A lively crowd has converged on the corner of Telegraph Avenue and 23rd Street for Art Murmur, Oakland's monthly "First Friday," when galleries such as Johansson Projects and Rock Paper Scissors debut new exhibits. Within a block of this nexus, amid squat auto-repair shops and brick warehouses, half a dozen art galleries appear to be thriving, and still more are scattered on the surrounding streets.
The energy of the event is likely to catch a first-timer by surprise. It is an after-dark street party with an artistic bent. In the street, scruffy creative types mingle with sharp-dressed office workers, while an avant-garde musical trio adds a sonic layer to the atmosphere. Ropes clear enough space for a large piece of kinetic art that is, essentially, a pair of bicycles modified to form a human-powered merry-go-round. Meanwhile, inside the galleries, some serious art appreciation - and buying - is going on. If you're in the Bay Area on the first Friday of any month, this is clearly the place to be.
We've seen this before - the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn springs to mind - when an influx of artists and galleries helps spark urban renewal in once-blighted areas. If such gentrification is in the cards for Oakland, then now is the most exciting stage in the process, while the city is in flux, open to new people, new ideas, new energy.
Increasingly, visitors to the Bay Area are catching on that "there is a there" in Oaktown, often using those very words to turn the old Gertrude Stein platitude on its ear. The best time to visit the Old Oakland historic district is Friday, around lunchtime, when the weekly farmers' market kicks into high gear. Vendors selling organic produce, artisanal cheeses, Indian food, soul food and kettle corn conspire to put food on your brain. A lively crowd and the splendid setting, amid impeccable rows of Victorian office buildings, generate an irresistible scene.
The street-watching is never dull here. Vendors dealing in such goods as bok choy and boiled peanuts cater to the city's large Asian population, centered in nearby Chinatown. An old man bows a traditional erhu fiddle, his sinuous, melancholy melodies holding their own against the funkier strains of a rhythm-and-blues combo a block away.
B Restaurant, where a deep wood-burning oven produces delectable pizzas and braised meats, sets up elegant teak tables along the sidewalk so you can enjoy a sit-down meal without being completely cut off from the action. There is no Restaurant A, but perhaps that honorary position belongs to Ratto's, a sweet-scented Italian deli that has been serving gourmet hero sandwiches for more than a hundred years. It, too, offers casual sidewalk seating.
After lunch take a leisurely 2 1/2 -mile stroll around Lake Merritt, a closed-in estuary that attracts migrating birds year-round. The lake is a lovely urban centerpiece that is much appreciated by walkers, joggers, dog walkers and a few hundred Canada geese who make their home here. Or to further admire downtown's treasure trove of historic buildings, wander along Broadway and Telegraph Avenue.
Two landmark theaters have survived from the heyday of the grand movie palace. The Paramount is a perfectly preserved Art Deco masterpiece that hosts live concerts ranging from indie rockers to the Oakland Philharmonic. Around the corner, Fox Oakland Theater is being reconfigured to house the Oakland School for the Arts, representing yet another positive harbinger for the neighborhood. Here, too, stylish restaurants and cool bars have already begun to stimulate an increase in pedestrian traffic in the evening.
A recent arrival, Flora, smartly occupies another Art Deco gem, the former Oakland Flower Market. It perfectly fuses the historic venue and a bustling, contemporary vibe. Absinthe cocktails reflect the restaurant's almost fetishistic attention to detail, while a lively crowd helps keep things real.
A comparable vitality can be found at Luka's Tap Room & Lounge, a bar and grill anchoring the corner of Broadway and Grand, the linchpin between downtown and the Uptown arts district. Nearby, Cafe Van Kleef represents the more artsy and adventurous side of the neighborhood. With a constantly changing collection of art and sculpture, a gregarious host and live music, it's a suitable segue, whether you're headed for the galleries or have already come from them.
Where to eat
* B Restaurant, 499 9th St., Oakland; 510-251-8770; www.boakland.com.
* Cafe Van Kleef, 1621 Telegraph Ave., Oakland; 510-763-7711; www.cafevankleef.com.
* Flora, 1900 Telegraph Ave., Oakland; 510-286-0100.
* Luka's Tap Room & Lounge, 2221 Broadway, Oakland; 510-451-4677; lukasoakland.com.
* Ratto's, 821 Washington St., Oakland; 510-832-6503.
What to see
* 21 Grand, 416 25th St., Oakland; 510-444-7263; www.21grand.org.
* Johansson Projects, 2300 Telegraph Ave., Oakland; 510-444-9140; johanssonprojects.com).
* Oakland Art Murmur; www.oaklandartmurmur.com).
* Paramount Theater, 2025 Broadway; Oakland; 510-465-6400; www.theparamount.com).
* Rock Paper Scissors, 2278 Telegraph Ave., Oakland; 510-238-9171; www.rpscollective.com.
