This was a cool little stop with plenty of street parking…read more It is not a reason to visit Columbus on its own, but if you are here you should stop by and take a picture.

You can't miss this giant slingshot when nearby in Franklinton! It's set up in a front of hill that…read moregives you a great view of the sculpture on one side and of Scioto Audubon and that area on the other. The slingshot is also lined with color changing lines, so it's also very neat to see as it gets dark. There are even giant fingers sculpted to "pull back" on the slingshot string, which is a fun touch. This is a really fun piece of art to enjoy. It was designed by Andrew Lundberg.

The Taste of Grandview is an annual tasting event in Mid-October. There were about 15 Grandview…read morerestaurants there to sample. There was Marshall's, Cap City, the new Rancho Allegra on 33, Jeni's-of course, Noodles and so many more! I did not try everything, as I surely would have burst some buttons. But, I did get to sample the Asian salad from Noodles for $2 and the peel away shrimp from the Columbus Fish Market. Those guys were so sweet. They were selling 7 shrimp for $5, but I only wanted 2 shrimp. So I asked for 2 and asked what the price would be. They gave them to me for free! How can you beat that?! The serving sizes were true tasting sizes, and the prices matched! Because this is a family-friendly event ( or maybe because it was a Sunday in Grandview), this is a dry event, so no alcohol served anywhere. The Grandview Chamber of Commerce was selling sodas and water for $1 and Caribou Coffee was there with ice coffee and lattes! The judges (poor things) got to try EVERYTHING! I'm pretty sure they had to wheel-barreled out of the park. If I remember correctly, Smoke Shack BBQ won the best appetizer (I don't remember what that was) and the best entree: Hawaiian chicken, or maybe it was pork. Raising Canes won "The People's Choice" and Old Bag of Nails won the best dessert with their homemade bread pudding.

Super fun local companies with fun personalities... All of them! Went to all the booths and…read moreeveryone was awesome. The only input I have- the smaller new and coming (and amazing) venders need to make smaller cheaper samples of their food. For those going to try everything 8$ is high for a taste and too much food for a day of everything. Otherwise it was awesome. Little miss Ohio have out thank you samples and the weather is perfect!

Whoever said you can see everything here in 45 minutes to an hour didn't have my level of…read morefanaticism as I whiled away two hours here soaking everything in. And that's with the library portion closed and only the museum open on account of New Year's Eve. I could pick a bone with them as I called in advance seeing Google said NYE may affect their usual 1-5 hours and the lady on the other end assuring me they were open. Neither of us was specific about it being the museum or the library and I figured it was just a package deal. As you can see from the five star rating I'm not marking them down for it but that was a bit of a bummer. I had planned on being here for their entire four hours open on this day and I'm sure I would have if that library was open. As it was I had a grand time (as my grandmother used to say) and I ended up making great use of that precious little late December daylight elsewhere on some Calvin and Hobbesesque exploring so everything worked out. The museum is upstairs on the second floor but I already knew I was in the right place when I saw a Garfield statue in the middle of a park bench against the wall of the bright airy first floor atrium. Admission is free, another reason why I shouldn't harp too much on the library being shuttered on the last day of 2024. There is a donation box and I did drop some currency into it. There's also some cabinets you can stick your coats or other belongings in by the front door. You can just take the key with you as you wander the three or four galleries of the museum. (One gallery is partially bisected by a wall and I'm not sure if it counts as one or two rooms.) They have you sign in on a tablet at the front desk and you have to provide an email. Definitely not a problem for me. I don't know when I'll be down in Buckeye territory again but the main exhibits change every six months and I'm curious to see what's on tap in the future. So if you're coming from afar, be it the Wolverine State or not, you might want to stay abreast of the exhibit schedule or give them a ring to make sure they're not between shows as they do shut down for a time to take down the old exhibits and install the new ones. The exhibits at the tail end of 2024 were dedicated to Edward Koren, a quirky artist with a philosophical bent known for his many published works in the New Yorker. His style is very distinctive and I'd seen it in passing but it was cool to do a deep dive to really appreciate him. And despite the library being closed there was a single stack of Edward Koren collections on an end table between two comfortable chairs. I read one cover to cover after poring over everything on the walls and glass cases in that gallery. The other special exhibit was dedicated to Larry Ivie, a comic book artist active in the superhero and horror genres in the mid 20th century. Besides being a great comic book artist in his own right, Ivie was also a huge fan and collector, something he carried over from his youth into his old age. So in addition to his own works this gallery also presented highlights from material Ivie had collected as well as his correspondence with other creators. They even had some superhero costumes he and his mates had put together and donned, long before anyone had coined the term cosplay. The glass cases in this gallery had pop culture ephemera like lunchboxes, board games and fan club collectibles in addition to a slew of comic books and original art. The last gallery - or two - covered a variety of artists and material so I'm sure how much, if any, that rotates. One wall was dedicated to Ohio native Bill Watterson, creator of the venerable, beloved comic strip Calvin and Hobbes. No matter how big of a Michigander you are, you can't hate on Bill Watterson! Despite having already seen every Calvin and Hobbes strip they had original art for framed on the walls multiple times I still found myself cackling in hilarity. Always feels good to laugh. The Edward Koren work was humorous in nature, too, but it was more like smirk and nod at how wry and wise it was, not LOL funny. The miscellaneous gallery also had sliding drawers that come out from a section of the wall - the one that possibly counts as a room divider - and from underneath two glass cases. These are rather ingenious as they allow for a lot more work to be displayed in the limited space they have. It does get a little tedious sliding them open and shut after awhile but when there's some wondrous new surprise behind door number two or three or twenty or thirty it makes it worthwhile. And worthwhile is a good way to describe this place if you're at all a fan of comics or cartoons. There's stuff going all the way back to the 1800s in the gallery of many sliding drawers. Spring-Heeled Jack was an inspiration for Batman? I never knew! They even had a couple hand crafted quilts and winter caps on display. I could get lost all over again here once their displays change over.

