4
edits
Changes
updated locations of gallery nights and logo designer.
{{for|the annual event in [[downtown Milton]]|Gallery Night (Milton)}}
'''Gallery Night''' is a free event held several times a year in [[downtown Pensacola]] during which [[:Category:Art galleries|art galleries]] and other establishments open their doors on Friday evenings from 5 to 9 p.m. for a variety of activities including art viewing, wine tasting and live music. The events are sponsored by the Pensacola Downtown Improvement Board ([[DIB]]). The [[Downtown Arts District Association]] (DADA), which held the first Gallery Night in [[1991]] with eight participating galleries.<ref>"Gallery Night lights up downtown Pensacola." ''Pensacola News Journal'', November 19, 1999.</ref> The event has since grown to include over forty businesses and organizations along [[Palafox PlaceStreet]] and in the [[Belmont-DeVilliers]] and [[Historic Seville]] neighborhoods. In [[2008]], DADA and the [[Arts Council of Northwest Florida]] expanded the number of annual Gallery Nights from three to five. DIB began sponsoring Gallery Nights in 2010.
==History==
In January [[1991]], [[Andy Witt]] (executive director of the [[Arts Council of Northwest Florida]]), [[Susan Schmidt]] (owner of [[Schmidt's Framing]]) and [[Kathy Breazeale]] (co-owner of [[Bayfront Gallery]]) met to discuss a downtown event for arts businesses and organizations. The gallery walk theme, successful in other cities, became the inspiration for the events. Galleries, shops, museums and other downtown organizations were invited to participate in the newly formed [[Downtown Arts District Association]], as a member organization of the Arts Council. Each participating member business or organization paid to be a part of DADA, and paid for the expenses of hosting the events. [[E. W. Bullock Associates]] designed the logo for the new organization, which was used on posters, postcards and other promotional materials. In 2010, Clever Ogre designed the new logo.
It was decided that March, July and November would be the dates of the events, to coincide with [[spring break]], [[July 4]]th and [[Blue Angels]] schedules, and the Friday before the week of Thanksgiving, to kick off the holiday season.
The first gallery nights had the downtown area filled with balloons to indicate the location of DADA participants. The November event had candle filled luminarias to lead visitors up to the doors of DADA members for many years. Later, television and radio stations introduced live broadcasts during Gallery Nights to promote [[downtown Pensacola]].
==2009 2010 schedule==*March 2019*May 1521 (Special Edition with Pensacola Wine Festival)*July 109*September 1817*November 2019
==References==
[[Category:Festivals]]
[[Category:Calendar]] [[Category:2008/03/07]] [[Category:2008/052009/09]] [[Category:2008/07/11]] [[Category:2008/10/0318]] [[Category:2008/11/2120]]