New art fills the walls at Black Crow Coffee Co. for the September Art Premier. Dinorah Prevost | The Crow’s Nest
By Amy Diaz
Just a few hours before its September Art Premier was set to begin, Black Crow Coffee Co. posted a Facebook update that read “All art is hung up and the show goes on, rain or shine!”
At 722 Second St. N, the quaint coffee shop is part of a little plaza in Old Northeast, squeezed between a pizza parlour and an old laundromat.
On most days, Black Crow is a hub for people looking for caffeine or vegan treats, and a place to hang out or get some work done.
But on the first Saturday of every month, the coffee shop becomes a lively venue for local artists, musicians and vendors to connect with the community.
Black Crow has put on monthly art premiers since it opened three years ago.
In St. Petersburg, the event coordinators don’t need to look very far to find artists interested in displaying their work.
“Black Crow is welcoming and creative and open,” said Karli Schneider, a Black Crow barista. “I think that’s why a lot of people come through and are like ‘How can I put up art here?’ And then the next art show, they’re here, they’re on the wall.”
Schneider is also a self-proclaimed artist on the side and has had work displayed at the shop before. Her art can be found on Instagram at @dirt_hands.
This month’s art premier showcased a mix of different mediums, with everything from paintings to typewriter poetry.
“Sometimes we have themes,” Schneider said. “Like, B put on a Sharpie Show where it didn’t matter what necessarily it was on, but Sharpie art was the theme.”
In addition to being a barista, B is the social media manager and event coordinator for Black Crow.
“That was an open submission one too, so everyone was welcome,” B said, referring to last month’s Sharpie Show. “Even if you’ve never had a piece of art up before, you were definitely welcome. As long as it was with Sharpie it was in there.”
Its youngest featured artist displayed work at the Sharpie Show and made the first sale of the night. He was 7 years old.
“It just fosters the art scene even more because there’s no censorship, there’s no commission, fees, everything is just to support the artist,” Schneider said. “St. Pete has a great art scene, but it can be competitive and there is exclusivity, so Black Crow opens all of those doors.”
It certainly opened a door for 22-year-old Julia Scheiber, a senior graphic design student at USF St. Petersburg.
“This is actually my first time displaying work anywhere besides the internet,” Scheiber said. “I knew I definitely wanted to display my work at some point, but I felt that I didn’t have enough to show until recently.”
Now hanging up on the wall alongside the other local artists’ work are Scheiber’s digital conceptual portraits made up of bright colors and soft pastels. You can also find her work on Instagram @skelies.
“I’ve been practicing digital painting for years now, and it’s one of my favorite mediums,” Scheiber said. “A couple pieces were made last year, but the majority of my work was made within the last few months. The most recent painting I did last weekend, and it took around seven hours.”
Some of Scheiber’s classmates have displayed their work at previous Black Crow art premiers.
“When you have a melding of people like this, especially at events like this where there’s more of a turnout, it’s really about visibility and accessibility,” Schneider said. “There is no, ‘You have to have a name for yourself’ or whatever, it kind of inspires you and gives you the confidence to show your work.”
For a coffee shop that sits in the middle of a neighborhood, it makes sense that the goal of its events has nothing to do with prestige and everything to do with community celebration.
“It’s to bring people together, honestly,” B said. “Hang out. Do whatever. Chill. Make friends.”
Garden Club, a local band that describes itself as an experiment blending elements of jazz, hip-hop, and eastern folk, provided the music for the evening. With a bass guitar, drums, a keyboard and a harp, the band was just as eclectic as the art on the walls and the people inside.
After their first song, the band called on the audience to cheer for St. Petersburg — and they did with no hesitation.
The October Art Premier, which is also a Halloween costume party, will be another open submission show, but with a spooky theme. Any medium is welcome, and artists can submit one to three pieces to b@blackcrowcoffeeco.com.
