By Paula Pyzik Scott

The April 23 Art Walk in Bluffton--an event promoted by the Bluffton Area Chamber of Commerce--encouraged visitors to explore local businesses with the added attraction of pop-up displays and sales by local artists.

On the beautiful spring day, Miriam Falke displayed her work in a variety of mediums in front of Kira's Flipside Grill. Another artful entrepreneur, Kirstene D. Adkins, of Art Me Party!, painted faces and introduced passersby at Shirley's Gourmet Popcorn Co. to her rhyming children's book Oodles.

Other artists were just inside, such as Olivia Maag and Matt DeRitter, who sat in the front window of Twisted Whisk Cafe with greeting cards and stationary from their business the Inkvine Company. In the front window of Inside Innovations, three Bluffton University art students had pottery for sale.

At the Black Lab Trading Company, artist Sara Nowland of Watercolor Dreams demonstrated her skill at painting flowers, using a china cup and saucer as her brush-washing basin.

Growing plants are the materials used by artist Kim Beckmann, who displayed terrariums and wall-mounted staghorn ferns at roots by Strattons. Her business is called Artful Understory.

A total of 12 locations were featured in the free, public art event.

This was the second Art Walk to be coordinated by the chamber, which helped pair artists with local businesses and provided promotion.