Masks, distance and wine

Orlando art event in the age of coronavirus takes on a new tone

Traditionally, the third Thursday of each month is a time to celebrate art throughout downtown Orlando. But times, of course, are currently anything but traditional.

Orlando’s Downtown Arts District has long presented the Third Thursday Gallery Hop, in which various restaurants, boutiques, salons and actual galleries showcase local artists. You might find thousands of people on the streets during such an event — and possibly street performers, too.

This past Thursday, there weren’t thousands out and about. But a dedicated group of art lovers showed up at CityArts, the collection of galleries run by the Downtown Arts District, for the opening of “Pompei Reimagined,” several new exhibitions related to the Italian city famously destroyed by a volcano.

Perhaps it’s fitting to reminisce about disaster while our economy and lifestyle are battered by coronavirus. Even the Pompeii theme has been hit by the current pandemic: The CityArts exhibits were meant to run in conjunction with Orlando Science Center’s “Pompeii: The Immortal City” exhibition.

That traveling look at Pompeii, destroyed by Mount Vesuvius in 79 A.D., includes 80 artifacts, such as bronzes, pottery and frescos. Originally scheduled to open in June, “Pompeii: The Immortal City” has been delayed until at least this fall, according to Science Center officials.

A banner in the first gallery of CityArts optimistically reminds visitors the Science Center’s exhibit will be “coming soon.”