When social distancing measures were put into place last month to limit the spread of coronavirus, members of the Baltimore arts community were some of the first to feel the economic effects.

With crowds limited to 250, then 50, then 10 before a stay-at-home order was instated, the likes of concerts, art exhibits, plays, and other performances were quickly postponed, then cancelled, bringing many city artists’ primary source of income to an abrupt halt overnight.

Almost immediately, individual artists and grassroots organizations, like artist-organizer Alanah Nichole and Necessary Tomorrows’ Sharayna Christmas, began crowdsourcing to help the creative community, inspiring the creation of the newly established Baltimore Artist Emergency Relief Fund.

“Artists are innately resilient and resourceful—they understand what it means to get by, to make the best of it, which sometimes means they don’t have safety nets,” says Maggie Villegas, executive director of the Baltimore Creatives Acceleration Network (BCAN), a city-wide initiative that supports artists creating works with limited resources. “We saw patterns of emergency response were emerging, and we started thinking about how we could coordinate resources, engage philanthropy, connect with the community, and support them.”

“We’re all trying to do better for Baltimore, and we’re stronger together,” says Jocquelyn Downs, arts council director for the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA).

Launched on Wednesday, the coalition-led grant fund—created in partnership with some 20 creative leaders, including the likes of BCAN, BOPA, the Maryland Institute College of Art, Open Works, Impact Hub, and several of the city’s arts and entertainment districts—will distribute one-time $500 grants to individual artists of every discipline, from painters and musicians to photographers and actors, who have faced financial hardship in the wake of COVID-19, such as cancelled shows or contracts. Grant funds can be used for the likes of food, shelter, medical expenses, creative supplies, and studio costs.

Since launching earlier this week, they have received more than 160 applications, via electronic submission and mail, which will be reviewed by an artist-based committee, and those approved should expect to receive checks within two weeks in hopes of alleviating immediate needs. The fund hopes to provide aid for some 250 artists, with three-quarters of its $125,000 fundraising goal raised thus far, and organizers are calling on the community for further donations, small and large.

Moving forward, they’re also hoping to use this process to better understand the needs of artists for the uncertain months ahead.

“We need to provide help now, but what are the next steps?,” says Downs, a writer and filmmaker, with BOPA currently compiling a list of other local and national resources on its website, including artist grants through the Maryland State Arts Council. “The art doesn’t stop, and artists are still creating, as they have through hardships in the past.”

Villegas, a former performing artist, agrees, stressing the importance of supporting the arts community especially in times of struggle.

“Artists contribute so much to our city—they help us tap into our humanity and process what it means to be alive, especially in times of crisis,” she says. “That’s why it’s so important that we support them now.”

It’s that time of the year when the city becomes a living art display featuring crazy sculptures, flashing lights, and interactive waterfront installations for the annual Light City Festival presented by the Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts (BOPA). The festival kicks off on April 6 and will span across three weekends.

While the beautiful giant egg, glowing seesaws, and illuminated peacock were crowd pleasers last year, the social innovation labs were thought-provoking, as well. And this year’s panels, called Labs@Light City, will be no different. From April 18-21 at the IMET Columbus Center, the conferences will feature discussions from more than 140 innovative thinkers including Baltimore Rising producer Sonja Sohn, health commissioner Dr. Leana Wen, chef Dave Thomas of Ida B’s Table, and activist DeRay Mckesson.

“The overarching theme of all seven of the labs is how to become a more fair and just society,” labs organizer Jamie McDonald said, referencing the art, education, food, social, environment, maker, and health themes. “We look at social innovation through the lenses of each of these topic areas—that’s what makes this conference so unique. Our whole philosophy is that there’s brilliance everywhere.”

This year locals can also expect a few changes to the labs including the cost of the tickets. Last year, admission was $149 for one lab and $99 for each additional. BOPA is highlighting a “pay what you can” model for each session. McDonald said that it’s always been the case, but jokingly admits that it took BOPA three years to perfect the language.

