<h2>Nobody loses at 'Robbin' the Bank' </h2>

I took nearly 300 pictures Friday night -- 273 to be exact -- at the Art Bank Studios and Gallery's triannual "Robbin' the Bank" program that was part of the First Friday Art Tour along Massachusetts Avenue in downtown Indianapolis. My objective throughout the shooting, once I saw a public painting-by-feet project was going on, was to grab the one shot above. It was image No. 47 in the sequence, but I kept shooting thereafter on the hopes of improving upon it. OK, OK ... so I did also shoot a lot of pictures of the musical entertainment, too.

The timing was just perfect for the shot above. I waited for the setting sun, which had been darting off and on behind rain clouds, to return and cast a sheen at the same time another pair of artists' feet came along, but it never did before sinking below the downtown skyline. The artists who contributed to making this canvas were mostly patrons and organizers, although at least one musician in the ensemble playing with musical artist Luke Austin Daugherty also participated.

I was at the Art Bank because five members of the photo meetup group that I belong to had images on display there for the art tour. Our participation was arranged by one of the group members, Cheri Herron, who attends the same church as the Art Bank's owner, artist Dan Hayes. A picture of one of the three walls in the gallery dedicated to our group's photo submissions for Friday's art tour appears below.

The Art Bank's "Robbin' the Bank" moniker derives from the fact that the building was a bank decades ago when John Dillinger robbed it. Dillinger's nephew and great-nephew drop in for each "Robbin' the Bank" programs each year. They sell books and other Dillinger-related merchandise. I saw the great-nephew last night at one of the sales tables, but not the nephew, even though I'm told he was there.

Above: Luke Austin Daugherty (far right) and his ensemble provide the musical entertainment at the Art Bank's "Robbin' the Bank" programs, including the one for the First Friday Art Tour yesterday along Massachusetts Avenue in downtown Indianapolis.


Above: This is what the charity canvas, for the Arthritis Foundation, looked like about midway through the creation process.

Above: Youngsters were the early contributors to the foot-driven canvas, and this girl stole the show in the early going. Luke Austin Daugherty and his ensemble furnished the music; the "artists" provided the entertainment, putting their impressions on canvas with their dancing feet.


Above: After dabbling in a light color and a blue, this boy went to try his hand, er, feet at a rich red.


Above: One of the band members came out and joined the group painting movement.


Above: A rap number was one of the tunes the ensemble played at "Robbin' the Bank."


Above: Even after she finished her art contribution, the cute girl continued her dancing just off to the side of the canvas on the pavement in the Art Bank parking lot, much to the delight of the people in attendance.

Above: One of the three walls holding our meetup club's pictures. I have three on this wall -- the monarch butterfly on the top left (the picture you see at the top of Photo Potpourri's homepage), the White River sunset right above the "three-eggs" image (a favorite of mine in our display, by Debra Boyd-Kaler) and the winter pastoral just to the left of Debra's egg photo.