Art Walk showcases artists, music and play on July 3

The next monthly Art Walk of 2009 will be Friday, July 3, in the Downtown Fort Myers River District. Highlights of this month's Art Walk include new art exhibitions, a one-act play and performances by students from The Young Artists Awards Program.

July marks the 10th monthly Art Walk. The event was started by a group of art galleries and enthusiasts in October of 2008. Held the first Friday of every month from 6 to 10 p.m., Art Walk features local and national artwork in the downtown art galleries of the Fort Myers River District. The evening culminates with an after party at 10 p.m. The July after party will be held at H2 on Bay Street.

Participants in the monthly Art Walk include the Alliance for the Arts, Art League of Fort Myers, Arts for ACT Gallery and Boutique, ArtFest Fort Myers, Art of the Olympians, The Burroughs Home, The Butterfly Estates, daas Gallery, Enjewel, H2, Hotel Indigo, HOWL Gallery, Inspire!, The Oasis Luxury Condos, Potomac Bead Co., Sidney and Berne Davis Art Center, Space 39, Spirits of Bacchus and The Veranda Restaurant.

Highlights of the July 3 Art Walk include:

• Art League of Fort Myers: Summer Time fine arts show.

• Arts for ACT Gallery: Opening reception for exhibits featuring artists Chip Hoffman and the Paperboys, 15-year old photographer Joe Sabella, and the whimsical art of Terry Gardiner. A student singer from the Young Artists Awards Program will perform.

• The Burroughs Home: Exhibit featuring Richalene Kelsay's traditional watercolors and oils. Music will be provided by a Young Artists Awards Program performer.

• daas Gallery: Opening of an exhibit called "The Surreal Window: A Collection

of Visionary Works," featuring artists Sarah Edwardson, Willow, Piper Rudich, Annie Culbertson and Danielle Branchaud.

• HOWL Gallery: "True Until Death," contemporary and 1960's era concert posters. Features signed work by some of rock's best poster artists, including Bob Masse, Aesthetic Apparatus, Bridey Bowen, Gary Grimshaw, Leia Bell and others.

• Space 39: Temporarily closed for remodeling.

• Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center: A free, oneact play called "Variations on the Death of Trotsky," starting at 7 and 8:30 p.m.

Also that evening is the weekly Friday Night Live in the Patio de Leon. Memphis 56 will perform from 6 to 9 p.m. Many restaurants and other businesses will be open and offering various specials before and after Art Walk. Art Walk buttons will be available at the galleries that night. A free shuttle service, with stops planned near the art venues, and free parking at the Harborside Event Center will be available for Art Walk patrons. A map of Art Walk, transportation, and parking will be available at participating galleries. For more information, visit www.fortmyersartwalk. com.