“We want everyone who wants to attend to attend,” she said. “We decided that we didn’t want to make it feel like you had to go through a special process to attend. This gave us a way to say to everyone, ‘Come and be part of the conversation, join us at the labs, and pay what you can.’ It’s one simple message and it’s worked a lot better.” 

Another thing to look out for is a change in the frequency and duration of the labs. Instead of full-day sessions, the sessions will only last four hours. Also, the popular DesignLab from last year that covered a broad range of topics from art to digital media has been split into two separate sessions—an ArtLab and a MakerLab—to provide a more concentrated discussion on each.

“Art in Baltimore, particularly art as it relates to social impact and social commentary, did really good on its own and warranted an art-focused lab,” McDonald said. “Makers, similarly, have become a really important thing in Baltimore and in cities around the country and we wanted to highlight that.”

Author and entrepreneur Shanti Das is excited to be a part of the new MakerLab and plans to share her successes, failures, and experiences on April 20. 

“When you look at a lot of the racial and socioeconomic issues that Baltimore has had to deal with, it’s important that you continue to empower the young people that are there,” she said. “I think there are a lot of opportunities in Baltimore now. I feel like I can offer a unique approach from a leadership perspective—sometimes failures are a good thing. You have to crawl before you can walk.” 

For the second year,YouthLabs will take place April 19-20 at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum for high school students. These sessions will feature a series of workshops and activities on topics like coding, large-scale collaboration, dance, and even a drone demonstration to help Baltimore teens unlock their artistic passions.

“The first day is more brain-based activities like concepts in problem-solving,” said Sarah Doccolo, YouthLabs curator and BOPA art education coordinator. “We are calling the second day ‘the body.’ We will have a performance and Q&A with the TSU Dance Academy—it’s a really great celebration of Baltimore City through dance.”

McDonald says that the purpose for the entire festival is to promote social change and inspire the residents of the city. The Labs are just one layer of the bigger picture, but she believes that they are vital to the progression of Baltimore because they provide a start to the conversation. 

“It’s uplifting our thinkers, whether they are artists or in the labs,” she said. “It’s making comments about society and bringing together people from neighborhoods who would not normally share spaces together. It’s doing so much more than what people may think about on the surface, and that’s what really makes this festival special.”

September in Baltimore means one thing for bibliophiles—The Baltimore Book Festival. For three days, the Inner Harbor becomes a book store, reading room, and literary salon all rolled into one, with stages featuring a host of local, national, and international authors to gather inspiration from. To make navigating this weekend’s schedule a little easier, we’ve highlighted 10 writers and events that are not to be missed—and broken them down by your genre of choice.

Literature Lovers

Maryland Humanities presents Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
2 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 24, Literary Salon  This Johns Hopkins grad who grew up in Nigeria has taken the literary world by storm. Her latest novel Americanah, was published around the world in 2013, and has received numerous accolades, including winning the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction and The Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize for Fiction, and it was named one of The New York Times Ten Best Books of the Year. Her 2003 novel Purple Hibiscus was the One Maryland One Book selection this year and her TED talk about feminism is a must-see.

Alice McDermott
3:30 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 24, Literary Salon  McDermott, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, is the author of seven novels, including Someone, which was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the National Book Award, and Charming Billy, which won the National Book Award. She’s also been a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize twice, and her articles, reviews, and stories have appeared in The New York Times and The Washington Post, USA Today, The Atlantic Monthly, and The New Yorker. She’ll be promoting her new book The Ninth Hour at the festival.

True Crime Enthusiasts

It’s amazing that a few years after the Serial podcast became such a huge hit that we are still pondering the future of Adnan Syed, who was convicted in the murder of Hae Min Lee. Two women with special connections to Syed are appearing at the festival. First is Asia McClain Chapman, who will tell her story of how she became the key alibi witness for Syed in Serial, and now in her book, Confessions of a Serial Alibi. (3 p.m. Saturday, Inner Harbor Stage.) And an hour later, catch Rabia Chaudry, Syed’s public advocate and author of the New York Times bestselling book Adnan’s Story. (4 p.m. Saturday, Inner Harbor Stage.) 

