This is the sixth year that LBOST has organized the free event in celebration of October, which is Arts Month and National Arts and Humanities Month.
“We want the public to enjoy a headlining event in the middle of Arts Month every year and have been organizing this event to commence on the second weekend of October since 2010,” said Lisa Wibroe, LBOST curator. “Art lovers get the opportunity to venture into the working spaces of local artists in their own community and throughout Long Beach. Artists interact with the public, and the public gets to meet their local artists. It’s a win-win.”
Many studios are within proximity of one another with a hub in each corner of the city: California Heights/Bixby to the north, El Dorado Park area to the east, Belmont Shore/Belmont Heights to the south and Wrigley to the west. A few studios are located within the interior of the city to bridge together the different hub locations. Some studios are within walking distance of one another; others need a bike or car. Whatever approach attendees take, seeing the entire tour will require both days, Wibroe said.
The brochure, which includes studio locations on a map, suggests visiting the north and west hubs one day and the south and east hubs the other day. These two areas are delineated by colored locators on the map.
“With support from the City of Long Beach and the Arts Council for Long Beach, the LBOST has been growing every year,” said Tina Burnight, LBOST artist and website designer.
Both the brochure and map, along with the list of participating artists and live music locations, may be downloaded from LBopenstudiotour.com . Each artist has an individual page with a short bio and samples of their work.
