Oceanside’s First Friday Art Walk, Oceanside, California

Oceanside has taken art to a new level, and you can take advantage of it by visiting their First Friday Art Walk. Every month on the first Friday, from 5 to 9 pm, the streets come alive with live music, artists, food, and lots of art displays…and it’s all free! Not just at the galleries, but on the street, in parking lots, alleys, restaurants, and inside several businesses. When my husband and I arrived at about 6:00 pm, the First Friday Art Walk was in full swing!

I’d say the center of activities was the intersection of Pier View Way and N. Freeman Street in Oceanside. The Oceanside Public Library is right there, as well as Artist Alley and the Oceanside Museum of Art.

When we arrived, we found free parking easily on S. Coast Hwy, right next to the library. There are several locations where you can pick up a map to show you all the galleries and businesses that are participating. We picked ours up at Artist Alley.

A little bit of everything. And it’s not just displayed art. Part of the fun was hearing the different bands playing as we walked along the streets. We saw paintings displayed, artists creating sculptures and various art media, street art on the sides of buildings, murals, carvings, photography, ceramics, and a reception for the FilAm Art Alive Festival. There was even an impromptu group of drummers playing. You can sit down and join in if you want to! ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).