Cover Artist: Dane Shue - www.daneshueart.com
Arts Goggle 2022
Arts Goggle 2022 was a huge success with over 750+ artists, 20+ bands, good eats and a wide variety of craft makers in Fort Worth’s Near Southside. After a two-year hiatus, this year’s 1-day art extravaganza picked right up where they left off, filling 21 blocks with a cornucopia of things to see, buy, taste, and experience. Were post-COVID attendees bothered by the potential of crowds? Not at all. For hours and hours on end, Arts Goggle’s tent-lined streets were packed with pedestrians that I have only seen rivaled on Bourbon Street on Fat Tuesday!
Upon arriving at this family friendly event, we charted our course and navigated our way through the crowds of people and dogs. It is always thrilling to see so many artists in one place and of course, all the smiling faces. First things first, I grabbed a wine spritzer from Tony Green, the unofficial Mayor of Near Southside, at The Magnolia Wine Bar, and danced a bit to the live DJ while being surrounded by bubbles! The magical afternoon has begun!
I met a lot of new people and ran into many others that I knew. My first “new artist” encounter was with Christopher Ryan Morris. His set up was certainly an attention-getter: he brought in a small RV that housed some of his art for sale. Christopher had some very specialized artwork that beautifully captured the local Fort Worth Cultural District: The Modern Museum, the Kimbell Museum, and more (as well as having some fun Star Wars pieces)! He is a licensed architect that resides in Fort Worth and says that he represents “all things creative.”
Heriberto Martinez had a booth selling futuristic neon stickers and illustrations. He tells me that his business has been in existence less than a year, and even he is amazed with its success so far. It’s so wonderful to speak with excited and passionate artisans!
One of the more unique things I came across was a vendor who crafted cowboy boots into bird houses. I mean… how clever is that? There was also Chancellor “Chance” Harris with his spray paint Pop Art with images of Prince, Chucky & a variety of well-known athletes. Chance had so many pieces…it was very impressive!
It was time for margarita refreshments from the local Mexican restaurant, Taqueria San Andres, before continuing on our art tour. I run into my dear friend and artist Lady Di, standing in her booth, crowded with interested buyers. If you don’t know Di, she has 7 murals in Sundance Square and is becoming quite famous in town. And I’m not just saying this because I own a few of her pieces! She told me that she nearly sold out at Arts Google! Holy cow 🙌
Brad Antifolk is a well-known fixture in DFW, and as usual, was selling his work like hot cakes. I picked up a few prints for myself. He recently got back from Los Angeles’ “The Other Art Fair” and will be showing at Dallas’ TOAF on May 12th-15th, so definitely go see him! Usually, artists get a free or discount promo code, so hit up Brad for more details!
Sinaca Studios was doing glass blowing demonstrations throughout the day, and luckily, we got to catch one. Wow, that level of skill and craftsmanship is incredible (and dangerous)! You might recall that I recently wrote about them in regard to the new community art space that opened in Near Southside called The Pool, where the work of their artists was being shown. Sinaca offers classes to the public, and I will absolutely be participating sometime soon! My piece will probably not be worthy of putting up for sale, but that’s okay. If at the conclusion of my class, I manage to return to my home, not to a hospital’s burn unit, it will be a win for me. 😉 The glass blowing demo was toasty hot, so I cooled down with some iced coffee from Cherry Coffee while my son gobbled up a huge, puffy cloud of freshly spun cotton candy (don’t judge, it’s one of Buddy the Elf’s four main food groups!).
I then wandered over to artist Choke’s booth and purchased an awesome handbag that looks like a giant leaf with a ladybug on it! Her business is called Brooha Market and she was serving up some specialty herbal teas for visitors as well. Choke’s website states, “We are celebrators of the ancestral cultures of healers, especially women of color, and seek to preserve and protect their heritage. Culture is the crux of BrooHa Market’s mission as a business”. Love her and all that she’s brings to the art community!
As I wrapped up the afternoon, I stopped to chat with the wonderful people at Arts Fort Worth, whose booth was set up with a children’s activity and had a live performance by an opera singer. It was a beautiful moment watching everyone stop and listen, their mouths agape in awe.
I was equal parts amazed and thrilled with the turnout, with the quality and variety of art, and genuinely proud to see the support the artists were receiving! Arts Goggle 2022 was a huge hit, and I’m so grateful I didn’t miss it. 👏
Article & Photos by: Mouty Shackelford
note: all images are cropped square & may be a partial representation of the art.
