November 2nd marks the beginning of a year long celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the First Thursday Artwalk. Congratulations to all those whose hard work and dedication has brought about a very special community event. The free Artwalk Tour gives a one hour sample of the diverse art scene in San Pedro, visiting about 3 galleries/studios. The tour gathers at 6:30 in the Chamber of Commerce Board Room Gallery.

The first stop will be the Menduina Schneider Gallery, specializing in Latin American artists. Their featured artist is Rosana Ruiz, from Argentina. Her show is “Between Diversity”. The Menduiña Schneider Art Gallery was born out of the mutual passion for the arts that both owners share. Alejandra Schneider, an accomplished Artist, Curator and Teacher, and her husband Jorge Schneider, a writer and artist too, first came up with the idea for a gallery when they realized that they both shared an equally love for the Arts.

San Pedro is home to the talented and well known sculptor, Hiroko. Her primary work has been in bronze and stone, and the pieces are expressions of Hiroko’s interest in the human relationship between the internal and external, exploring hidden emotional webs. communication. Recently, Hiroko has begun to play with small ceramic pieces, with a more playful message. She describes these with words like “worth, cuddlesome, lovingly, smile, kind words, playfully, all we share”. Each pot is inscribed with an image reflecting those words. Hiroko has been a sculptor since the early 1990’s, and opened her studio/gallery in 1998. Her work has been exhibited in many places, including New York, Chicago, Hollywood, France, and of course, San Pedro.

The last stop is to see a special addition to the Celebration of the 20th Anniversary – a video being shown in the Garden Church’s beautiful growing space in the center of the Arts District.

After the tour, you have plenty of time to enjoy a meal or glass of wine with entertainment at one of the many of the popular independent restaurants in San Pedro, and explore other art venues on your own.

Each month the Artwalk tour starts at 6:30, meeting at the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce, 390 W. 7th Street. Contact FirstthursdaySPtour@gmail.com to receive monthly Artwalk Tour information by email.

Crafted at the Port of Los Angeles: Join us for San Pedro’s First Thursdays! You can leave your car here and ride the FREE red trolley to and around Downtown to make sure you see all the sites. The trolley will run about every 15 minutes from 4 to 10 p.m. Here is the route and schedule for First Thursdays. You can pick up your car until 10 p.m. or the next day. Every First Thursday is a new and fun experience, so come down and join us! Crafted is open from 4-8 pm Be sure and check out the new booths for the San Pedro Art Association. They are pulling up stakes and heading down the aisle to where they held the last Harbor-Wide All Grades Student Art Exhibitions. They now have eleven booth spaces to market art work as well as hold classes and events. It also means that they will need a few more artists to help stock the gallery space as well as start giving some classes and demos.

World Stage: Mid Life Crisis will be rocking the World Stage from 7 – 9pm!

Restaurants: You’re in for a real treat visiting San Pedro’s restaurants. Try one you’ve never been to before. We’re looking forward to sampling another one of the Downtown’s unique restaurants in October. The cuisine ranges from English Pub to Mexican Cafes, Mediterranean to Italian, Japanese to California Cuisine, Thai, Organic Raw Vegan Cuisine, Cuban and Seafood. Plan on visiting a new or favorite restaurant when you visit. The new kid on the block “Pappy’s Seafood” will soon become one of your favorite downtown restaurants.

Shops: Take a walk down memory lane visiting art galleries and shops along 6th and 7th Streets. The “Tivoli Lights” crisscrossing the streets makes it feel like you’re going to a special party and set the mood for a fun evening. Live music and food trucks add to the festive atmosphere. It is a wonderful free event with new experiences every month.