A perfectly curated window display. The smell of essential oils in the air. Free samples of homemade lemon pound cake. These are just some of the ways the vendors of Uptown Market are trying to draw people in amidst sights of seemingly constant construction and all-too-frequent incidents of property crime downtown. Launched in August, Uptown Market is a retail hub at 1955 Broadway that features a rotating lineup of local entrepreneurs selling snacks, clothing, home goods, children’s books and more,…
Over the past few months, two photographers have been roaming Oakland’s streets, striving to capture the style of the city. Their work, a collection of 100 portraits, will debut to the public on Saturday at the “100 Faces of Oakland” photo exhibit at Uptown Station. The free exhibit, open from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., is part of the inaugural Oakland Style Week, a new series of more than 50 events that opened this week and runs through Sunday. It…
Over 200 Alameda County artists — many living and working in Oakland — joined the ranks of world-renowned names when their works graced the walls of the de Young Museum in San Francisco on Tuesday. In its second year, the “de Young Open 2023” is an exhibition for visual artists from the nine Bay Area counties. It debuted Tuesday to the press and its 883 contributing artists, including 209 hailing from Alameda County. Hundreds of people spilled into the seven…
Aboard the Mare Island vessel en route to Oakland, it’s easy to sit back, relax and enjoy a jaunt across the bay. Yet the journey of ferry transportation in the Bay Area hasn’t always been so smooth, and the COVID-19 pandemic reversed strides made in recent years. To recoup riders, the service, which is administered by the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority, cut fares by 30%, reworked schedules to address new commuting trends and weekend demand, and…
Oakland’s eighth annual Pride Parade began Sunday with a roar — the rev of motorcycles as parade leaders Dykes on Bikes rode up Broadway. Thousands of people attended the parade, waving flags, cheering and dancing. The 83 community groups, government affiliates and corporate sponsors in the lineup bore their own messages, played music ranging from ABBA to the Jonas Brothers, and invited attendees to join in the celebration. “Feeling invited is just a sacred part of the queer community —…