We are open for artists.
We are open for poets.
We are open for zinesters.
We are open for readers.
#We are open for Art Walk
Celebrate our community's deep pool of creative talent with us on the first Wednesday of each month in Downtown Jacksonville! The Main Library stays open until 9 p.m. for the festivities! We are conveniently located directly across from James Weldon Johnson Park, one of Art Walk's two major hubs of activity. Not only that, there is usually local art on display, zinesters meeting and collaborating on the first floor, and sometimes special drop-in activities going on in the Teen Room. Don't forget to pick up a Map & Guide to the Main Library on your way in! You'll find public art, a huge vintage map collection and more!
#Drop-In Activities
Zinester Meetup
Make, trade, read and discuss zines with local zinesters and comic makers at our monthly Zinester Meetup.
At October's meetup, we will be joined by students from UNF Professor Andrew Kozlowski's Zines and Community course! They'll be setting up a Risograph Press, printing a free takeaway zine, and engaging with the public about the role of zines in building community.
This will also serve as the launch party for Duval's newest alternative magazine, Mischief on the River. Our Duval Comic and Zine (DCAZ) community partner, Lindsey Anderson, will be on hand to spread to word about the magazine. The authors and artists involved with the project are invited to join the fun.
The Zinesters meet in the "Zine Zone" from 6 - 8:30 p.m. next to the Zine Collection and across from the first-floor gallery. This is also the perfect time to check out the Zine Collection or submit your zine or self-published comic to the library! For more about the Library's Zine Collection, visit jaxlibrary.org/zines.
Tabletop Players Welcome
Are you interested in TTRPGs (tabletop roleplaying games)?
Join us for a Dungeons & Dragons one-shot adventure for adults from 6 - 8:30 p.m. every Art Walk. No experience is required. Just bring your creativity! The group meets on the first floor (near the Zine Zone).
#Traveling Exhibit
Jacksonville Public Library is one of 50 U.S. libraries selected to host Americans and the Holocaust, a traveling exhibition from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum that examines the motives, pressures and fears that shaped Americans’ responses to Nazism, war and genocide in Europe during the 1930s and 1940s. View the exhibit now through October 12, 2023, at the Main Library in the fourth-floor atrium, next to the Holocaust Collection and Special Collections Department.
You can also book a 25-minute docent-led tour during normal business hours!
#Art Exhibits
Duval Art Downtown: An Exhibition for Educators
Join us on the first floor for an Opening Reception starting at 6 p.m. kicking off this special exhibition celebrating the wide, creative talent and interests of 27 current (and retired) Duval County Public School art educators. You'll find over 60 art pieces including paintings in acrylic, oil, and watercolor; sculptures in found/natural materials and ceramics; textile and fabric arts; mixed media and collage; drawings in graphite and charcoal; linoleum prints; and more.
These educators work so hard to inspire their students and help them move forward on their creative journeys. We often forget that they're artists, too! This exhibition gives them a chance to show their own passions and creative pursuits.
#Bicentennial Bell
The Jacksonville Historical Society unveiled the new 225 lb bronze Bicentennial Bell during May Art Walk. If you missed it, good news: The bell will remain on display here until a permanent site is secured.
Although similar to the Liberty Bell, the commemorative nature is different... instead of ringing for freedom, the Bicentennial Bell marks a milestone in Jacksonville's history, while also heralding the city's bright future," Gibson Evans told Action News Jax.
