Gallery Stroll: Living the Authentic Life: Stroll, Ride, Stroll

With today’s global Internet content, instant Twitter feeds, social media boasting and a sickening amount of over-sharing, I find more and more people looking for an authentic experience—something they can’t manipulate or recreate online. They seek a movement, a cause or an event they can get behind that will connect them to their community, where they can actually see results locally. For those people, I offer you Gallery Stroll—a chance to celebrate the thriving arts community, engage with the makers and keep your money local by purchasing a piece of original, authentic art

Lucky for you, the most original fund- and friend-raiser in Utah, the 300 Plates Show at Art Access, takes place this month. Aluminum printing plates offer a uniform template for local artist to create mini masterpieces. Art Access Executive Director Sheryl Gillilan is very pleased with how popular this event has become in the community, and how well their 30th anniversary is shaping up. She says, “We’ve got almost 160 artists participating and have expanded our silent auction because we have so many beautiful pieces of art. There will be some fabulous choices of art at all prices, which helps us fulfill our mission of making art accessible to everyone.” For those eager to get their hands on these exceptionally priced pieces, don’t wait for the public showing on Friday’s Gallery Stroll—buck up for the Thursday-night grand opening event on May 15. Tickets include food, drinks, bike valet from the Bicycle Collective and three minutes in the gallery to nab your favorite piece—I told you it’s a unique event. To get tickets, visit accessart.org.

In honor of bike month, I’m not going to stroll this month—I’m going to ride, and I hope you’ll join me for SLUG Magazine’s first Gallery Ride. Our ride will begin on May 16 from the UTA Bike Bonanza held at the Gallivan Center. We’ll depart from the SLUG booth at 5:30 p.m. Come early and enjoy the Bonanza, which features food, drinks and activities for all ages from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. From the Gallivan Center, we’ll travel to Mod a-go-go on 242 E. South Temple. Departing Mod a-go-go at 6:30 p.m., we’ll travel to the Slusser Gallery at 447 E. 100 S. From the Slusser Gallery, we’ll make our way to 200 E. and 200 S. to explore the Mountain West Fine Art and CUAC Gallery at 7:15 p.m. Be careful not to wander too far and fall prey to the tasty beer at Beer Bar because, at 8 p.m., we’re off to the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art (UMOCA) located at 20 S. West Temple. This should give us just enough time to catch a glimpse of all three of the exhibit halls. I don’t want people to feel rushed, but I hope that everyone has an opportunity to see the variety and scope Salt Lake galleries have to offer. It promises to be a fun-filled evening of new experiences, new friends and lots of new art. We’ll give you something worth