BMORE Inspired at Station North Arts District

Posted on by AIGA Baltimore

If you’re looking for an art-centric destination that is more than a one-stop shop then consider spending your day in the Station North Arts District. Located in the heart of the city, Station North has something for everyone—even the non-designer in your life.

Founded in 2002, Station North is the home of the first State designated Arts & Entertainment District in Baltimore. One of 22 in the State of Maryland, the five block radius that is Station North is home to dozens of projects, installations, local galleries and cafes. While it’s hard to pick just one, here are a few of the highlights.

Open Walls
For the street art fan, the neighborhood is scattered with large, vibrant wall murals as part of the Open Walls project. Kicking off in 2012, Station North joined forces with local artist Gaia to produce the project, which features nearly two dozen murals and art installations.

Tapping the talents of local and global artists of all backgrounds and nationalities, the project succeeded at and surpassed its goal of invigorating the city and bringing art into a community that would otherwise have just another exposed brick wall. Over two months, Open Walls earned several “Best Of” awards from the Baltimore City Paper as well as features in the Washington Post and New York Times.

Credit: <a href="http://stationnorth.org/" target="_blank">stationnorth.org</a>
Credit: stationnorth.org

More than three years after its inception, the murals can still be found and admired by the public. Spanning several blocks surrounding North Avenue, Open Walls makes for a great self-guided tour. A catalog of the project is also available from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) bookstore.

The Charles
For the movie fan, consider seeing a show at The Charles Theater. The 1150-seat historic, multi-screen theater shows new releases as well as classics, as part of its revival series. The building itself was designed in 1892 by architect Jackson C. Gott and went through many purposes in its life, including a streetcar barn, library and ballroom. Even through its 100+ year lifespan, the integrity of the main auditorium remains mostly untouched since it was originally dubbed the Times Theatre in 1939. The Charles is also home to family friendly anime and movie nights.

Credit: <a href="http://thecharles.com/">The Charles</a>
Credit: The Charles

Red Emma’s
The Station North Arts District is also home to several local eateries too. If you are in the mood for house roasted coffee and an all vegetarian menu, consider stopping by Red Emma’s.

Credit: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/nicknormal/">Nick Normal</a>
Credit: Nick Normal

On the corner of Maryland and North Avenues, Red Emma is not just a coffee shop. Owned by its employees, Red Emma’s houses a bookshop, complete with radical, small press books, as well as regular schedule of community fueled talks, workshops and author events. Promoting a “no-hate, everyone is welcome” environment as one of their core values, Red Emma’s makes for a relaxing stop within the Arts District.

This post is part 3 of our “Bmore Inspired in Baltimore” series. See part 1 and part 2 here.

Image Credit: stationnorth.org

Shannon Crabill is an HTML Email Developer at T. Rowe Price. Outside of the Internet you can find her riding her motorcycle and binge-watching home improvement shows on HGTV. Tweet her at @shannon_crabill.

BMORE Inspired at the AVAM

Posted on by AIGA Baltimore

If you’re looking for somewhere to go in Baltimore to satisfy your desire for the unconventional, look no further than the American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM). The AVAM, located at 800 Key Highway in Federal Hill, is the place to go to see art that you might not see anywhere else.

The museum was established in 1995 as a place to display and preserve outsider art and has been designated by Congress as the national museum for self ­taught art. Even a cursory glance will tell you that this is no ordinary museum, as visitors are greeted with a stunning mirror mosaic on the exterior walls. The AVAM’s other permanent installations include the Giant Whirligig, a massive, wind ­powered, outdoor sculpture; the World’s First Family of Robots, a collection of robots made from salvaged parts of old electronics; and Baltimore Painted Screens and Row home Theater, a historical tradition and folk art born right here in Baltimore.

3687600761_f0c8f30994_z
Image Credit: Erica

Each year, the museum holds one main exhibition embodying a particular theme, ranging anywhere from We Are Not Alone Angels and Other Aliens to The Marriage of Art, Science, and Philosophy to The Art of Storytelling: Lies, Enchantment, Humor, and Truth. The AVAM describes its current exhibit, The BigHope Show, as:

“An original and unabashedly idealistic art exhibition that champions the radiant and transformative power of hope. Over twenty ­five visionary artists, among them many “super survivors” of enormous personal traumas, exhibit soulful creations reflecting their personal transcendence, and, often, a heightened or newfound creativity and sense of humor.”

The Big Hope Show runs until September 4, 2016. In addition to their regular exhibits, the AVAM is regularly involved in community efforts, often sponsoring local artistic events, such art car events and the annual East Coast Championship Kinetic Sculpture Race.

8712934144_cd204ee27e_z
Image Credit: callison-burch

The AVAM’s dedication to unconventional art makes it a quintessential Baltimore landmark. Anyone with an artistic side would do themselves a disservice to not visit this one of a kind museum.

This post is part 2 of our “Bmore Inspired in Baltimore” series. See part 1 here.

Image Credit: Andrew Hazlett

Mitch is a volunteer copywriter for AIGA Baltimore. In the real world, he’s usually indulging in
gaming of some kind, controller or dice in hand. Find him on Twitter at @mc_mittens.

