An extra hour for art

The arts community has added an after-hours party and you're invited.

The ARound Town group will start naming a featured gallery each month beginning with March. The chosen gallery will stay open an extra hour or more on First Friday to allow guests more time to visit.

The first gallery the group will feature is Aartful Rose, convenient because the gallery has a phenomenal show up right now featuring New Orleans artist Will Page.

I know I sometimes have trouble jetting to each of the galleries. On many occasions, I've missed an artist I wanted to meet because I spent too much time admiring another's work.

I certainly don't want to cut any conversation about art short, and I much prefer being able to savor the pieces rather than glance around and run.

We gain an hour of First Friday from now on. The group essentially created Daylight Saving Time for each month.

Sometimes I'm staying long at a gallery to talk to the owner and tell him or her about the other shows. They love hosting their own openings, but I know they would like to see the other owners and shows.

Some gallery owners close shop once or twice a year to give themselves a night out.

Now they won't necessarily have to do that. They can just make rounds one month at a time.