It is a sentiment shared by many of the 150+ artists, artisans, boutiques and lifestyle service providers that make up the massive industrial creative complex, a Dayton art mecca that takes multiple visits to fully explore.
Here is a (small) snapshot of the types of spaces you’ll encounter at Front Street, whether during open hours, on a First Friday or Saturday Art Hop, or at the 60th Anniversary party on Sept. 6.
Front Street has its share of galleries including Divisible Projects, DIAD Studio, Dana L. Wiley, Dutoit Gallery, The Betty,and a shipping container-turned-gallery called The Capsule.
Divisible, a project space for artists to experiment, is a creative collaboration between partner artists Heather Jones and Jeffrey Cortland Jones. Shows are curated by the latter, a Professor of Art at the University of Dayton and a non-objective painter who exhibits at galleries across the U.S. and Europe.
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Lori Daugherty runs Darty Art Studio, a gallery showcasing her abstract encaustic paintings. Husband and fellow artist Jon Daugherty shows in the gallery as well.
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Credit: Hannah Kasper
“There is something cool behind every one of those doors. If it’s an open house night, even if it’s cracked — push the door open. You never know what you’ll find on the other side,” said Jon.
“It’s all about community,” said Lori.
Mary Reaman, owner of TLC Within, is a painter, poet, and facilitator of meditation workshops.
“Even I haven’t been into all the buildings,” she said.
Reaman, who has a doctorate in Spirituality, started painting in 1998 as part of her studies.
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Credit: Hannah Kasper
“Part of the reason I do what I do is because I feel like we have to relax and play, because that helps us heal. In these times we can’t rely on what’s coming to us externally, we have to listen to our inner self.”
Down the hall is Sharon Stolzenberger who has had a studio at Front Street for 25 years. A commercial artist who has illustrated greeting cards for the Cincinnati Zoo, her realistic watercolors of flora and fauna adorn her light-filled studio.
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Bob Ruzinsky owns Restoration Leftovers, a cavernous showroom full of re-purposed architectural salvage that he collected more than 25 years of restoring historic houses.
“I had five garage bays full of renovation materials. It’s evolved into an artsy thrift store,” he said.
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Just down the hall is Vagabond Studio, which comes alive as a music venue on First Fridays and publishes a free magazine about the local music scene.
Julie Riley, a well-known local painter who is President of the Dayton Society of Artists, has a studio filled with colorful canvases. Her space is near the entrance to Building 100 where she welcomes visitors for conversation about the art.
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Next door is Dan Wells, who summed up his appreciation of the Front Street community.
“Everybody that’s part of Front Street has created the ability for us to bring this incredibly unique energy to the city.”
Credit: Hannah Kasper
Credit: Hannah Kasper
This is just a microcosm of the talent within Front Street. For the full list of tenants, check out frontstreet.art/pages/tenant-directory
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