Local Scenesters

A Touch of Literati 
6 p.m. Friday, CityLit Stage Baltimore’s own CityLit Press celebrates the launch of author Rafael Alvarez’s new collection of fiction, Basilio Boullosa Stars in the Fountain of Highlandtown. The book commemorates the 20th anniversary of Alvarez’s fiction debut, The Fountain of Highlandtown. The celebration includes two prize-winners: 2017 Gordon Parks Foundation Fellow Devin Allen, who will speak about the Time magazine photo that changed his life and the youth educational program he founded, and Deborah Rudacille, a 2017 Guggenheim Fellow, and science writer who tells stories about the ways in which science influences culture and culture informs science, the links between science and social justice movements. This session is moderated by WYPR’s Aaron Henkin. 

Foodies

The intersection of food and literature is always a welcome discussion, and the book fest has plenty of cooking demos and cookbook signings at its Food for Thought Stage. But there’s also Lunch at the Homesick Restaurant (1 p.m. Friday, Food for Thought Stage), where national best-selling mystery author Laura Lippman joins author Ann Hood and author and home cook Michael Ruhlman to discuss the way fiction informs food and food informs fiction, both in their own work and the works of others. Audience members who know their fictional food will have a chance to win some distinctly Baltimore treats.

Kids or Kids at Heart

Pets on Wheels
(11 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, Top of the World Observation Level) What could be better than cute pets and books? Children will be partnered with a therapy dog (or cat!) from Pets on Wheels. After selecting a favorite book, the child is invited to sit and read to their furry friend. And we maintain this event shouldn’t just be for kids—adults like to read books aloud, too. 

The Conservation Conscious

McKay Jenkins (11:30 a.m. Saturday, Food For Thought Stage) has been writing about people and the natural world for 30 years, and continues this work in his new book, Food Fight: GMOs and the Future of the American Diet. He is also the author of ContamiNation, which chronicles his investigation into the myriad synthetic chemicals we encounter in our daily lives, and the growing body of evidence about the harm these chemicals do to our bodies and the environment. He teaches at The University of Delaware and lives in Baltimore.

Poetry Aficionados

Poets Speak: Raw Wounds, Wise Blood, Speak Water
(2 p.m. Sunday, CityLit Stage) You might know the name Kondwani Fidel from his recent viral essay that analyzed the human toll of Baltimore’s violence in his personal experiences. The writer, speaker, and spoken word poet has also authored a book, Raw Wounds, has been featured in Business Insider and CNN, and was a 2016 recipient of the Ford: Men of Courage Award. He joins Robert Earl Price the author of four books of poetry, including Wise Blood and Truth Thomas, a singer-songwriter and poet who was the winner of the 2013 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work in Poetry. Ron Kipling Williams, author of Black Freak Mosh Heaven, will moderate.

Be Free Live! hosted by Love the Poet (Michelle Antoinette Nelson)
(4 p.m. Sunday, Inner Harbor Stage) Baltimore’s longest running monthly open mic will take place live at the book festival. Hosted by Michelle Antoinette Nelson aka LOVE the poet an artist, innovator, and Founder of Brown and Healthy a non-profit and global health and wellness initiative for people of color. She’s dedicated over a decade to her life’s work to authoring books, plays, writing arts + education curricula, and providing platforms for artists to explore and discover the true nature of their art. Featuring Almight Ra, Antoine Hayes, Najh Bayyan, and others.

Once a dumping ground for garbage, the vacant lot on Homestead Street in East Baltimore is now a beautiful sculpture park.

Dubbed The Coldstream Homestead Montebello Sculpture Park, the new installment had its grand opening on June 3 as a part of the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA) and the Baltimore Office Baltimore Office of Sustainability’s Sustainability’s Growing Green Initiative’s Lots Alive grant program that supports the creation of temporary public art projects on vacant lots. 

