This month's Evolve2Advance bash, "Assemble," the latest in a series celebrating the convergence of visual art, music, food, and community, was one of those events whose status update should have read, "Come to SPACE right now for this very cool and under-attended event."
All of the senses were stimulated simultaneously. On several walls, VJ Foo projected colorful montage projections customized for the event, including participating artists' and DJs' names as well as photos and design work.
Local screen printers Zack Howard, Reuben Little, and Darrell Tapley had their printing set-up on several tables that spanned a whole side of the room. Passing by, you could watch them ink and squeegee screens over and over again as they pressed up a three-color poster for an upcoming Baltic Sea show.
Up on stage, local artists Bob Smyth and Pat Palmer were painting a mural, beginning with black lines and ending as a colorful eclectic piece.
To the left of the stage on the small riser various DJs played low-key hip-hop, soul, and electronica throughout the evening.
Included in the cost of admission was a full organic meal presented by the Beetroot Kitchen, a local caterer. The medley of couscous, rasta tostadas, Swiss chard, string beans, and fruit salad was not made from as many local ingredients as possible, and was delectable and beautifully presented.
While a goal of the event was to get audience participation going, the low attendance numbers didn't generate much. Rather, attendees largely watched creativity happening in unison, in many media. Some sat around on benches talking and casually eating their meals; others watched the process of screen printing first-hand; still others scanned the merch table and saw to new prints and apparel by local artists. Nothing was rushed, the music's volume was easy to talk over, and the vibe was good.
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