The sounds of holiday music mingled with the smells of local food vendors along Main Street at last night’s First Thursday celebration.
Red, green and white lights set the stage for vendors and shoppers searching for artsy gifts or simply wandering with friends at the latest installment of the monthly arts celebration. Also among the First Thursday revelers were ice skaters at the Boyd Plaza skating rink outside the Columbia Museum of Art.
For S&S Art Supply on the 1600 block of Main Street, Thursday night was one of its last chances to welcome the public before it closes later this month.
Eight local artists’ works were on display above their near-empty shelves, and the Plowboys played outside the storefront. The store — which sold half of its remaining merchandise to a single buyer earlier in the day, owner Eric Stockard said — has hosted local artists at First Thursdays every month since its move to Main Street in June 2011.
First Thursdays on Main was started in 2009 by Frame of Mind owner Mark Plessinger, who began hosting monthly art shows at his specialty eyewear store. The event has since grown to a three-block community party showcasing local arts.