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WHAT WE DO
First Friday
First Friday is produced by Whirlygig, Inc., a Nevada
non-profit arts organization founded in October 2002. First Friday
has grown from 300 attendees in 2002 to today’s monthly attendance
of 5-10,000. The event now encompasses more than 20 city blocks with
five blocks closed to vehicular traffic to create a pedestrian area
for the outdoor festivities. This grassroots community festival has
become “Las Vegas’ favorite community art event” with gallery
hopping, free exhibition spaces for artists, live entertainment,
street entertainers, shopping food, beverages, and more. More than
80 galleries, restaurants and retail businesses work together to
make the First Friday experience unique to the Las Vegas downtown
arts district. Volunteers currently jury the art, work the
information tables, set up and tear down parts of the event, place
the trolley signs, coordinate the trolley guides, and sell soda and
water to benefit First Friday. As Mayor
Oscar Goodman says, “First Friday is the best thing that has ever
happened to Las Vegas.”
Downtown Arts Information
Whirlygig provides a clearinghouse of information
about the downtown arts community through its websites (whirlygiglasvegas.org
and
firstfriday-lasvegas.org)
and quarterly newsletters—to support continued growth of the Las
Vegas arts community. Please see
Friends of First
Friday to receive the quarterly newsletter.
Downtown Development
Whirlygig actively participates in furthering the
revitalization of downtown Las Vegas. First Friday played and
continues to play a key role in bringing galleries, artists, and Las
Vegans to the downtown arts district. Whirlygig
has begun developing
partnerships to buy historic buildings in the area, turning them
into art studios for lease and currently is a partial owner of the
Commerce Street Studios—responsible for their preservation and
maintenance. Whirlygig remains a key voice for art and artists in
the discussion about urban use and planning in downtown Las Vegas.
OUR PARTNERS
First Friday Host Sponsor
The Whirlygig Board and Executive Director also work
closely with the City of Las Vegas Office of Cultural Affairs, the
host sponsor of the First Friday event. While the City of Las Vegas
continues to provide much-needed infrastructure, coordination and
consulting support to the growing event, more of the event hard
costs are being borne by Whirlygig Inc.—and individual, corporate
and business donations are needed more than ever! (The City of Las
Vegas sponsors the event 6x per year and its sponsorship does not
even cover all the costs involved with those six months. We need
your help!)
Whirlygig Board of Directors
Whirlygig’s Board is made up of 15 community leaders.
They offer their time and expertise to help Whirlygig and its
programs, including First Friday, grow and prosper.
Board of Directors Officers
Cindy Funkhouser
Board President
Owner, The Funk House
Naomi Arin
Board Vice President
Owner, Dust Gallery
Danielle
Rodenkirchen
Board Secretary
Assistant Company Manager, Mystère Cirque du Soleil
(US), Inc.
Todd VonBastiaans
Kristin Bartolo
Owner, Dino’s
Richann Bender
Sr. Economic Development Officer, Economic
Development, City of Las Vegas
Sam Cherry
Chief Executive Officer, Cherry Development
Patrick Duffy
Art Collector
Carl Goldner
Principal, Edge Hospitality Group
Dick Geyer
Board President,
The 18b Las Vegas Arts District Neighborhood
Association
Nancy Higgins
Executive Director, Whirlygig Inc. / First Friday
Anne Kellogg
Owner, Las Vegas Paper Doll
Vincent J. Kostiw
Attorney At Law, Kostiw Law Group, PC
Erika Pope
Senior Manager, Public Relations, Las Vegas
Convention and Visitors Authority
Amy Schmidt
Managing Director, Michele C Quinn Fine Art Advisory
LLC
First Friday Advisory Committee
The First Friday Advisory Committee meets quarterly
to address First Friday-related issues and concerns. The Committee
is made up of representatives from Whirlygig, the City of Las Vegas
Office of Cultural Affairs, the arts community (artists and business
people), Clark County Parks and Recreation Cultural Affairs
Division, and the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority.
Downtown Galleries, Businesses and Artists
We also want to acknowledge all the artists and
business folks in the 18b Las Vegas Arts District and surrounding
neighborhoods who participate in the event each month. They provide
downtown visitors with new things to see, do and experience every
day and also each First Friday. Please review the map at
www.firstfriday-lasvegas.org and you might discover a new gallery,
shop or area to explore.
Our First Friday and Whirlygig Sponsors
We want to thank all our sponsors. They not only help
keep the event running financially but also add their own touches of
fun and excitement to the celebration. Again, our website’s
“Sponsors” section links to all their websites. So please go see
them!
