First Friday Gallery Crawl

The First Friday gallery crawl is a unique opportunity for thousands of students, families and art lovers to engage with local art each month at unique locations in Downtown and throughout the city. This grassroots event continues to thrive because of the collective vision and collaboration of galleries and artists.

As the name implies, First Friday happens the first Friday of each month. Hours vary between galleries, but most are open during the core hours of 7pm to 9pm. Most galleries use First Friday to unveil and debut new shows or as a closing reception. All venues are free and open to the public and several galleries incorporate artist demonstrations and/or live music. Not only does this event give guests the opportunity to view creative art space, it also is an excellent time to purchase one-of-a-kind artwork directly from artists.

Transportation Options
Explore the core and gallery hop using the free Q-LINE Trolley shuttle service that runs up and down Douglas Avenue. Electric scooter and bicycle rentals are also available. Discover additional transportation options.

First Friday Events

This month's First Friday will occur on September 6, 2019. Participating venues will be listed on this website no less than a week before the event.

Art House 310
310 South Laura Street 

Title of Exhibition: Art House 310 First Friday –  Wichita Women Artists 75th Anniversary Group Show

Description:

Opening Reception | First Friday June 6th, 2025 | 6-10pm

This event is free to attend and open to the public. Show hangs through June 22nd, 2025. Art House 310 is located at 310 S. Laura. Two blocks SE of Douglas & Washington in downtown Wichita.

WICHITA WOMEN ARTISTS

Wichita Women Artists has been in continuous existence since 1950. The purpose of the group is to promote and encourage each other in our creative growth as artists. We meet monthly and our membership is limited to 40.

We have three to five exhibits during the year in the Wichita area. Our members teach, attend workshops, enter regional and national juried shows and are also active members of other art organizations. We hope you enjoy this diversity that our artists show through the use of watercolor, oil, gouache, paste, pencil, mixed media, photography, mosaics, acrylic and sculpture.

For more information, check out Wichita Women Artists on Facebook: facebook.com/ICTWomenArtists

PARTICIPATING ARTISTS:

Janet Aiken
Abby Ausherman
Kayann Ausherman
Stephanie Bayliff
Jane Bradfield
Bennie Booth
Jan Butler
Carol Davis
Pam Hayes
Hope Just
Cheryl Lindstrom
Nancy Luttrell
Linda Nollette
Diane Post
Patt Sharpe
Shauna Shelton
Naomi Ullum
Diane Warta
Rita Zaudke

Artists in Old Town Studios
412 East Douglas Avenue 
(316) 267-5915

Featured Artists: Studio Artists

Title of Exhibition: Studio Artists

Event Description: Studio artists will be open. Come see us at Artists In Old Town Studios in the back of Gallery 12, 412 East Douglas in Wichita Kansas for First Friday from 6 to 8 p.m. We hope to see you. 

Check out all of the artworks at Gallery XII too.

Exhibition Hours: 6 to 8 p.m.

Attitudes Dancewear Etc.
3210 East Douglas Avenue 
(316) 688-5600

Event Title: Does Life support Art or does Art support Life?

Date: June 6, 5-8 p.m.

Details:

A live dance art demonstration by Metropolitan Ballet of Wichita set in a vintage inspired dance boutique. Watch dancers pose in our windows as living statues or perform series of choreography on our interior stage.  
We are honored to support and feature artists in our local dance community by sharing their dance themed artwork:

  • Charmé pointe shoe designs by Olivia Letter 
  • live paintings and line drawings of dancers by Tayshaw Longnail

Join us for Attitudes' debut First Friday appearance!   

CityArts
334 North Mead Street 
(316) 350-3245

CityArts will have an opening reception for their new exhibits, on Friday, June 6, from 5 to 8 p.m.

On view from June 6 through July 20, 2025:

  • Juneteenth Exhibition by various artists – Main Gallery
  • Prairie Girls by Kinta McGhee, Kate King and Lacy Gregg-Mehojah - Boardroom Gallery

On view from February 3 through December 31, 2025:

  • Detour Wichita: A Retrospective Trip Through the City’s Live Entertainment History by Alex Freund - Front Desk Wall
Envision Arts Gallery
801 East Douglas Avenue 
(316) 440-1699

Title of exhibit: "Touched"

Event: First Friday, June 6, 5-8 p.m.

The Envision Arts Gallery is honored to present Touched, an exhibition of artwork by the artists and students from the Braille Institute of America.  These artworks span multiple artistic mediums—including ceramics, printmaking, and mosaic—created by students from Braille Institute’s Creative Arts Program. The exhibition invites visitors to experience how creativity and personal expression thrive beyond sight, offering an inspiring reflection on resilience, individuality, joy and artistic voice.

