For Immediate Release:
Date: April 27, 2015
Contact: Mary Hart, Gates Block Studios
Phone: (781) 856-4097
Email: mjhart206@gmail.com
Online: www.cultureiscool.org/downtown-lowell-first-thursdays
www.facebook.com/LowellFirstThursdays
Downtown Lowell First Thursdays Continues its Celebration of Art, Culture, and Music on Thursday, May 7, from 5-9 p.m.
Lowell, Massachusetts– “The four elements of western culture are Earth, Air, Fire, and Water. These four elements were believed to be essential to life. So is art.” Inspired by this introduction to the Ayer Lofts Gallery’s exhibit The Other Element, the five elements (including art), will be the theme of the Downtown Lowell First Thursday celebration on May 7, 2015, from 5 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Join us in downtown Lowell as art galleries, museums, businesses, and restaurants open their doors with special offerings each First Thursday. First Thursdays feature a variety of exhibit openings, special artist shows and presentations, musical performances, demonstrations, and more, all designed to highlight Lowell’s unique and diverse cultural scene. This year, First Thursday events and activities will take place from 5 – 9 p.m. on May 7, June 4, July 2, August 6, and September 3.
Catch three of May’s First Thursday highlights roving between galleries and businesses throughout the downtown. The Party Band, Lowell’s renowned brass ensemble, will bring their own energetic and exciting musical style to venues throughout the city from 6 – 8 p.m., starting at the Market Mills Courtyard next to the Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center. Models from the Loading Dock Gallery’s recent show, The Wearable Arts Extravaganza II, will parade from gallery to gallery, showcasing designers’ fashions and costumes inspired by the four elements of nature. The National Streetcar Museum will have the vintage 1924 New Orleans streetcar #966 rolling along the tracks and offering free rides from 5 p.m. until dusk. Music, fashion, art, and fun all come together on the streets of Lowell!
First Thursday will feature open galleries at the Ayer Lofts Gallery, Brush Art Gallery, Gates Block Studios, Arts League of Lowell, Zeitgeist, LTC Gallery, the Whistler House Museum of Art, and more. The millWORKS Gallery at Appleton Mills is hosting Spring is Color, a show of vibrant art from Appleton artists, with musical and poetic performances from 5 – 9 p.m. Perspectives 7: Session II, a selection of paintings and drawings from the Fine Arts Department at UMass Lowell, will open at the Arts Research Collaborative, with an artist reception from 6 – 8 p.m.
The Mandarin Asian Bistro will showcase the colorful and vibrant landscape paintings of Debra Bretton Robinson and will host a meet-and-greet with the artist from 6:30 – 8 p.m. Brew’d Awakening will be displaying photographs from students in the Lowell High School Compass photography program. Many other downtown restaurants have also partnered with First Thursdays and will be featuring special offers.
The Night Market will be open at Mill No. 5 from 5 – 11 p.m., featuring vendors of “vintage, handmade, and artisanal goods.” And while you’re there, enjoy Luna Sessions – live jazz with the best in local talent presented at Mill No. 5’s Luna Theater, starting at 8:30 p.m.
For schedules and complete details on the downtown participants, visit the Cultural Organization of Lowell website at www.cultureiscool.org/downtown-lowell-first-thursdays. Lowell National Historical Park’s Visitor Center at 246 Market Street is your hub for maps, schedules, and information, and will be open each First Thursday until 9 p.m. The Visitor Center will also be screening the park’s new 16-minute film Lowell: The Continuing Revolution every half hour throughout the evening. Free parking is available at the National Park lot at 304 Dutton Street, and paid parking is available at any of the downtown city garages.
