Last Thursday Without Cars?

Last month, a group of people really shook things up at Last Thursday in the Alberta Arts District, here in Portland. They parked and abandoned cars at each end of the art walk, effectively turning Alberta Street into a pedestrian zone. Then, they handed out the flyer below, which explains that they were simply trying to draw attention to the fact that Alberta should be closed to traffic during Last Thursdays.

This unusual event, at which local artists display and sell their work anywhere that they can find an open piece of sidewalk, has become increasingly popular, but has also experienced some growing pains. Last year, in response to a rowdy party that had absolutely nothing to do with the artists, the police took out their frustrations by disallowing anyone to display their work under canopies. Meaning, now our work has no protection from rain or, at this time of year, the scorching sun.

Well, July 31st is Last Thursday, and it will be interesting to see whether or not Alberta is motorized from 7 to 10 pm!

Etsy Artist of the day:

Today we'd like to introduce you to Etsy artist Vanessa from Austin, Texas. Her "fun and feminine" jewelry, including the two pieces shown above, can be purchased in her Etsy shop called
Designs by Vanessa.

Thanks for supporting Etsy artists and buying hand-made!