Take a Tour of the New Studio!

If you've been following this blog, then you know that I've moved my studio. I opened a new art building downtown, in the 500 Block of Main St (across from the Hyatt Hotel, between Huron & Mohawk). I posted some photos of the renovations in progress but realized I never really showed off the finished product!

City Lights is on the second floor of this building, inside MAIN STREET STUDIOS. Here's a view of the block looking north on Main St towards the M&T Savings (gold dome building!)



Inside the first floor gallery space; not a bad commute to work :)




City Lights at the top of the stairs




900 sq ft studio with window transom to allow light to pass through.
View of gallery wall, meeting table, futon & changing area.


Three HUGE windows overlooking Main St; allows for gorgeous natural light in the studio!


View of shooting area with backdrop & lights set-up.


Outside studio on 2nd floor; 11 other artist studios


Artist common space on 2nd floor


Early morning light coming into artist common space

Holiday Open House!

Join us this Friday 12/16 from 5-10PM for a block-long holiday open house including my work for sale at huge event at my new art space (MAIN STREET STUDIOS)! The Open House will feature art, music & shopping in several storefronts; all events are free & family friendly! While you're here, don't forget to check out iceskating & the tree at Fountain Plaza too

Art, Music & Shopping from 5-8PM

• WNY Book Arts Center 468 Washington – Last Minute Panic Holiday Marketplace
  
• e-Café 465 Main St – Delicious food, warm drinks & music by Jeremy Hoyle
  
• Lloyd’s Taco Truck - Corner of Main & Mohawk
  
• Main Street Studios 515 Main – Events on two floors including a performance by Tokyo & the Boy, UB student showcase PARALLAX and a Holiday Artisan Marketplace featuring City Lights Studio, Trinity Hawk Photography, RLT Designs, Kimberly Jordan, Oh Pour L'Amour du Chocolat, Patrick Willett, Speak Your Mind & Shape Your World
  
• Downtown Photo 521 Main – Kelly Bucheger Trio & display of historic Buffalo
  
• Brian Garman Gallery 523 Main – Phil Simms Trio & photographic display
• Plus roaming carolers visiting each stop!

Event After-Party from 8-10PM

• Hyatt Hotel 2 Fountain Plaza - Celebration after-party with The Jazz Conception Project, drink specials & complimentary hors d'oeuvres!

Email Erica Eichelkraut at nomadbuffalo@gmail.com with questions or if you're a merchant interested in being involved with the MAIN STREET STUDIOS marketplace; a few spots still available, only a $20 table fee!

- Facebook Event : https://www.facebook.com/events/304593909581117/
- Info on our site : http://nomadbuffalo.com/515/

Thankful to be a Local

One of the many reasons I LOVE this city is that there's a plethora of artisans, merchants, boutiques and quaint shopping districts who not only make shopping for unique gifts easy, but also a very fun & enjoyable experience (the polar opposite of the malls this season!)

As a board member of Buffalo First! and small business owner myself, I encourage everyone to skip the chaos & stampedes this Black Friday and instead, sleep in, relax and when you're ready, grab your family & friends and head to one of our many shopping districts for a cup of coffee and a fun, slow-paced day of gift-buying. I personally am starting my morning at the Elmwood Village Black Friday Boutique Crawl, which each shop is offering a special and you can check out the deals here!

But, if you're looking for something truly unique, you do not want to miss the Give Local a Chance Bash & Marketplace on Black Friday 11/25 from 7-10PM at my new art studios building located at 515 Main St in the heart of downtown Buffalo! There will be dj's, drinks, dancing, a local marketplace of artisans upstairs and my favorite part, an Experience Buffalo auction! Why get someone a gift certificate for their favorite restaurant when you can buy them a private cooking lesson with the chef instead!? Not only do you get to be, well, pretty much the most kick-ass gift giver ever, but the bidding starts at only $75 and 100% goes back to Buffalo First! to keep supporting local businesses. Too cool.

Items for bid include:

• A personal cooking lesson with Chef Kate Elliott of Merge.
• A guided tour of Buffalo with Newell Nussbaumer (Founder, Buffalo Rising), including lunch at Betty’s.
• Local shopping expedition with fashionista Erin Habes (Lecturer, Buffalo State College) and Justin Azzarella (Executive Director, Elmwood Village Association).
• A singer/songwriter session with Free Henry!
• Pints with Flying Bison Brewery’s brewmaster Tim Herzog, at Ulrich’s Tavern.
• A tour of Community Beer Works operations and an afternoon with the fellas.
• Lunch for two at The Eights Bistro with local foodie guru, Tim Bartlett (General Manager, Lexington Co-Operative Food Market)
• A private shoot-along photography lesson with yours truly :)

Lastly, if you're still not convinced, check out this Buffalo News article by Andrew Delmonte that points out the "advantages of buying local, like the ability to find unique holiday gifts, or the fact that your local business owners might also be your neighbors, who use their income to take care of their — and your — neighborhood. There’s also the incalculable importance of preserving the business districts and unique cultural fabric that make Western New York a place you like to call home."

