Celebrate our community's creative talent with us at Art Walk, on the first Wednesday of each month in Downtown Jacksonville. On May 6, the Main Library stays open until 9 p.m. for the festivities. Pick up a "Map & Guide to the Main Library" on your way in. During your visit, you'll find plenty of public art, a huge vintage map collection, and more.
Art Tours of Main Library
From Dea Sims, one of our volunteer docents:
"I’m always amazed at how many regular library users have never made it all the way up to the Map Room on the fourth floor! It’s a hidden gem in downtown Jacksonville—absolutely stunning at night (and just as beautiful during the day). What a wonderful gift the Ansbacher family has given to our community. One of my favorite pieces is the oldest map in the room—be sure to ask a Special Collections librarian to point it out; it’s right at eye level."
Augusta Savage, Al Held, Kathryn Freeman, Lee Adams, Jerry Uelsmann. Do you know that works by these artists and many more are on permanent display at the Main Library? Come take a 20-minute docent-led tour during Art Walk and rediscover these remarkable paintings, sculptures, and photographs. Tours start every half hour starting at 6 p.m. Meet the docent by the Art Tours sign in the Pajcic Promenade (the entry/hallway on the first floor).
In the Gallery
The Best of Elementary Art Exhibition is going on now through May 13 in the Main Gallery on the 1st Floor. Join us to celebrate the best of the best elementary student art from several Duval County Public Schools. Note: This is part of a larger "Elementary Art Exhibition," on display at 15 library locations.
On the 2nd Floor, Megan Lester's Something Both Near and Far, explores the world between night and day. She paints suburban scenes, taking inspiration from the meditative quality of light. "The time of day is significant because it represents a world not limited by duality, opening the viewer up to feelings of transcendence and hope," Lester said. "Whether looking up at the sky or into a void, the subject of [these] paintings does not exist in the material, but simultaneously with it."
To Steal a Moment is a plein air art exhibition by the First Coast Plein Air Painters, on display in the Betty Francis Art Gallery (3rd Floor Mezzanine) from April 16 to June 4, 2026. Note: A public reception takes place during the next Art Walk from 6 - 8 p.m. on June 3.
What the exhibition is about
The show brings together works created outdoors on location by a collective of artists from Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia who paint directly from life. Their mission centers on camaraderie, community engagement, and capturing the character of the First Coast through regular group paint outs and exhibitions.
What visitors will see
The exhibition features a wide range of scenes—marshes, historic buildings, boats, gardens, coastal landmarks, and quiet corners of everyday life—rendered in oil, watercolor, acrylic, and pastel. Each piece reflects a specific moment observed in real time, which is the heart of plein air practice.
The Artists
Luann Dunkinson, Stephen Dunn, Douglas Johnson, Dongmei Lun, Carrie Keene, Peggy Harrell Jennings, Alex Ottich, Randy Pitts, Sheryl Roash, Lori Ann Sweet, Raquel Tripp, and Carron Wedlund.
Activities
Board Games
Looking for other adults to play board games with? Join us from 6-8 p.m. in the engagement space on the first floor. Just look for the big red carpet between the gallery and the Zine Zone. Note: Participation from beginning to end is not required and players can join/leave at any time.
Zinester Meetup
Do you read zines? Make your own comics? Drop by Zine Zone on the first floor of the Main Library from 6 - 8:30 p.m. (during Art Walk). It's a collaborative space where zinesters, writers, artists and more meet to network, learn new skills, do group projects, and make art. This month, the group will be creating collage material for the next issue of their Zinester Meetup Zine (ZMZ).
If you haven't already, this is also a good time to browse or donate to the Zine Collection.
Smash Bros. Tournament
Join us from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Teen Room (on the first floor) for a Super Smash Bros. Tournament for teens (ages 12-18) on the big screen TV.
