Tonight from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. is the ACANSA Arts Festival Gallery Hop to The Art Group Gallery, Cantrell Gallery, Greg Thompson Fine Art, Hearne Fine Art Gallery, M2 Gallery, Gallery 221, L & L Beck Art Gallery, Local Colour Gallery, Matt McLeod Fine Art, Stephano’s Fine Art Gallery, The Edge Gallery, The Hot Springs Art Group, Argenta Gallery and Boswell Mourot Fine Art. That’ll have you hopping all over town, but you can also take a trolley (park at the Arts Center and catch it there if you like) between venues, the better to enjoy your libations. Tickets are $20. Highlights, on a circuit from North Little Rock to downtown Little Rock to midtown to West Little Rock:
* The “Best of the South” show at Greg Thompson Fine Art, 428 Main St. The annual exhibition of top Arkansas and regional artists, including William Dunlap, Ed Rice (see above), Glennray Tutor, Pinkney Herbert, Donald Roller Wilson and Robyn Horn, opens tonight.
* Disfarmer photography exhibit at the Argenta Gallery, 413 Main St. in downtown North Little Rock. Also up: work by George Dombek.
* A retrospective of work in pencil and silverpoint by Aj Smith at Hearne Fine Art, 1001 Wright Ave.
* At Cantrell Gallery, 8206 Cantrell Road, there will be art from artists from its gallery stable, including Warren Criswell, Kae Barron, Lange Cheek, Nathaniel Dailey, Cici Davidson, Barbara Lasley, Eric Spann and John Wooldridge. Also, Debie Deaton will demonstrate the felting technique she uses to create her wool sculpture and John Deering, who has a show at the gallery now, will paint.
* Stephano’s Fine Art, 1813 N. Grant St., opens its “100 for $100 or Under” show tonight, with artists in attendance. Find paintings by Stephano, Mike Gaines, Morgan Coven, Angela Green, Jennifer Wilson, Laura Holthoff, Maryam Moeeni, Cyndi Yeager, George Peebles, L.C. Kitchen, Scott Davis and Mike Spain; glass and ceramics by Lisa Ruggerio, Kandy Jones, Cheryl Pride, Barbara Middleton, Lynn Sudderth, Robbie Wellborn, Marianne Hennigar, Riley Brothers and Lynda Marnon; jewelry by Kathleen Kennally, Joan Courtney and Teresa Smith; furniture by Michelle Renee; and photography by John Sindle, Ray Scott, Scott Davis and Shelby Brewer. Southern Salt Food Co. will provide the food and Out of the Woods Animal Rescue will serve drinks.
* “Laureate,” a retrospective of etchings by Arkansas’s artist laureate Evan Lindquist is at M2 Gallery, 11525 Cantrell Road.
There will be lots of all art at all the venues and refreshments as well. Buy a ticket on the ACANSA website.