On the first Friday night of every month, art galleries in downtown Tuscaloosa buzz with excitement as artists reveal new works. Many shops stay open late for those who wander out of an opening reception and don’t want to go home just yet. You might even hear a saxophone or two on the corner of Sixth and Greensboro.

This event is called First Fridays, a national event geared towards the revitalization of urban areas.

In Northport, a similar event occurs the first Thursday of every month.

A graduate student approached Sandra Wolfe, the executive director of The Arts and Humanities Council with the idea for First Fridays. Until then, both Tuscaloosa and Northport held their opening receptions on Thursdays.

“It was hard to get to all of them,” Wolfe said. “Now that the two have separate events, it’s easier for community members to attend more receptions. You get pulled into one venue, and it’s hard to get away.”

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Although “First Fridays” is the term art galleries across the country use, “Downtown T-Town” is the phrase that Tuscaloosa businesses have adopted to promote their side of the event. Wolfe said the idea is to direct traffic from the gallery openings to surrounding shops and restaurants.

“I’ve lived here 21 years. When I first moved here, you didn’t go downtown for anything,” Wolfe said.

Since then, Wolfe said she has seen a drastic change in the city, and First Fridays are an opportunity for people to see what’s happening downtown.

Katie McAllister, director of the Paul R. Jones Gallery, said she hopes the event continues to help with the efforts to make the Tuscaloosa experience about more than just football. She said the organized effort to coordinate receptions has increased traffic dramatically.

First Fridays is just getting started, but it has already seen success. In December, students exhibited and sold their work alongside an exhibition by Tony Bratina, the graphics editor at The Tuscaloosa News.

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“You’re gonna see something different every time you walk in the door,” Wolfe said.

In Northport, the Kentuck Art Center still participates in Art Night on the first Thursday of every month.

“The cool thing about Art Night is it’s happened so much, it happens naturally,” Holly Roberts, program manager at the Kentuck Art Center, said.

Thursday, Kentuck will host an exhibit of mixed media works by Barry Graham and Laura Brookhart. Members of their clay co-op will be on site as well, and the gallery shop will be open.

The Voodoo Saints will play in the courtyard as pizza bakes in a new cob oven. Keeping with the community theme, the dough will come from Mary’s Bakery, just down the street.

Like in Tuscaloosa, Northport’s downtown merchants agreed to stay open late one evening to foster a community feel. Billy’s Sports Grill and The Southern Letterpress will be open, among other local vendors.

Receptions both Thursday and Friday are from 5 to 8 p.m., with many galleries participating in First Fridays opening at noon.

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