A monthly arts festival in the Capital Region that was paused during the pandemic is returning.
First Friday is coming back to Albany starting this week. New York state Assemblywoman Pat Fahy, a Democrat from the 109th district, spoke Monday at Overit, which is partnering with Nippertown to bring the arts festival back.
Fahy says the festival is a vital opportunity for local artists and residents to celebrate their creativity.
“The arts heal, the arts soothe our souls. If there’s nothing that we’ve learned from COVID, it is the importance of the healing that is needed, the soothing of our souls that is needed. And as the mayor said, it is the creatives that have really so led the way on this," Fahy said.
Fahy was joined by several officials from Nippertown and Overit, as well as Albany Mayor and fellow Democrat Kathy Sheehan, who said that the county’s aim is to protect the festival from shuttering again, and to enable its future growth.
“It’s important for those of us who live and work in this community to have a place for the arts. Which is why one of the first things that I did as mayor was join with the mayors of Schenectady and Troy and applied for the very first round of the Bloomberg Public Arts challenge, and we won," Sheehan said.
Sheehan added that she wants creatives to help the city shape the spaces that the city is building for them.
“I want the artists, the musicians, the- the creators in our community to look at those spaces and do whatever it is that you do so well with those spaces," Sheehan urged.
Corey Aldrich, Executive Director of the Upstate Alliance for the Creative Economy, remarked that the arts have the power to give life direction.
“You know, I like to tell people that I found myself on the streets of Albany, literally, literally found myself on the streets of Albany, I had gone through a very difficult situation in my personal life, I was trying to figure out what my next version of personal identity would be. And so, I started going out onto the streets of Albany, specifically Art Night, as we called it back in circa 2010, or 11, actually, and met the most amazing people who actually helped to form the career that I have today, representing arts and culture in the Capital Region," Aldrich said.
Besides the personal impacts, Aldrich added that the arts play a strong role in New York’s economy.
“On the state level, the US Bureau of Economic Analysis Reports that arts and cultural production in New York State accounts for $143 billion with a B, or 7.6% of the New York economy, contributing over 450,000 jobs," Aldrich noted.
While other area cities have their own versions of First Friday, Maeve McEneny-Johnson, Discover Albany’s Community Engagement Manager, says that Albany’s take is unlike any other.
“Did you want to go swing dancing, you could go swing dancing. There was art. There was poetry, there was live music, local live music on every corner. It was so exciting. And the renegade pop ups. Oh, yeah. Yeah, that's what made first Friday in Albany so much different than other destinations and have done First Friday, because really, it was the locals who embraced it," McEneny-Johnson said.
McEneny-Johnson said that Albany’s First Friday was an outlet and escape for people who needed it.
“When I graduated from Siena College in 2006, we were in a recession, so it was really hard to be creative. It was hard to find jobs. You know, it was, you know, trying to find inspiration was difficult and also being social, right? If you didn't have a lot of money, but first Friday was there. First Friday was a space where we could go out with our friends with our family. And there was always something to do," McEneny said.
McEneny-Johnson added that organizers are hopeful that the revived First Friday will see the same success as its previous iteration.
“And we know that is going to happen again. And it's really going to take that community buy in. And I know that's going to happen. So, from my perspective of tourism and promotion, its authenticity. It's all about authenticity, is when a visitor is coming here, they want to see the local art, they want to see the local artists. And First Friday is going to be promoting these neighborhoods that have that," McEneny-Johnson remarked.
The revived First Friday is also seeing support from the Albany Public Library. Andrea Nicolai, the library’s new Executive Director, said that community outreach is a vital part of the library’s mission.
“Our mission is to educate, entertain, and empower the community. And we feel that at the library, the arts and cultural- cultural programming that we do is a huge part of supporting that mission and fulfilling it," Nicolai said.
Vendor applications are available online. The launch of First Friday’s comeback begins on May 5th at 5 p.m. at Overit offices on New Scotland Avenue.
