LYNN — The 15th annual Open Studios event at the Lydia Pinkham Building will return this year, after being canceled last year because of the pandemic.
This year’s Open Studios will take place on Nov. 20 and 21 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
With more than 55 artists selling their work throughout the building’s four floors, the event will include bakers, tattoo artists, bike makers, sign makers, sculptors, pottery makers, a piano player, leatherworker and more.
For the first time, Open Studios will have a shopping spree giveaway, sponsored by Lucia Lighting & Design, giving four winners $150 to spend at any of the studios in the building.
“It’s going to be a fun weekend,” said Kirsten Bassion, the owner of The Clay School located in the building.
Bassion started Open Studios at the Lydia Pinkham Building after she opened The Clay School 17 years ago and said this is the largest open studio event in the area.
Seeing around 100 visitors when Bassion first started the event, Open Studios has since grown to bring in about 2,000 people in 2019.
Sponsored by the Lynn Cultural Council, RCG Lynn (which manages the building), and Lucia Lighting, this event will have some artists demonstrating their work, while arrows and lights help guide the way through the historic, industrial building.
Kim Allison, who is on the planning committee for Open Studios, said they have received great feedback so far from the artists, who are excited for this event to be back.
“The artists are really enthusiastic,” Allison said. “We have a lot of new artists who came here during the pandemic that people haven’t seen yet, so it’ll be fun.”
Bassion said while this event brings in great business for the artists, it also benefits the community.
“I really feel like it’s a neighborhood event,” Bassion said. “There are a lot of people in the neighborhood and often they’re the ones who don’t even know what’s in the building because they’ve never been in.”
Open Studios, Bassion said, is a fun, free way for the community to see what and who is inside of this historic building and learn about all that it has to offer.
In addition to the participating artists, the restaurant Uncommon Feasts will be open for people to eat at during the two-day event.
“There’s all these movements about supporting local arts and shopping local and buying American, and this fits all of those categories,” Bassion said.
Lynn Museum/LynnArts and the Pinkham Labs are also hoping to participate by securing a trolley service to help people get from downtown to the Lydia Pinkham Building and around the various artist spaces throughout the day on Saturday, Nov. 20.
This trolley service hasn’t been secured yet, but updates will be provided on the Open Studio’s website.
Bios and examples of work from participating artists can also be found on the website, along with the tab to enter in information to apply to win the giveaway shopping spree.
The Lydia Pinkham Building is not handicap accessible, with the front stairs being an obstacle, but there is a freight elevator that can be used if needed once in the building.
Bassion said parking in residential areas on the surrounding streets will be allowed, as they are working with the Lynn Police to offer more parking options.
Visitors are also asked to wear masks, which will be provided at the door for those who need one.
For more information on Open Studios, visit lydiapinkhamopenstudios.com.
