjen Auditorium and Zygote Press. (http://neosonicfest.org/artists/revoice)

Superelectric Pinball
(Superelectric Pinball, Suite 3c, 6 to 10 p.m.)
Did you know 78th Street Studios has a FREE PLAY pinball parlor on its third floor? That’s right, free pinball every month. You can either enter through Survival Kit or the stairway entrance located on the W. 78th Street side of the building (look for the sign above the door, go up to the third floor). Inside you’ll find more than 20 classic pinball machines re-programmed to operate without a pocket full of quarters. For more info, click here (http://superelectric.tv)
Believe it or not, there’s even more to find as you explore Cleveland’s “Art Maze” this evening. Be sure to get to 78th Street early tonight for an action-packed Third Friday.

(78th Street Studios) 1300 W. 78th St., 330-819-7280, 78thstreetstudios.com