Art, shown here bringing people together.

For those who know, the Banbury Swan is more than just a work of art guarding the river. It marks a place of artistic gathering. Banbury Place has developed into a hub for local artistic masterminds, where studios and creativity have helped revive the industrial complex that formerly housed Uniroyal. Two years ago, artists threw together the first-ever art crawl event and enjoyed enormous success. And, though they took a break last year, it has returned. Originally organized by local artists Adam Fuller and Laurie Bieze as a hopeful event for local artists to exhibit and sell their work, Bieze and Fuller never expected the thousands-strong turnout in 2009. This year, the event promises to be even better.

Over 40 artists are expected to participate. This includes woodworkers, weavers, painters, potters, sculptors, jewelers, photographers, glassworkers, and, well, you get the picture. Demonstrations include woodturning and glassblowing and, of course, there will be plenty of things for sale to fulfill your artistic addictions. There will also be other forms of entertainment, such as the “Artist Comedy of the Absurd” by BareBones Ensemble Theatre, an activity room set up by the Boys and Girls Club, food provided by the Community Table and The Goat Coffee House, wine tasting by Infinitea, appearances by the Theatre Guild, and more. “It is just one big hodgepodge of all the arts wrapped into a bottle of fun,” Bieze said. “The possibility is really there, just waiting in this wonderful huge building.” The Crawl is hoping to become a biannual celebration of the arts.

Banbury Art Crawl • Feb. 11-12 • Banbury Place Building F 13, Galloway St., Eau Claire • 3-9pm Friday, 9am-3pm Saturday • FREE • all ages • BanburyArtCrawl.com