“We ask artists to look for lots and work with community leaders to see which ones they would like to see activated,” said Growing Green Initiative coordinator Jenny Guillaume, who added that funding comes from the Department of Housing and Community Development’s blight fund, used for post-demolition greening of abandoned lots. 

This year, Baltimore-based artist, Lisa Dillin was awarded $10,000 in grant funding from the program to repurpose a lot of her choice. Dillin selected the Coldstream Homestead Montebello (CHM) area from an “adopt-a-lot” list provided by the city, in which residents are able to lease city-owned lots for one year—sometimes for community gardens or simply to maintain them.

“This community wanted art,” Dillin said. “So we’ve been working really closely with them to be sure that everything is what they envisioned.”

Instead of just creating the art alone, Dillin decided to develop a fellowship program that allows eight artists to display their work for six months in the park. Wanting to include local artists, she passed out flyers in the neighborhood. 

“I was really hoping to find non-traditional artists that didn’t go to MICA—ones that live in the neighborhood,” she said. “I imagine there are makers who just can’t stop, or even hobbyist painters that could imagine themselves trying sculpture.”

Before the artwork could be installed, the lot had to cleared of all trash and debris and a volunteering landscaping crew worked for nearly three months.

“There were at least 100 bags of trash that we collected,” she said. “The plants and weeds were up to your knees—you could see nothing except vines and grass.”

Since then, trees and flowers have been planted and eight pieces of artwork have been installed. The sculptures range from an iceberg made of Styrofoam to a blue man in tighty-whities to a bird’s nest that could fit a pterodactyl. Each piece of work is meant to reflect current events in not just the community, but also the world.

For example, fellow Alice Gadzinski’s piece Recess—a wall of 72 1×1-inch colored panels arranged to resemble the test pattern on classic television—represents a break in “regularly scheduled programming.” Gadzinski, who is currently undergoing cancer treatment, wants this piece to encourage people to take pause and take a look at what the world has become. It also doubles as a backdrop for a performance space that can be used for public events. 

Currently, the CHM Sculpture Park is free and open to the public seven days a week with events and sculpture workshops taking place until October 1.

Other artists include D.C.-based Lorenzo Cardim, who came up with the idea of “stitching” the park with metal. 

“I was thinking about mending, and connecting the community,” he said.

Baltimore artist Leanna Wetmore, an environmental activist and master gardener, applied because she wanted to help beautify the neighborhood and show her fellow residents the possibilities of what the vacant space could be.

Her piece, Home, is a large nest made of metal and leftover debris from the park that she repurposed to create a representation of what the neighborhood has meant to her for the last decade.

“It made me feel at home,” she said. “My nest is this neighborhood.”

Not only did the second annual Light City festival achieve many abstract goals—sparking important social conversations and inspiring artistic creativity within the community—but it also brought about a major boost to the Baltimore economy.

A recent survey commissioned by organizers at the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA) reveals that the nine-day festival had a total economic impact of more than $44 million, with $26 million generated in direct spending and more than $18 million that rippled through the economy indirectly.

“We couldn’t be more pleased,” says BOPA’s outgoing CEO Bill Gilmore, mentioning that the total impact increased by nearly $10 million from 2016. “We’re building momentum. The goal was always to make incremental increases and we did that in just about every category. It’s exciting to move the needle across all measures.”

The study, conducted by Pennsylvania-based research firm Forward Analytics, estimates that 470,000 people visited the glowing installations scattered throughout the Inner Harbor after dark, and 33 percent of the total attendees hailed from out of state.

“The survey acts as a benchmark for us to use in our planning from year to year,” Gilmore explains. “It gives us a good reporting mechanism to see why people came and what they’re interested in.”

Results indicated that the majority of out-of-state visitors came from D.C., Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Jersey, and New York. Almost all—81 percent, to be exact—indicated that Light City was their “main reason” for visiting Baltimore, and each spent an estimated $80.

BOPA has already begun accepting proposals from artists who wish to be featured at next year’s free festival, which is set to run April 14-21.