Happy Shopping, Buffalo :)

I love attention!

Hahaha not really but had to share all of the wonderful articles popping up lately about my new project :) A few more reasons why I LOOOOVE Buffalo!

Buffalo Rising 10/26/11

The Good Neighborhood, Empowering Neighbors 10/06/11

Buffalo.com 10/11/11

This Friday! Grand Opening!

Join us Friday 10/28, 5-9PM for the Grand Opening celebration of MAIN(ST)UDIOS, a new gallery & artist community in the 500 block of Main St, and the new home to City Lights Studio Photography! Event is free and will feature a collection of local artwork, a live performance by Funktional Flow, photo booth, studio tours, 464 artist market, wine, food and more. All guests will be entered to win a free photo shoot in City Lights' NEW studio!

Gallery Show will feature :
- Max Collins
- Richard Tomasello
- Marcus L. Wise
- Joyce Hill
- Community Painting Project
- & More!

464 Artist Market will feature :
- Marcus L. Wise
- Sean Huntington
- Dana Saylor
- Chuck Alaimo
- Denn Rodriguez
- David Pierro
- Chris Reilly
- Marissa Lehner
- Mary Flynn

More Information can be found at : www.nomadbuffalo.com/515


Map & directions on parking can be found here. RSVP on our Facebook Event Page!

10.28 | STUDIO GRAND OPENING PARTY!

I'm ridiculously excited to announce that I've moved my studio into an artist building I've been working on for the past few months in the heart of downtown Buffalo at 515 Main St! The building is across the street from the Hyatt, in the pedestrian-only part of Main St, with many other great projects going on on the block. There's still some finishing touches to wrap up but overall, I'm almost settled. We will be having a BIG Grand Opening party on Friday October 28th, from 5-9PM & all of my friends, family & clients are invited! It's a public, all ages event featuring a live band (Funktional Flow), wine, food, studio tours, art sale, gallery show, photo booth & more! HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!

If you're interested in coming, please RSVP on our Facebook Event Page here.

City Lights NEW Studio Grand Opening!

Friday 10/28, don't miss the Grand Opening celebration for my new studio located in an artists' building I've been working on! Read more about it on my first blog post about the building. There's going to be a performance by Funktional Flow, food, drinks, studio tours, art show & more! See you there!!!

10/28 : 5-9PM : 515 Main Street, Buffalo NY


View Larger Map

More information about the building & artist studios here : www.nomadbuffalo.com/515

City Lights' NEW Studio!

I'm SO excited to announce that I'll be moving my studio out of my home & into a great building downtown!

I've always dreamed of working in a creative environment, with other artists of all kinds, and was never able to find the right space here in Buffalo. I met a property manager, Mark Schroeder (who also runs a great co-op office building called The Main Washington Exchange) & told him my vision. He LOVED the idea of turning an empty building one door over from his space into this. We worked at the idea for two months, developing a concept, floorplan, pricing, etc, and with the help & full support of building owner, Roger Trettel, it's finally coming to fruition! It truly warms my heart to be able to work with people who love and believe in this city as much as I do! And when they also see the value in supporting our local creative community? Perfection.

Renovations began last week, turning a building that hadn't been loved in a long time into a gorgeous space. I aptly named it MAIN(ST)UDIOS, because I am so fond of its spot at 515 Main St & love the effort of furthering the development of this block (see the before picture below!) The space will function as a creative collective, with a huge shared gallery space on the first floor, my studio and several other artists' studios on the second. There will be a communal lounge area, workspace, painter's sink and kitchenette. What I really fell in love with (even in its rough condition), were the HUGE ceilings and big windows, flooding the space with beautiful natural light. It's quiet and peaceful, and still just steps from the buzz of Main St, the Hyatt Hotel, Fountain Plaza, Lafayette Square, the Theater District and several other cultural organizations.

Needless to say, I'm BEYOND pumped :) I'll be in the space in October, so stay tuned for a Grand Opening announcement & be sure to check out our website and Facebook Page for more info and to see the progress of the renovations!

Before Roger purchased building & repainted facade.... yikes!

Space I chose for my studio, three big beautiful windows

Looking out into the rest of the second floor (future artists' studios)

Interior of my future studio, clothing racks and all


Walls go up! I requested transom windows around the entire perimeter to allow for some of the light from my three windows to pass through to the rest of the space (and because, well, it just looks cool :) Roger was able to re-use some existing windows from another building.

Walls & doorway for my space framed out! Saturday 09/10

Building located on the far right, right by train & Gold Dome!

New facade... to only get better :)