Every Thursday and Friday, Blank Space is open to artists who would like some studio space downtown. The hours were from 10AM to 11PM. This offers the public a chance to experience and view the artists at work. This move should bring more artists downtown and help enliven the downtown district. When I arrived one Thursday, Tracy Brurke and Maisy May Mars were hard at work.
Tracy does boldly painted portraits which are usually large in size. This day however she was working small and applying the paint more thickly and experimenting more. The painting she was working on was of a fashionable young girl with beautiful lips. She managed to finish up two of these quick studies while I was producing this sketch. I learned quite a bit from watching her work. Maisy was working on a picture of a wide eyed young girl. The eyes were bright green. Her whimsical work is on display now at Blank Space on a central column.
What is odd about the scene is that the women had to set up and paint on the ping pong table. The space isn’t quite set up yet with easels or drafting tables. The space is available on a first come first served basis. I sat up on a high stool and started to sketch. In the far corner of the next room a woman was threading thousands of optical threads through a white plastic board to create a light art piece.
Having this space open and available for artists on Thursday and Friday is a great idea. I hope in time more artists recognize the potential and take advantage of the opportunity.