Though next year’s event will continue to feature Light City’s signature illuminated attractions, concerts, performance art, local food and drink vendors, and daily innovation conferences, the schedule will be tweaked slightly. Instead of running Neighborhood Lights (a program where various Baltimore communities showcase their own installations) in conjunction with the Inner Harbor festivities, the individual neighborhood showcases will kick off the festival April 6-8, with some installations on view for a longer period.

“We thought giving Neighborhood Lights its own weekend would give them a little more spotlight so that it wouldn’t necessarily compete with the downtown festival,” Gilmore says. “It also gives us three full weekends of activity.”

The economic impact study comes on the heels of Gilmore’s resignation announcement after 37 years with BOPA. He says that he is most proud of the artistic integrity that has been showcased throughout festival by the community at large, and he is confident that the nonprofit will find a replacement who will be able to “grow Light City into adolescence” in the future.  

“To be considered one of the top-tier light festivals in the world is an amazing accomplishment,” he says. “It’s only a two-year-old, and still has a long was to go to maturity, but I’m excited to see it grow and thrive for many years to come.”

Exhibits

Artists for Truth Benefit Exhibition
June 2-23, SpaceCamp Gallery, 16 W. North Ave.  Some of Baltimore’s greatest artistic minds have come together to form a fundraising and educational platform they called Artists For Truth. They aim to support information literacy and freedoms, and to explore the artist’s role in amplifying, reflecting, and addressing societal concerns. Their exhibition at SpaceCamp features 250 artworks by 150 artists, hailing from Baltimore and across the United States, and the works will all be for sale through a silent auction. The exhibition will raise funds for organizations that work to combat the spread of misinformation, teach news literacy, ensure the right to share and access factual information, and protect the rights of truth-tellers in our democracy. Proceeds from the auction benefit Enoch Pratt Free Library (Baltimore), Baltimore Action Legal Team (Baltimore), News Literacy Project (Bethesda), and the Center for Media Justice (Oakland, CA).    

2017 Sondheim Artscape Prize Finalists Exhibition Opening
June 17-Aug. 13, The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles St. The finalists for the city’s top visual art prize never fail to astound and inspire. Each year for the past 12 years, this acclaimed group from the greater Baltimore region is showcased at an exhibit as they vie for a $25,000 fellowship. This year’s finalists are Mequitta Ahuja, Mary Anne Arntzen, Cindy Cheng, Sara Dittrich, Benjamin Kelley, Kyle Tata and Amy Yee. The competition winner will be announced during an award ceremony and reception on Saturday, July 15.

Deconstructed
June 10-July 1, Terrault Contemporary, 218 W. Saratoga St. 3rd Floor  Whether temporary, permanent or in this context imagined, humankind has been making structures as long as we’ve existed. These structures mark time, history and memories, sometimes functional and others monumental. The artists in Deconstructed, which is curated by Esther Ruiz, all employ their individual aesthetic in making their own “structures”. Borrowing likeness from household items, architecture, formalism, symbols, and found materials, these artists deconstruct preconceived elements of structure to create distinct visual languages. At times combining the familiar with the unfamiliar and juxtaposing abstraction with representation while deconstructing defined uses of material, scale and imagery. 

‘Sindikit presents Lauren Davies and Melissa Webb
Through July 1, 405 E. Oliver St.  Check out the work of Joan Mitchell Foundation Award winner Lauren Davis, and Melissa Webb, who is presenting her first new installation work since she started facilitating and curating exhibitions as exhibitions manager at School 33.

Murmurs: New Works by Lydia Petit
June 10, Hotel Indigo, 24 W. Franklin St. Check out the latest works from Platform Gallery co-founder Lydia Petit, curated by Maryland Art Place’s Amy Cavanaugh Royce.

Events

Highlandtown’s Inaugural Art Walk
Friday, June 2, various locations  Baltimore’s east side arts district is the latest area to encourage cultural appreciation with a stroll through its many galleries and cultural centers. Stop by Y:ART for a solo show by abstract painter Effie Gereny, or check out Highlandtown Gallery’s Our Baltimore show, which showcases all things Charm City.