And The Winners Are…

Posted on by AIGA Baltimore
After drooling over very colorful and inspiring workspaces of the AIGA Baltimore Instagram community, it is finally time to announce the winners of last month’s Instagram challenge. DRUMROLL, please! May we present:

 

Emilee Beeson:

http://instagram.com/p/zqqWxoO555/

 

and Tiff Mason:

 

http://instagram.com/p/ys3d–xC2Q/

 

Congratulations to Emilee and Tiff! They each won a 1-year subscription to Skillshare!

 

We’d like to give all our challenge participants a BIG THANKS for sharing your workspaces with us. We loved seeing where you work, your colorful walls, pretty posters, creative desktop backgrounds, and awesome adaptations of our challenge hashtag, #bmoreAIGA100. To see all the entries, head over to Instagram and search the hashtag #bmoreAIGA100, and stay tuned for more challenges and Skillshare giveaways!

 

Now that we’re feeling workspace inspired, how about joining us for a mix-and-mingle at Price Modern on Tuesday this week?

 

20150310_workspaces_1000x600

We’re getting together to dive deep into the topic of designing creative workspaces and we want you to come join us! Light refreshments will be provided, and we may head over to the Ottobar afterwards, too. See you there!

There and Back Again (or, How to Get to and from Design Week)

Posted on by AIGA Baltimore

We’ve got Design Week events going on all over the Baltimore metro area this year! From Owings Mills down to Columbia, we’re spreading our wings—and the love.

Some of you might be pondering your transportation options for our events. (You’re coming to every event, right??) So we’re here to help!

First off, we’re happy to announce that we’ve partnered with spanking-new ride-sharing service Lyft (of fuzzy pink car-mustache fame) to offer discounted rides to all guests for the Charm City Type Race and INTERACT panel discussion. Just download the app and enter the code AIGA under “payment” to receive $10 of free credit towards your ride. Learn more about Lyft here.

Another great option if you’re in the city is to use the Charm City Circulator. This free shuttle service runs through several of the city’s main corridors and would be an excellent choice for getting back to the starting point from the end point of the Type Race. You could also use it to get to our 25th Anniversary Party in Fells Point or the the Refresh Baltimore panel at MICA. County folks can connect to the Circulator via the MTA’s Light Rail service.

Alternatively, if you want a scenic, relaxing transportation option and aren’t in a time crunch, you could try out Baltimore’s Water Taxi service. It docks at several spots around the Inner Harbor. After the Type Race, wouldn’t it be nice to take a sea cruise back to Locust Point?

Parking

We always recommend carpooling when you can because it’s not only green, it’s less frustrating—instead of each of you finding your own parking spot, you only have to find one!

Some of our events feature street-only parking: the Charm City Type Race, INTERACT panel discussion, and studio tour at Gilah Press + Design. We recommend leaving yourself plenty of time to park for these events. If you end up arriving early, no worries. We’ll be happy to welcome you into the event.

For the Type Design for Non-Type Designers workshop on Tuesday, there will be plenty of free parking available at Stevenson University’s School of Design. Just make sure you account for rush hour traffic!

Whether you’re carpooling or not, you’ll also find street parking in Fells Point for our 25th Anniversary Party. If you can’t snag a street spot, there’s always the garage on Thames Street, which is pretty darn cheap and just a couple of blocks away. The garage is also an option if street parking is unavailable for the Orange Element studio tour in the same area. However, you’ll find plenty of free parking in ADG Creative’s lot!

We’re looking forward to seeing all your shining faces at these events. Let’s make Baltimore’s second annual Design Week awesome!

Touring Baltimore Print Studios

Posted on by AIGA Baltimore

On Tuesday, August 6, thirty AIGA Baltimore members and friends stopped in to Baltimore Print Studios on North Avenue ready to put ink to paper. Each attendee was given opportunities for some hands-on tasks, including hand pressing coasters, running off posters on an antique machine, and even putting together a cut-and-assemble mini Vandercook press.

Kim and Kyle, the proprietors of Baltimore Print Studios, were on hand to give demos, talk about background history, and answer attendees’ questions. While they do offer printing services, the studio also teaches classes in both printmaking and screen-printing and is open to the public to rent by the hour. Featuring four 75-year-old presses, screen-printing materials, and drawers (and drawers) of woodblock type, they definitely cater to the do-it-yourself designer!

Did you miss the event? AIGA Baltimore members Justin and Giordana were gracious enough to take a video demonstrating how to use the Vandercook press.

Be sure to check out baltimoreprintstudios.com for their operating hours, their class schedule, and prints for sale. Make sure you follow them on Twitter @baltimoreprints and Instragram, too.

Want to see more pics? We’ve got more on our NEW Instagram site!

Greg Jericho spends an awfully lot of time designing for clients that do not exist at his equally fake company, Myopic! Studio.

Kate Lawless often daydreams about how she can make a full-time job out of what she does for AIGA Baltimore. When her head isn’t in the clouds, you can find her designing communications, digital signs, documentation, and online software demonstrations and interactive elearning for the operations department of a large healthcare company in Baltimore.