Downtown Ames will be open to everyone who wants to see the art shops and restaurants of historical Main Street at the Artwalk, from 5-8 p.m. on Friday, May 29.

The Artwalk, which is an open house for the art galleries of downtown Ames, also features music and an assortment of special foods.

“It’s a way to bring people downtown and show them what is going on,” said Letitia Hansen, manager of the Octagon Center for the Arts.

The downtown district of Ames is an area many people don’t visit, for many reasons. These include people who work downtown during business hours or people who simply do not know what downtown is all about.

Hansen, who was once an art major at Iowa State, said that if she had known about all of the art related things downtown when she was a student, she would have gone there more often.

The Artwalk is a fun way to see the shops when you don’t get downtown, she said.

There will be a musical performance by Good Company, an Ames women’s singing group, at 6 p.m. near The Frame Shop.

ACTORS, the Ames community theater, will perform some musical numbers from its upcoming production of “South Pacific” at 7 p.m. in Tom Evans park.

Mary James, owner of From Gifted Hands, said other businesses may have independent musical performances.

Last year, Worldly Goods had the Bone People perform, she said.

James is not sure if there are stores that will be doing that again.

From Gifted Hands is using the Artwalk as part of its tenth anniversary celebration. They will have another event in the fall when the ten year mark actually occurs.

Like most shops in the Artwalk, From Gifted Hands will feature some new artwork. The shop will also have a visiting artist.

This downtown event has taken place over many years.

“We have done it for eight years off and on,” James said. “We’re trying to make it a quarterly thing.”

Hansen said the format of the Artwalk has changed throughout the years.

The one thing that has remained the same is the purpose of the event: to make people aware of downtown Ames and the art galleries that are located there.

“[Downtown] has sort of a small town feeling. People know each other,” Hansen said. “It has things a mall can’t offer,” she said.

James said last year there was a good turnout and she “had people solid for four hours” in her shop.

“We had a wonderful night for it,” she said. “It is for a mix of townspeople and students, both high school and college [age].”

Other shops involved in this year’s Artwalk include Wall to Wall Gallery, Gallery 319, Nature’s Touch, Big Table Books and Hang it Up.

Restaurants include Ken’s Cafe and Grill, Lucullan’s and Madeline’s.

“I do encourage everybody to come down,” Hansen said. “You can eat and walk around. It’s not a huge long walk, and there is a route you can follow,” she said. “It’s a nice evening out, and it’s something different.”