There are great events all over Tuscaloosa this weekend! You can start your weekend early by heading to Green Bar tonight! Exit 27 comes all the way from South Carolina to deliver some Rock to Tuscaloosa! Of course, Green Bar not only brings in great bands but also has a great atmosphere and drink menu. Located right next to Wilhagans, it is the perfect place to ease into a great weekend!
The month of September starts this Friday and with it comes the First Friday Art Walk! Local galleries, businesses, and restaurants are open in the evening for the community to experience what downtown has to offer! Venture into local galleries and businesses like the Canterbury Episcopal Chapel, and others to see their currently running exhibits like “Faces And Places Of Rabbit Holes” or “Small Curious Wonders” at University Medical Center. Take note that Art Night at Kentuck Art Center will take place next week on the 7th. As a part of their Art Night, Kentuck will be opening an exhibition by Kathryn Mayo titled “We are Selma: The Selma Portrait Project by Kathryn Mayo”.
Crimson Tide football is back this Saturday and with it comes all of the exciting festivities! The Children’s Hands-On Museum is hosting a Kid’s Tailgate Party where they can make mascot faces, spirit cookies, and will even have a concession stand! The unique museum in downtown is tailor made for the little ones, to introduce them to arts, crafts, and exciting exhibits in an interactive and exploring way! It provides fun for kids of all ages and they will never ever get the idea of calling a museum boring afterward!
You can wrap up your weekend Sunday evening at Black Warrior Brewing Company. Not only are they now pouring the One & Only Pale Ale, but they’re also hosting Jerry Robbins for some live smooth jazz and blues! There is no better way to put a bow on the perfect weekend than with smooth jazz and a One & Only beer!
We have tons more going on so check out our great upcoming events, and follow us on our social media pages (@visittuscaloosa) for more announcements and events. Tell your friends and we can’t wait to see you around the One and Only Tuscaloosa!
Weekends are always packed with great events in the One and Only Tuscaloosa and this one is no different! Start your weekend off across the river at the Kentuck Art Center for their monthly Art Night! Their event is headlined by the opening of “Protègè” an exhibition of work by Bernard Wright, a student of the late internationally known folk artist, Jimmy Lee Sudduth. Along with art night comes pop-up shops in the Courtyard of Wonders, live music, a food truck, even cob oven pizza!
Art continues into Friday as downtown Tuscaloosa hosts the First Friday Art Walk! Local galleries, businesses, and restaurants are open as an event in the evening for the community to see what Downtown Tuscaloosa has to offer. Locations like Harrison Galleries, Grace Aberdean, and the Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center will have art displayed, bands playing. Others like O’Connor Art Studios will be open to get a sneak peak at present works as well as allow you to see into the life of local artists!
Like every weekend, the Farmers Market will be taking place at the Tuscaloosa River Market Saturday morning! Vendors set up ripe red tomatoes and famous Chilton County peaches. Musicians sit propped up against the door, playing guitars as you walk in, and freshly brewed iced tea is for sale to help battle the heat! Additionally, local Food Trucks, bakers, artists, and craftsmen gather here to sell their gourmet grub, fresh-baked yeast rolls, homemade jams and jellies and hand-carved cutting boards. Popular summer foods include tomatoes, Chilton County peaches, squash, corn, and local honey!
This Saturday, Band of Brothers will be serving some incredible drinks and will be presenting Kat Taylor and JP Miller! Riding with her father on work trips, she belted out 90s country and cultivated a deep appreciation for the vocal talents of Martina McBride, Faith Hill, and Reba McEntire. Her sets incorporate classic rock favorites, current top 40, soul ballads, and country hits. Today, Kat Taylor’s song “Shame on You” has spent 6 weeks at number 1 on the new music weekly country main charts. This is one performance you don’t want to miss!
Finally, you can catch Annie all weekend at the Bama Theater. With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone’s hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City. She is determined to find the parents who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of a New York City Orphanage that is run by the cruel, embittered Miss Hannigan. With the help of the other girls in the Orphanage, Annie escapes to the wondrous world of NYC!
Spring is here and with it come showers! No need to worry though, Tuscaloosa offers a bunch of interesting and fun things to do indoors! Alongside the typical museum visit – which is of course still an awesome adventure – we show you some exceptional and memorable things to do on a rainy day!
