Live music, art, and food drew many

Echo Mayernik

The Broadside

On Apr. 2, a brisk day, hundreds braved the winds and snow flurries to tour the shops in the Downtown Shopping district here in Bend.
Wrapped tightly in jackets and clinging to plastic cups of fine wine samples, Bendites toured local business, art studios, and bookstores listening to live music and enjoying free cheese samples.
It was the Spring Art Hop, which also fell upon the “First Friday Art Walk”; the next Art Hop is October 1, and it also falls on a “First Friday Art Walk”.
While Art Hop is only held every six months, the first Friday Art Walk— an event that many shops in the Downtown area participate in—showcases live bands or local2-D and 3-D artists that are still getting their foot in the door, and is not an event to pass up. Many of the live bands that played the Art Hop also play in the shops the first Friday of each month.
AJ Cohen, owner of Local Joes on Wall Street, was just one of the musicians to grace the ears of locals last Friday night. His band, Slick Side Down, played a bit of Contemporary Jazz with a slightly classic -rock style.
Set up right in the window, Cohen and his band members entertained crowds inside and out. Cohen, who plays the keyboard, was joined by two of his three bandmates this weekend. Joe Plass: bass guitar, Andy Warr: saxophone, and Howard Clarke: drums (absent, playing recorded tracks in his stead).
When asked if they had any advice for upcoming musicians or artists, the members had only one word, “practice”. They added that playing publicly is a combination of practice and hard work.
Inside the store, they were offering sales and snacks. Cohen and his friends play the Art Hop every year, both events. They have been participating in the Art Hop for four years, and plan on continuing theirinvolvement.
The Mockingbird Art Gallery hosted Crescent Jazz; its members are, Rod Norman: drums, Jason Smith-Jackson: upright bass, and Rich Hurdle: guitar.
The music captivated dozens of art viewers at any given time throughout the evening. They have been participating in the First Friday Art Walk every month for nearly eight years, the fact that Friday was also the Art Hop was just frosting on the cake.
Hurdle suggested to new artists to “work hard, it isn’t a game…” Hurdle also felt it was important to “learn how to present yourself to different venues.”
Their style is modern jazz, and many of the pieces that they play each week are original compositions. Stepping away from the music scene, the Bend Bungalow hosted an independent artist by the name of Delia Paine, of Via Delia.
Paine creates classy and creative artistic buttons, key-chains, and other small items. Paine makes her buttons from vintage sheet music and wall paper. She has been selling her creations on viadelia.etsy.com for five years.
Paine’s business took off with a running start when she started designing Bend, Oregon themed buttons—a way to show pride in her city.

Soon after, her business boomed when she found her services needed by members of the Obama campaign team. Her experiences working on her biggest job yet, shaped her creativity and helped her with efficiency.

During the presidential campaign, Paine was commissioned to make over 30,000 Obama buttons, and even moved to Washington DC for the month of January.
The buttons were worn by many people in the campaign team and beyond.
She works from her website, and focuses on bulk custom orders. Striving to get her product into the hands of as many people as she can, as any businesswoman
would do.
Paine will be setting up a booth at the Central Oregon Saturday Market this summer.

You may contact Echo Mayernik at [email protected]