The Benton Harbor Arts Association is planning something new for the next Art Hop, set for April 18 in the Benton Harbor Arts District.
Association Vice President Al Baker tells us they’re mixing things up, holding the Art Hop on a Saturday, instead of the usual Friday, to make it easier for people to attend.
“We’re finding that the people are getting busier and busier in the after work hours,” Baker said. “On a Friday, it’s kind of hard to bring people in. So we also wanted to be more interactive. We’re trying to theme our events more.”
The theme for the Art Hop this month is “Rooted in Art,” an interactive experience that will give visitors a chance to try art themselves at just about every stop. Baker says several popular destinations will have something for guests to do.
“We have things like the Oak Room are going to be doing some dance presentations. Water Street Glassworks is going to be doing a community piece where you take something and you make it and then they’re going to put it all into a glass vase.”
Baker says the Benton Harbor Public Library will also showcase the work of renown artist Richard Hunt. The late Hunt had strong, longtime ties to the community.
“They have a few of Richard Hunt’s art pieces and they only bring them out only so often, so they’re going to be doing that. They’re also going to have an interactive part, too, which we haven’t locked down yet. But the big thing there is that if you’ve never seen Richard Hunt’s art…He’s a very prolific artist, someone you should definitely come out to see his work, and they only bring it out every so often, and they’ll be bringing it out for that event.”
In all, the art hop will have 12 regular stops and some additional pop-up locations. Baker invites everyone out to the Arts District between 12 and 4 p.m. on April 18 for this new art crawl experience.
Participating locations include: Phaseshifter Records, The Space In-Between Gallery, Harbor Pilates, The Oak Room at the Citadel, The GhostLight Theatre, Water Street Glassworks, the Benton Harbor Public Library, House of Plunge, Sourdough House & Coffee Bar, The Livery, and more.