- Any of Tuscaloosa’s Museums
Yes sure it is the cliché part of this list, but even at a classic topic like museums, Tuscaloosa has some places to surprise you. Have you ever been to a car museum? The Mercedes-Benz Visitor Center, located 15 Minutes outside of Tuscaloosa, offers you an inside view on car production in America’s only Mercedes factory and the famous brand’s history! On top of that, guided tours are available.
For the ones who are rather interested in extinct models, the Alabama Museum of Natural History is a perfect place to visit with its impressive dinosaur bones and many other exciting things to discover!
- Art Galleries
As John F. Kennedy already said, “If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.” and so the diverse art galleries in town are always worth a visit. The Kentuck Art Center in Northport is an all-in-one museum, gallery and event location that offers exciting exhibitions at all times. In the heart of downtown Tuscaloosa lies the Paul R. Jones Gallery, currently showing the exhibition “Perspectives: Individual Explorations of Identity Through Image” and the Sarah Moody Gallery, which is known for the UA’s Permanent Collection!
- Coffee Shops
What cozier place could there be to hide from a rainy day than a traditional coffee shop? The smell of coffee and pastries in the air, people reading the newspaper, studying or chatting steadily alongside a laid-back playlist…. sounds perfect to us! Tuscaloosa offers many such magical places. For example, the local chain Heritage House, the brand new Monarch Espresso Bar downtown or the traditional Edelweiss in Temerson Square. Choose one and enjoy!
- Brewery
The three big breweries in Tuscaloosa are the perfect place to spend a gray afternoon among friends and America’s favorite drink: Beer. Druid City Brewing Company, Black Warrior Brewing Company and Band of Brothers offer great brews and some even offer guided tours to learn something about the brewing process. Of course, it’s also a nice place to just sit and enjoy drinking it in a nice and homely atmosphere!
- Theatres
It doesn’t matter if you prefer classic theater or movie theater because Tuscaloosa has both and either is the perfect place to escape a rainy day! Enjoy a new blockbuster or any other genre you like at the Cobb Theaters Hollywood 16 Cinemas and choose between 2D, 3D and even more fancy options to make your movie experience a perfect fit. You could even dive into more old school theater as you watch a play at the Bama Theater, whose old atmospheric style is almost magical! It offers concerts, independent movies and stage play.
We couldn’t decide on just 5 for this article so here’s our encore! Two more to add to your rainy day to-do list:
- University Mall
Shopping is always a great choice! The “place to be” on a rainy day is University Mall! Located on McFarland Boulevard, it offers tons of stores with all your favorite styles and brands. Children’s entertainment and numerous restaurants also offer fun and entertainment for anyone and guarantee a relaxed day of shopping.
- Breakout Tuscaloosa
You are adventurous and looking for a real challenge on a rainy day? Then you should definitely try the new trend of escaping room games! The reopened location “Breakout Tuscaloosa” offers four different themed breakout rooms in which you have to solve a riddle and escape the room in a certain amount of time. There’s also a breakout expedition downtown with laser tag! The escape rates are between 20% and 35% – it must be a challenge!
Written By: Katharina Horvath – Intern
A tidy, tan shop front in the heart of downtown Tuscaloosa hosts one of the world’s largest collections of 20th century African-American art. In 2008 the late Paul Jones donated more than 1,700 pieces of his Collection of American Art, valued at nearly $5 million, to the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Alabama and are on rotational display at the downtown gallery throughout the year.
Described as a civil rights activist, Paul Raymond Jones began collecting art in the 1960s when he noticed a shortage of African-American representation in public art exhibits. He collected pieces created in a variety of mediums and from more than 600 artists. Jones wanted his collection used for educational purposes, so his donation to the university has been incorporated to the school’s curricula as a means to promote artistic significance and cultural awareness. Some of the works are on display at galleries on campus and will be made available to other academic institutions and museums throughout the state.
The current gallery exhibit, “In Miniature,” showcases some of the smaller pieces from Jones’ collection and is on display until August 23, 2016.
The gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on the first Friday of each month from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. The gallery is closed on Saturdays and Sundays.
Be sure to visit the one and only Paul R. Jones Gallery at 2308 6th Street, Tuscaloosa, AL 35401. For more information, contact gallery Director Karen Kennedy at (205)345-3038 or visit http://paulrjonescollection.as.ua.edu/ for more details.
Written by: Karley Fernandez, TTS Public Relations Intern