Newport, RI, has an incredible gallery scene and deserves a robust gallery night. There’s a lot of passion to see it succeed, but it’s a program still figuring things out.
On Thursday night, I checked out Art Trolley and Gallery Night in Newport, a fairly new event with the purpose of providing a platform for the many galleries throughout the City by the Sea. Managed by the Newport Artists Collective, the effort is meant to bolster the thriving Newport art scene in ways that artists can connect, collaborate and display their work while engaging with the community.
What worked?
I was impressed by the number of galleries which have become part of the collective, over 40 in total, and the map materials handed out at each of the galleries. You can find the glossy maps in a lot of spots around Newport and they include convenient QR codes for a more detailed Google map with the entire list of participating galleries, as well as an another QR code to learn more about the collective. I liked the beautifully designed map and found following along in Google Maps on my phone super easy to navigate.
“Newport should be on the map as an art destination,” said Curtis Speer, Chairman of the collective’s Board and President, and owner of CUSP Gallery and Lifestyle on the corner of Broadway and Spring St. He’s been instrumental in revitalizing Gallery Night in Newport after some dormancy. “You have the mansions and the boats and the balls and the galleries and the Jazz Festival. We can be everything to everybody because it’s all here. The talent is here.
“They’re serious about what they do. They’re passionate about what they do,” Speer added.
The artist also runs the invigorating art salon night on Thursdays in “The Living Room” on the grand second floor of the Brenton Hotel. This event happens every Thursday and has been tremendously successful, with a full house, even during the less busy winter months. Began last October, the salon features (usually) a single artist on the night and runs from 5-7 p.m. every Thursday.
“I think we’ve accomplished a lot in less than a year,” said Speer about the success of the art salon. “We saw how successful it became. I mean, it was almost overnight. We’re like, ‘Oh, we’re onto something,’” he added.
While the enthusiasm for the Brenton Hotel art salon has been unquestionable, Speer is hoping to piggyback on that success to build up the gallery night, which began in January of this year.
You can catch the art trolley right outside the Brenton, it’s the starting point of the gallery tour.
“it’s taken a long time to sort of have the right momentum to get like a gallery night working with enough excitement,” said Alexander Nesbitt, who’s managed his photography studio on Thames for about 20 years.
What’s a challenge that intrigued me?
The gallery tour is also serviced by the trolley provided by the collective. I loved this idea, but I didn’t end up using it. One reason for that was that I focused on some of the art galleries on Thames, where the trolley doesn’t run, it tends to stay on the bigger streets such as Broadway and America’s Cup Ave.
“It really should work,” said Nesbitt about the excitement that gallery night is generating. “So I think the excitement just needs to overcome the geography,” he added, saying that the previous gallery night effort had became disrupted by COVID.
Another reason I missed the trolley was because I got caught up interviewing various gallery managers so I couldn’t really hop on and off to hit more venues—I plan to do this next time. And once I didn’t elect to join the trolley, I didn’t know where to find it again, which brings me to one of the issues with the service. If the collective can figure out a way to make it more obvious how to catch it and where, it will be a huge boon for gallery night, especially if you want to hit some of the venues a bit further off the beaten path, such as the DeBlois Gallery in Middletown. The trolley was hired by the collective to cover the areas where the galleries are located and it has the hallmarks of becoming a terrific asset.
“I think it’s a great thing and it’s working,” said Jessica Hagen, who’s been running Jessica Hagen Fine Art & Design for almost 20 years, now located on Bridge St. “And all of us really owe a big debt of gratitude to Curtis Speer,” she added.
Speer also served as the first docent on the trolley, educating the public about each of the venues.
And this brought up another point, I had no idea that a knowledgeable docent was part of the process! It’s a different docent each time and this resource provides information about the galleries and the area. It’s a fantastic way to get to know the gallery scene in Newport and it’s completely free! Now I felt super bummed that I had missed it. But I plan on hopping on board the next time.
There’s talk of possibly adding a second trolley, which would be even more convenient. It’s expensive to hire two, but the collective is looking at fundraising options for this possibility.
“We’re in such a supportive community,” said Speer about his hopeful fundraising efforts.
Or perhaps a way to let folks know where they can catch the trolley interactively, that would also help. There’s a stop right outside of CUSP on Broadway and that’s a very convenient place to hop on board and hit a bunch of venues in the area.
Plan your trek strategically
As of now there are a lot of galleries included and while we love the variety, you definitely need to choose your strategy wisely. It’s just not possible to hit all 41 galleries in one night. When I first glanced at the full list of galleries, I honestly felt a bit overwhelmed. However, once I decided to focus on a specific area, my trek went well.
“A lot of other people are jumping on board that aren’t really part of gallery night, but Thursday night is now known as an arts thing,” said Hagen about the other offerings being added to Gallery Night, all of which she sees as positive developments. “So there’s open studios. I mean, the more the merrier.”
The gallery night process is evolving. For smaller galleries, the trolley and art night can be a great way for the public to get newly acquainted with venues such as Sitka, which took over the intimate space next to Franklin Spa last year.
“We’re really excited because one family came in said they had been wanting to come by, wanting to do gallery night, and hadn’t had the opportunity. So it was proof to us that it’s working,” said Tamar Russell-Brown, Board Member and Vice President of the collective, on Sunday, during the opening of her exciting all-women artists show, “Art with Intention,” in partnership with the National Association of Women Artists-Massachusetts (NAWAMA).
“We had our guests walk too, but I think some of the people that night had people come on the trolley, so it did work,” Russell-Brown added.
Yet for others, such as Overlap, gallery night has proven more of a challenge. The innovative gallery didn’t see many visitors on Thursday, but when I attended the opening of their “Garden Magic” exhibition on Saturday, the modern space was packed with enthusiasts. It leads me to think that including the harder-to-reach galleries presents a challenge that requires more detailed planning. Galleries such as Overlap are well worth discovering.
Overlap’s ‘Garden Magic’ show, which had its opening on Saturday, Aug. 10. Credit: Veronica Bruno / What’sUpNewp
Overall, though, I enjoyed the process of visiting as many welcoming galleries as I could. I got to know several venues I hadn’t seen before and the trolley is a terrific asset that I look forward to discovering, especially with the fun addition of learning more from an expert docent.
There’s a lot going on in the robust Newport summer. The Art Trolley and Gallery Night is definitely something to check out.
The remaining gallery nights are:
- Sept. 5
- Oct. 10
- Nov. 7
- Dec. 5
For more information about the Newport Artists Collective, you can visit their website.