West Baltimore Celebrates 10th Boundary Block Party
June 3, Pennsylvania Avenue Triangle Park, Fremont and Pennsylvania Ave.  Organized by the The No Boundaries Coalition, and Pennsylvania Avenue’s own community arts program, Jubilee Arts, the Boundary Block Party is an annual event the brings residents in the 21217 zip code together across race and class lines. The block party will feature marching bands, local music acts Eze Jackson, Mova Dween, and About The Flute Maker, face painting, mural painting, a community-run produce stall, free food and voter registration.

Books In Bloom: The Inaugural Book Festival of Downtown Columbia
June 11, Merriweather Park at Symphony Woods, Little Patuxent Parkway, Columbia As part of Columbia’s 50th anniversary celebration, this new festival will brings together some of the country’s best and brightest writers for a daylong festival celebrating the joy of books and reading. Attend readings by Baltimore’s own April Ryan, panel discussions, a poetry wall, and pop-up bookstore by Politics & Prose.

The Storyteller Series: An Acoustic Evening at Cask & Grain
June 21, 2823 O’Donnell St. Last month, new Canton restaurant hot spot Cask & Grain introduced its Storytellers Series, which features acoustic performances by local and regional artists. This second event will highlight the soulful blues of Maryland native Jordan Sokel of the Annapolis-based trio Pressing Strings. Guests enjoy a three-course dinner with beverages served a la carte in the upstairs dining room.

BmoreArt Panel with ARTS.BLACK
June 24, The Motor House, 120 W. North Ave.  This second iteration of BmoreArt’s discussion series will focus on ARTS.BLACK and its founding editors Jessica Lynne and Taylore Renee Aldridge. Arts.Black is a journal of art criticism from Black perspectives predicated on the belief that art criticism should be an accessible dialogue—a tool through which we question, celebrate, and talk back to the global world of contemporary art.

Performances

Flock of Dimes and Amy Reid
June 8, Ottobar, 2549 N. Howard St. Jenn Wassner is one of the powerhouses of Baltimore’s music scene, with her Joni Mitchell-esque introspective lyrics and her soulful alto. Her solo project Flock of Dimes is showcased at the Ottobar, along with Chiffon’s Amy Reid. 

Maryland Traditions Folklife Festival
June 10, Creative Alliance, 3134 Eastern Ave. This celebration of Maryland’s many cultures is one of the most unique and fun events of the year. This year, learn Native American round dancing, hear the story of Baltimore jazz, and experience the beauty of Beijing opera, among many, many more participatory activities and performances. The festival was created 16 years ago by folklorists Elaine Eff and Rory Turner  as part of the Maryland State Arts Council‘s longstanding folklife program, Maryland Traditions works to identify, support, and present Maryland folklife from the Appalachian Mountains to the Chesapeake Bay.

ART/SOUND/NOW
June 22, The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles St. This innovative experience brings live performance into the galleries on fourth Thursday nights in the summer. Experience the collections in new ways as musicians provide intriguing soundscapes in the galleries for one night only. Pop and electronic artist Pangelica will explore our emotional attachments to inanimate objects and the hidden sacrifice of luxury in the museum’s Treasury, while jazz bassist Jeron White, trumpeter Brandon Woody, and drummer Kweku Sumbry will reflect on the pluralism of cultures and beliefs represented in the Walters’ Icons gallery, which houses Jewish, Ethiopian Christian, and Eastern Orthodox objects. 

News

• Bill Gilmore, chief executive officer of the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA), announced today that he will resign after 37 years with the organization. To ensure continuity during this transition, Gilmore will remain on board until his replacement has been chosen. BOPA, a nonprofit 501 (c)(3), is the city’s arts council, events center and film office. “It has been an honor and a pleasure to work with Team BOPA, the most outstanding and dedicated staff on planet Earth. The work that we have accomplished together has had a profound, long lasting and positive effect on the City of Baltimore,” said Bill Gilmore.
Gilmore began his career at the organization as a graphic designer. Under his leadership, BOPA has produced nationally renowned events such as Artscape and Light City along with the Baltimore Farmers’ Market & Bazaar, the holiday celebrations for New Year’s Eve and Fourth of July, the unveiling of public art including sculptures of Governor William Donald Schaefer, musician Frank Zappa and Orioles Hall-of-Famer Brooks Robinson as well as various parades. He was also the founder of the Baltimore Book Festival, and originated Free Fall Baltimore, providing citywide cultural access for the month of October.

