BY KATE BRAUER AND ROB JANSEN

Photo By Jymi Bolden

The studio of local artist James Kwame Clay is part of the burgeoning Final Fridays art scene on the corner of Clay and 13th streets in Over-the-Rhine.

For this issue, we looked near and far to find our favorite "new best spot." We discussed it, debated it, even held a few informal polls. In the end, we're confident our recommendation is a good one. (And while we were in the midst of this healthy debate, we decided to shed some light on our old favorite best spot and the growing black cloud that's caused it to suffer something of a fall from grace.)

On the last Friday night of every month, hundreds of people interested in the arts head to the corner of Clay and 13th streets in Over-the-Rhine. Artists and patrons alike consistently gather there in order to participate in what has become one of the area's most vibrant art scenes and what's become our "new best spot" -- FINAL FRIDAYS. An experience like no other the city has to offer, Final Fridays include an eclectic mixture of artistic styles, influences and spaces. There's THE PROJECTS (114 E. 13th St.), a rather unconventional gallery founded by local art teacher Sarah Jane Bellamy. What distinguishes this gallery from others is that Bellamy assigns a team of local artists a specific theme for each show. On Final Fridays the pieces of art created from these themes are auctioned off or sold for about $30 each. In the same building is the studio of local artist JAMES KWAME CLAY, who works on everything from sculpture to jewelry and is worth checking out. Down the street is FLOWERS AND BEYOND (118 E. 13th St.), where local floral designer Keith Mueller regularly features some of the most talented local painters, sculptors and photographers. Other spaces on the corner of Clay and 13th offering a fresh look at the art scene include PUBLICO (1308 Clay St.), LIFE ESTHETICS (111 E. 13th St.) and MICHAEL VALLAIR (1304 Clay St.). If you're looking for something to do on the last Friday of the month and want to experience the visual arts in Cincinnati, we strongly recommend checking out Final Fridays. ...

For every silver lining, there's a cloud. In the case of SSNOVA (2260 Central Parkway, Brighton), it's a cloud of smoke. Late-night visitors to openings at the innovative gallery space might be surprised to find themselves pushing their way through clumps of teenagers idling aimlessly and blowing cigarette smoke at the art. Take, for example, the recent opening for Wunderkammer, touted as "a UC Fine Arts Association exhibition of carnivalic proportions." The artwork was in many cases unmarked, giving no indication of the artist or name of the piece; but this was of little concern to most of the visitors we encountered. In fact, many of these late-night gallery goers seemed more interested in "being seen" than in seeing art. Most disturbing was the bar-like haze of smoke that hung in the air. Kids and adults alike were actually blowing smoke directly at the art on the walls, apparently unaware of the disrespect this showed. (Hey, we don't have anything against smokers, but if you're going to puff please don't blow it all over a piece of original art.) In the past, we've commended SSNOVA for its originality in presenting original art in a fun and often circus-like atmosphere. But lately it seems the openings feel more like underage bar hops than serious exhibitions. This is no fault of the artists, though, and even this smoke cloud has a silver lining. SSNOVA continues to display a wide range of art by local artists, and nearly every opening offers something good to discover. We recommend SSNOVA consider adopting -- and enforcing -- a "no smoking" policy, at least as far as exhibition spaces are concerned. Until it does, we suggest you attend openings in the earlier hours before the teen club scene crowd takes over.

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