Sporting holiday decorations galore, Downtown Vero Beach welcomed residents and visitors to a combination Downtown Dine and Design Holiday Stroll south of Rte. 60, a Mad Potter’s Tea Party on the north side of the Twin Pairs, and the Worldwide Moments opening reception on Rte. 60. Raffle tickets were sold at various locations with proceeds to benefit Main Street Vero Beach and the Cultural Council of Indian River County.
On the south side of Rte. 60, in the 3-D District, galleries showed off their new exhibitions while businesses and restaurants offered a variety of enticements to attract people into their storefronts, including discount coupons and munchies. The downtown area continues to expand with additional art galleries. The Artists Guild Gallery has now moved onto 14th Avenue, joining Gallery 14, Tiger Lily Art Studio & Gallery, Tropic Art & Frame, Southeast Gallery of Photographic Art and Gallery RVS.
Further north, at the Theatre Plaza Building and lobby, potter and Tea & Chi owner Maria Sparsis led a group of artists offering their wares at the Mad Potter’s Tea Party. In addition to Sparsis, the event featured the works of potters Nancy Blair, Sea n Clinton, Stephanie Collison; Heidi Hill; Cosette Kelly, Lee McMillen, Chris Pierce; Valerie Risher, and Peggy Thomas; painters Rene Guerin and Elizabeth Stegenga and jewelry artist Linda Kline.
And finally, at the Southeast Gallery of Photographic Art on Rte. 60, gallery owners Scott Kelly and Boris Robinson hosted an opening reception for a Worldwide Moment exhibition. Worldwide Moment, originated by Brett Brownell in 2007, is a non-profit arts organization that encourages a worldwide collaboration, celebrating peace through photography. More than 1,200 photographs from around the world are on display, all taken at the same time – Wednesday September 9, 2009 at 9:09 a.m. in the +09GMT time zone (09.09.09+GMT@09:09). A portion of the proceeds from the exhibit will benefit The Smile Train and the Cultural Council of Indian River County. {igallery 109}
