Murphy Art Center

First Fridays are very cool. Ecclectic crowd, unique collection of artists, styles & interpretations. The Murphy Art Center itself combines vintage setting with a diverse array of digital , modern, alternative arts & expression. Even areas for vendors and a thrift shop with a DJ.

I've been here a couple of times but this time a friend is promoting their popcorn company! It was nice to support a self made company! The popcorn is delicious! La Margarita is below, defiantly worth a visit!

Pretty cool to go here during First Fridays! There was some awesome urban clothing, food, and art venders all throughout the maze-of-a-building! It was like a big party!Didn't get any photos unfortunately but that's cause they let me take my dog in! But next time!

This building definitely takes the winner of the "building with the most random yet somehow collaborative shops" award. Most people find themselves, including myself, for First Friday's. It's home to many, many shops, restaurants, art venues, and stages. It's definitely a very old building and it's beginning to show that after its high usage the past few years. Many local artworks (and lots of stickers) are all around the building. Heads up: it's not accessible, at all. Maybe the first floor, but that's about it. Just in the past few years I've gone here; it's been amazing to see the changes and different places popping up in here, some good, some horrible. All in all, a good place to wander around for First Friday but don't expect some luxurious arts center.

The Murphy building. The beating heart of Fountain Square. Pumping fresh, creative juices into neighborhood progress. This old-school five & dime superstore is now home to local organizations, artists, bars and restaurants that help promote urban development in the community.One day, I was in the square posting flyers and noticed the back doors had flyers in them. Upon entering, there's a hallway leading to Pure Eatery and a long hallway to my right. Curious. I made my way down the hallway and found a door in the left labeled "Hi-Fi - be prepared to show ID". At the end, you find another entrance to Red Lion Grog House. Then there was another door... A stairwell leading to the second floor. I climbed the creaking wooden stairs. Upon reaching the top, there's another hallway of studios marked with address numbers, similar to those found on houses. Each door representing a unique front. Next room, a gallery of contemporary art pieces. A vintage armchair and an old rotary phone that still works. Curiouser and curiouser! Keep going. You'll find the People for Urban Progress (PUP) studio, Blackline Studio, and some more places to set out postcards and flyers.Keep an eye out, kids! You never know what kind of adventures are awaiting you around the next corner.

It's incredible how one place can go through so many evolutions in just a decade or two, but the Murphy has done that and somehow limped along. In the early days, it was struggling to get a foothold on the Indy art scene but with a few events and some PR in the local press, it eventually found a place in many residents' hearts. During the 90s the center was, in my opinion, at it's height. There were three solid galleries, several well-known artists and - even with the lack of overall management or cohesiveness - a lot of well-attended Friday and Saturday full-building openings. But, as all things must, the Murphy then went through a downward spiral right after the 2003-2004 seasons. All of the ground-floor galleries shut down and left, never to be replaced by anything coming close to their former brightness (unless you count IMOCA, which is a museum, not a gallery). And, most importantly, the crowd noticeably shifted from a nice mix of 20-somethings, family-oriented older adults and empty-nesters (who actually purchase art ) to a throng of faux goth, club kids, outcasts and misfits who basically came for whatever free entertainment they could find. The anti-establishment piercings, tattoos, attitudes and other baggage scared off the well-heeled clientele and any hope of the Murphy ever getting back as a solid place to see or purchase great art. What the future holds is anyone's guess, but unless they attract some solid gallery blood, it's looking pretty dim.