The featured works were created in Braille Institute’s Creative Arts Program, which has a long-standing legacy rooted not only in the brilliance of the final artwork but in the creative process itself.  Coping with vision loss is a personal and unique journey, and the Creative Arts Program offers students a space to express their individual voices and visions without the need for physical sight. Through artmaking, they reclaim agency over form and function. By providing equitable access to creative disciplines that traditionally rely on visual experience, the program fosters experiential learning, problem-solving, and creative play; the students develop sensory awareness, hand-mind coordination, critical thinking, and self-confidence.

About Braille Institute

Braille Institute is a non-profit organization that has been positively transforming the lives of those with vision loss for 106 years. Braille Institute helps more than 13,000 adults, youth, and children annually, through a broad range of educational, social, and recreational services. Programming is offered at seven Southern California centers and remotely through online delivery across the United States and beyond. All programs are free of charge thanks to the generous support of donors, volunteers, and staff.

BrailleInstitute.org

First Friday, June 6th
5:00 - 8:00 PM
801 E. Douglas Ave, Suite 106
Wichita, Kansas 67202
The Envision Arts Gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM (closed for lunch 12:00-1:00 PM).
Free and open to the public
On display June 6th through August 29th in the Dr. Gail Yearick and Family Gallery

Envision Arts Gallery
801 East Douglas Avenue 
(316) 440-1699

Exhibit Title: "Tiny Hands, Timeless Art"

Event: First Friday, June 6, 5 to 8 p.m.

The Envision Arts Gallery is excited to present the Cathy G. Hudson Envision Child Development Center’s 4th Annual Youth Art Exhibition Tiny Hands, Timeless Art. Please join us First Friday, June 6th, from 5 to 8 p.m. to celebrate the opening of this exhibit.

Step into a world of color, creativity, and imagination at the 4th Annual Youth Arts Exhibition. Our little artists from the Cathy G. Hudson Early Child Development Center have been inspired by the masters — from Monet’s dreamy flower fields to Louise Nevelson’s bold forms. With tiny hands and big hearts, they’ve reimagined iconic works in ways that only young minds can. Come celebrate their playful, powerful interpretations and see the classics through fresh eyes!

The Cathy G. Hudson Envision Child Development Center serves visually impaired and typically developing children in an integrated setting, the mission of the Cathy G. Hudson Envision Child Development Center is to provide comprehensive early intervention services for children birth through age 5. A state-of-the-art childcare facility and preschool, the Cathy G. Hudson Envision Child Development Center offers a quality education with the goal of maximizing each child’s potential.

Cathy G. Hudson Envision Child Development Center for Blind & Visually-Impaired
610 N. Main Street, Wichita, KS 67203 

For more information or to schedule a tour, contact Teresa Houston, Director via email or by calling 316-440-1632 .

First Friday, June 6th
5:00 - 8:00 PM
801 E. Douglas Ave, Suite 106
Wichita, Kansas 67202
The Envision Arts Gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM (closed for lunch 12:00-1:00 PM).
Free and open to the public
On display June 6th through June 27th in the Patricia A. Peer Window Gallery.

First Friday Pop Up Markets at Hopping Gnome Brewing Company
1719 East Victor Street 
(316) 771-2110

Title: First Friday Pop Up Markets at Hopping Gnome Brewing Company

 

Hopping Gnome Brews, a delish food truck favorite, local artisans & small businesses— you name it, its there!

Join us Friday, June 6 from 5 to 8 p.m. to shop and sip with our gnomies!

Fisch Haus
524 S Commerce 

Exhibition Title: "Alluring Toast Trains" by Jamie Tabor

Event Details: Friday, June 6, 7 to 9 p.m.

New Paintings by Jamie Tabor

GALLERY XII
412 East Douglas Avenue 

Exhibit Title: "Colour My World."

Reception: June 6, 6 to 9 p.m.

Gallery 12 Featured Artists for June are: Gallery Member/Painter Melinda Weis and Consignment Artist/Ceramist Gary Lincoln

The opening reception will be held on First Friday June 6th from 6 to 9 pm. Melinda will be exhibiting her most recent paintings. 

The title of her show is: "Colour My World."

Artist Statement/Melinda Weis:
"All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players…” I try to tell stories through paintings, small vignettes of life told through a composition of shape and color. It could be an expression on a face or the way the light hits a piece of fruit or the dance of a flame in a glass. It’s a moment in time, captured for others to see; a drama played out on a flat, 2 dimensional surface that, perhaps, speaks to the viewer."

There will be a closing reception on Final Friday June 27th from 6 to 9 p.m.; Melinda will give a gallery talk during the reception.

The exhibit will be on display until June 28th.