• Baltimore Design School, Maryland’s only school dedicated to preparing middle and high school students for careers in design, will graduate its first class of seniors on Saturday, June 3. This marks a major milestone for the school, which provides an innovative model in which design and creative problem-solving pervades and informs all aspects of the rigorous curriculum. Each of the 36 graduating seniors has been accepted to a two- or four-year higher education institution, many with scholarships. BDS graduates will be primed to become designers and architects who see design as a way of living an ethical, productive, and rewarding life.

MOVING ON: My husband and I lived in Bolton Hill for the past seven years, and moved to this house about a year and a half ago. We liked this area because you could buy a single-family home and it was one of the only parts of the city that was racially diverse. When we bought the house, it had basically been flipped and remodeled, so all we’ve done is re-paint and replace the pillars on the front porch.

LISTEN TO YOUR ART: Different contemporary artists inspire me. I research art and art history all the time.

PLAYING FAVORITES: I like to use certain products like Farrow & Ball or Benjamin Moore paints, because I like their quality and viscosity. The ceiling in the living room is painted with Farrow & Ball’s “arsenic” color, which is a historical hue that the impressionists used. It actually used to be poisonous, so Farrow & Ball reproduced it in an obviously nonpoisonous capacity.

FOLLOW ALONG: A lot of my style is based off of my understanding of art history, but I definitely look at blogs like Design Sponge. I also follow a lot of people on Instagram, like Emily Henderson—she’s a stylist for Target—and Justina Blakeney.

DO IT YOURSELF: Tiles are a big obsession of mine. I really want Islamic tiles, which come in eight different shapes that you put together to create an Islamic arabesque. The problem is that I want them in all white and I haven’t found anyone who does that, so I’ve been thinking of making them myself.

ANTIQUE APPRECIATION: I shop almost exclusively at Goodwill, on Craigslist, and in antique stores, but I get some things from places like HomeGoods, Target, and Ikea. I really love Goodwill, especially the Timonium location, because I always find really nice pieces there that I can buy for like $4. Then I have a high-quality item that I don’t have to worry about something happening to. I am also constantly scouring Etsy and other websites for vintage textiles.

LOCAL FLAVOR: I’ve been collecting artwork for a very long time, that’s my passion. Some of it is done by me, but a lot of it is by local artists or friends of mine who are also local. Most of the art in the house is done by women. I’m really focused on buying art from individuals I know and want to support.

RARE FIND: I found this Byzantine space heater at a flea market in Western Maryland and I was just obsessed with it. I was like, “I need this enormous brass thing.” You can use it to make Turkish coffee, but we’ve never actually done that.

COUNTING SHEEP: I love sheepskin and I have them in many rooms. When I was little, my great aunt and uncle spent a lot of time in Australia and brought back sheepskin for us, so maybe it’s just the memory of that. But also, texturally, it’s just neutral and nice to mix in with things. I hope my house isn’t starting to look like Game of Thrones.

Labs@LightCity attendees can purchase tickets for $149 for one lab and $99 for each additional lab. You can also apply for the Light City Luminary Program, which provides assistance to attend the conferences.

Light City attracted more than 400,000 people this past spring, which was its first year. In 2017, the festival will occur from Friday, March 31 through Saturday, April 8. Labs@LightCity will take place over six days, from Monday, April 3 through Saturday, April 8 at the IMET Columbus Center on Pratt Street.

The 2017 iteration will include 24 light art installations at the Inner Harbor, and will expand into neighborhoods including Sandtown-Winchester, Hamilton-Lauraville, and Waverly. The complete schedule of artists and performers will be announced in January 2017.