Downtown Neon Gallery hosts a night of local music, poetry and art Friday night

The Downtown Neon Gallery is merging music and art this weekend with the next installment of its quarterly Music + Poetry + Art series. On deck Friday night: River Cow Orchestra, Evan Smalley, poets from the Writers Place, and art by the Visual Arts Group and Thomas Cobian.

“We started doing this in 2008. It’s a collaboration between the Neon Gallery and the Writers Place and a group of independent songwriters led by Rick Malsick,” says Martha Gershun, the producer for the evening. 

Malsick has double duty, playing both host to the night and performing a set of his own. 

“We always start with an opening act for the first 45 minutes. This week, it’s going to be the River Cow Orchestra – it’s a CD release for their new album Finding Water,” Gershun says. “Then three poets read for 10 minutes each, then we have an intermediate act, then three more poets, and then we have a singer-songwriter close out the evening.” 

The Downtown Neon Gallery’s Music + Poetry + Art takes place Friday, January 24, from 7 to 10 p.m. Downtown Neon Gallery, 1921 East Truman Road