Gallery 12's is free and open to the public. Wednesday/Thursday/Saturday 10 am to 4 pm & Friday Noon to 6 pm.

Greater Grounds Coffee & Co
922 East Douglas Avenue 
(855) 681-6327

Exhibit Title: The Harvest

Featured Artist: Katy Hisel

Exhibit Hours: June 6, 5-9 p.m.

Details:

Paintings by local artist, Kathy Hisel showing at Greater Grounds at Douglas and Washington. Please join us for live music, cocktails and the art! 

Harvester Arts at The LUX 1
120 East 1st Street North 
(316) 530-2203

Exhibit: JAMES GATES — SELECTED NONSENSE, 2023-2025

Event Details: Friday, June 6 from 6 to 8 p.m.

Longtime Wichita resident and mild-mannered weirdo JAMES GATES presents a disparate collection of silly images, words, and items which have been created, assembled, and curated for your amusement and confusement. Some works are shenanigan-based, while others are merely dingbatty. Recent collaborations/hijinks with other local artists will be highlighted as well.

Harvester Arts at The LUX 2
120 East 1st Street North 
(316) 530-2203

Exhibit Title: "Threads of Pride"

Event Details: Friday, June 6, from 6 to 8 p.m.

Curated by local gay artist & graphic designer Michael K Davenport and funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, this exhibition—created in partnership with The City of Wichita’s Division of Arts & Cultural Services—celebrates the rich and diverse experiences of LGBTQIA+ individuals in Kansas.

Featured Artsists:
Abi Boatman, Aly Horn, Brenden Dreiling, Grace Boyd, Kelsy Gossett Dennis, Landen Swearingen, Luna Anemone, Lydia Humphreys, Meranda Barker, Micala Gingrich Gaylord, Michael K Davenport, Mickie Parker, Nash Jaxson, Patrick Clement, Rebecca Sellers, Trent Duckworth, Vanessa Couey

Harvester Arts at The LUX 3
120 East 1st Street North 
(316) 530-2203

Exhibit: In a New Light

Date: Friday, June 6, 6 to 8 p.m.

Details: 
In a New Light is an exploration of transformation—an evolving dialogue between the artists, their work, and those who experience it. With works by Emily Wittler, Kammy Downs, Sam Gales, Ellie Keppy, Malissa Long, Jeni Doom, and Sarah Chavez, this exhibition reflects themes of growth, evolution, healing, and deconstruction, revealing art’s ability to shift, expand, and redefine itself. Just as every artist views their work in a distinct light, visitors will find their own perspectives evolving, challenged, and illuminated in new ways. 

Featured Artists:
Emily Wittler, Kammy Downs, Sam Gales, Ellie Keppy, Malissa Long, Jeni Doom, and Sarah Chavez

Harvester Arts: Shiftspace Gallery
120 E 1st St N, Ste 115 
(316) 978-3555

Exhibit: "Let Hope Arise"

Details: Friday, June 6 from 6 to 8 p.m.

Let Hope Arise, by Adaylia Nisly, is a gallery exhibition that shares real stories of local individuals who have journeyed through the darkness of addiction and are now walking in the light. The heart of this exhibition is to show that recovery is not just possible- it is happening- and there is abundant hope. 

Hi-Tone Lofts Lobby
701 East 2nd Street North 
(316) 352-7028

Event Title: First Friday June 2025

Date: June 6, 4-8 p.m.

Come meet the Artist at Hi-Tone Lofts.

Mike Fallier
Terrie Mayata
Michael Scobee
Jon Grillot
Ashley Thill

Hopping Gnome Brewing Company
1719 Victor Street 
(316) 771-2110

Exhibit: GIVE YOURSELF AWAY (and get ready for the wild ride)

Featured Artist: Sweater John Arts

Event Time: Friday, June 6, 3-11 p.m.

What inspires me as an artist is people. Thats the baseline for me. Relationships, and emotions, and the risks we take navigating those. I want to inject kindness, with a small dose of curiosity, into the world. Be risky with your generosity, and wildly put good out there. Give second chances, and third chances, but also show your love in the hard things, like accountability, patience, and grace.  Put away pride and vanity and self preservation, and build those things up in others. Find pride in helping someone be proud of themselves. See beauty in the sacrifice it takes to make sure others see their own beauty. And only be self preserved enough to make sure you have enough on your plate, not that you have more on your plate than the person next to you. 

Learning Lab Wichita
703 East Douglas Avenue 
(316) 858-7213

Event Title: Learning Lab Wichita Student Art Festival

Date: June 6, 4-7 p.m.

Details: 

Join us for an evening of creativity, fun and community at the Learning Lab Wichita's Student Art Festival. This exciting, FREE community event is designed to celebrate the artistic talents of local K-12 students while fostering a love for the arts in a supportive and inspiring environment.