Friends of First Friday
Our Friends of First Friday membership group is going
strong, helping support the event, while also getting discounts and
perks to our participating and friendly businesses. Please check out
http://www.firstfriday-lasvegas.org/foff.html to see how you can
join. We’re planning a few special things to do this year for our
very Best Friends. And we’re hoping that many more individuals
become Contributing Friends. We need your support!
WHIRLYGIG & FIRST FRIDAY HISTORY
Whirlygig,
Inc., was formed in 2002 to oversee the production of First
Friday. The Board President, Cindy
Funkhouser, the Vice President, Julie Brewer, and the
Secretary/Treasurer, Naomi Arin, are the three founders of this
popular arts event.
First Friday was the brainchild of Cindy Funkhouser
after she visited a similar event in Portland, Oregon. She convinced
her other Board officers that it was worth trying in Las Vegas. The
initial grassroots event attracted around 300 visitors with
10 arts and entertainment participants. The event has taken place
every month since October 4, 2002.
Since then, the festival has remained community-based
and has attracted an every-increasing group of attendees. In 2004
the three founders were named “Local Heroes” by CityLife.
Today the event attracts around 5-10,000 visitors on
average
with 80 indoor arts, food, drink and shop venues opening their doors
and 50 outdoor artists, artisans and entertainers providing outside
fun. First Friday has become Las Vegans’ favorite art
event and is continually named the “best community event,” or
the “best arts event” and is listed as one of the top “things every
Las Vegan must do” by readers and editors of leading Las Vegas
publications, including Las Vegas Weekly, Las Vegas Review
Journal and Las Vegas Life.
Our Founder, Cindy Funkhouser
Cindy Funkhouser’s vision, passion, and perseverance
has brought First Friday from a small grassroots festival to the
multi-faceted art event it is today, featuring art both inside the
many area galleries, outside in the two festival areas, food and
beverages galore, street entertainers, a chalk drawing area, and
just plain fun for all ages.
Cindy has always collected things and was able to
turn her obsession into a thriving business, her antique store, The
Funk House—constructed, fittingly, in 1958. Cindy has always
supported local artists, first by displaying art in her store, then
by becoming the driving force behind First Friday, providing Las
Vegas with a monthly gathering place for art and people watching.
Having grown up in Iowa, she moved to Las Vegas in 1984 and settled
in—she’s a person who believes in making her neighborhood a better
place to live and is an advocate of making the downtown arts
district a thriving place to live and work. Cindy’s determination
and hard work kept First Friday going and growing over the past 4
years.
Co-Founders Julie Brewer and Naomi Arin
Julie Brewer
Julie Brewer passed away in August, 2007. Though she
will be dearly missed, the role that she played in crafting First
Friday’s first five years will not be forgotten. Former owner of the
now-closed Enigma Café on South Fourth Street, Julie suggested that
Cindy regularly present artwork showings in The Funk House and Cindy
started doing just that. Then, when Cindy talked with Julie about
starting up First Friday, Julie initially tried to discourage her,
saying what a daunting task an art festival would be. However,
nothing could stop Cindy—and soon Julie became one of the three
founders of the event and an important First Friday advocate.
Naomi Arin
Naomi Arin is a Las Vegas gallery owner who is
creating a place in Vegas, Dust Gallery, to not only see
contemporary art but also to represent the strain of Vegas
contemporary art to a national audience. She and her partner Las
Vegas artist, Jerry Misko embrace the idea of a gallery as not
simply a place to sell art but to be active in the gallery's
traditional role as an educator and tastemaker. Dust is perhaps the
first local gallery to focus not just on artists who live and work
in Vegas, but on Vegas artists who have gained success in the wider
art world and need a strong promoter to reflect that success in
Southern Nevada. Naomi, formerly a practicing attorney, returned to
Las Vegas in 2001 after spending five years writing grants at the
Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. She is a strong advocate
for the arts and has been invaluable in making First Friday such a
success.
OUR MAILING ADDRESS
Whirlygig, Inc.
1228 S Casino Center Drive
Las Vegas, NV 89104
FIRST FRIDAY PUBLIC INFORMATION LINE
This is a voicemail system. Please leave us a message
and someone will return your call as quickly as possible (line is
monitored Monday through Friday).
702-384-0092
FIRST FRIDAY & WHIRLYGIG WEBSITES
www.firstfriday-lasvegas.org
www.whirlygiglasvegas.org
FOR MORE INFORMATION
For more information about Whirlygig and its
programs, including sponsorships and donations, please email Nancy
Higgins, Executive Director of Whirlygig Inc. at
nancy@whirlygiglasvegas.org. |