We have big things planned, including:
• See of the NEW Learning Lab Wichita mural.
• View the Keepers on Parade addition to Learning Lab Wichita.
• Enjoy student artwork at our K-12 exhibition.
• Participate in free, fun family activities.
• Eat and drink from several food trucks, including Argentina’s Empanadas and Funky Monkey Shaved Ice.
 

Maven Gallery
3238 East Douglas Avenue 

Exhibition Title: "Chromatica: Light, Life & Curious Connection"

Featured Artists: Esther Havens Mann & Austin Mann

Event Details: Friday, June 6 from 6 to 8 p.m.

The curator is IN GALLERY for the first time this First Friday. Stop by for her fresh perspective on pulling the body of work together for “Chromatica.” Also, see some new work on view and don’t miss the exclusive announcement of the next show opening this August!

Mid-America All-Indian Museum
650 North Seneca Street 
(316) 350-3340

Event Title: Following Blackbear Invitational Exhibition for Native Artists

Date: June 6 preview, then through July 8: Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 4pm

The third annual Following Blackbear Invitational for Native artists will be on view through July 8, 2025, featuring work by eight Native artists:

  • Sloane Dyer - Choctaw / Prairie Band Potawatomi
  • Daniel Pewewardy - Comanche
  • Warclan Art Collective (Taiomah Rutlidge, Kineu Rutlidge, Giizhig Rutlidge) - Ojibwe / Meskwaki / Dakota
  • Michelle Sutton - Cherokee
  • Josh Johnico - Choctaw/Hopi
  • Brandon Buffalohead - Ponca / Creek / Seminole

Normal admission rates apply. (You can show a Riverfest button on June 7 to receive $2 off admission!) There is also a Native Art Market on Saturday, June 7.

Individual pieces from the exhibit may be purchased in the museum gift shop and picked up after the show concludes on July 8.​

Reuben Saunders Gallery
3215 East Douglas Avenue 
(316) 682-1481

Exhibitions: "Strange Places" - Nick Gadbois & Jonathan Fitz

Event Details: Friday, June 6 from 5 to 8 p.m.

Description:

The main gallery space will be featuring a world where color reigns and the familiar feels just a little… different. 

Join us for the opening of "Strange Places", featuring vibrant paintings by Nick Gadbois and otherworldly ceramics by Jonathan Fitz.

 Expect bold hues, surreal forms, and a visual journey to someplace new and strange.

We hope you will join us for our opening reception on First Friday, June 6th from 5:00pm – 8:00pm!

Somewhere Works
235 N Emporia Avenue  

Event title: "Somewhere Odd" & "Go Ahead and"

Featured Artist: Kate Van Steenhuyse

Details: June 6, 6 to 9 p.m.

Join us for an exciting First Friday at Somewhere Works in Downtown Wichita. See the gorgeous artwork of Kate Van Steenhuyse in her exhibition "Go Ahead and," and dance the night away with music by Hybridphonic, Sunshine, and Marcus El.  Julian Kincaid will also be there with an interactive video jockey installation. We hope to see you there from 6–9 PM for a night of art, music, and community celebration.

The Enchanted Mermaid Boutique
222 North Washington Street 
(316) 796-5383

Event: Kansas Ocean, artwork by numerous artists

Event hours: Friday, June 6, 6-9 p.m.

The Leprechaun's Lab
630 East Douglas Avenue 
(316) 397-0397

Title of Exhibition: First Friday at The Leprechaun's Lab

Featured Artist: Sarah Von Hoene

Event Hours: June 6, 7-9 p.m.

Come enjoy the creative artistry of Lili Bailey!

Future Dates

The majority of the galleries that currently participate in Final Friday have announced plans to shift their monthly event to First Friday, beginning in September. Since there is no "governing body" that oversees Final Friday, Downtown Wichita generally takes direction from what the majority of the local galleries wish to do. As of now, Downtown Wichita plans to transition the Final Friday calendar to First Friday beginning in September as well. In order to make this transition as seamless as possible, the usual listing and interactive map for both the August Final Friday (August 30) and September First Friday (September 6) will be created.

Mark your calendars for the following 2019 First Friday dates to never miss an event:

  • September 6
  • October 4
  • November 1
  • December 6

Submit Your Event

Are you an artist or gallery owner interested in being included on the First Friday list? Contact us for more information. Since there is no designated organizing body for First Friday, all participating venues are required to do their own marketing and advertising. Downtown Wichita does provide a listing on our website of all venues that are participating for the general public and visitors to use.

Submit your Final Friday exhibit info no less than one week prior to the event in the following format to be listed on the Downtown Wichita website. Fill-out the form below or email your submission to megan@downtownwichita.org.