I saw this online a day before going to Columbus. It was the last thing we did before meeting…read morefriends for dinner who live in the area. Located on the second floor of Sullivan Hall on the campus of The Ohio State University it is free and open from 1-5 pm. OK, you have to pay for parking. The most convenient parking garage was the South Garage that is listed as a tenth of a mile away from the museum. We were there about an hour and parking cost us $6. Apparently it was pre-enrollment day at Sullivan Hall and was packed with people so we had to navigate through the crowd to get to the museum. Although we weren't familiar with some of the artists/comic strips it was still an interesting museum especially the Calvin and Hobbs comic strips. Certainly well worth a look if you're in the area.

Also known affectionately as the Numbers Garden, this is a fun landmark on the OSU campus. The…read moregarden is located adjacent to Dreese Lab, which influenced the art selection for the spot. It was designed by Barbara Grygutis, and consists of numerous giant numbers spread across the lawn, some upright, some laying down, as well as several tiles inlaid in the ground featuring a variety of symbols and numbers. I'm not sure whether the artwork itself or the area around the artwork needed some touch-ups, but there was some construction going on during our most recent visit. It's a fun area to check out.

This vibrant mural off Russell St in the Short North has been a lovely addition to the art…read moredistrict. It's on the side of a parking garage, but you would never know it if it weren't for the gates and the kiosk for paying. The colors are unique and separately you might not be able to see how they fit together, but they do! It's a great photo worthy mural, for individuals or even groups since it's so long. I love that it has a little tile on the side that explains the piece and states the artist that made it - Dion Johnson. From the artist.. "This mural reflects the vibrancy and joy of the Short North Arts District. Drawing from the lively activity of High Street and the changing seasons visible in Goodale Park, Intersecting Energy translates time, movement and emotion into layers of colors that progress across the wall."

Interacting energy is a massive downtown Columbus Ohio mural located on the side of a parking…read moregarage in the short north community of the city. My family and I who weee in town for my daughters cheer competition at the nearby convention center was Walling the area checking out public art when their colorful and almost 3d looking mural really stuck out to us. Overall a very pretty and relaxing mural that is fun to check out in what is a really cool area for public art discovering.

The journey is a massive public art mural located in the short north community of downtown Columbus…read moreOhio. The mural actually consists of 3 pieces. 2 gigantic ones on each side of the tall downtown building and a smaller one with birds at the ground level. All 3 murals is very colorful and vibrant and are well done by the artist. My favorite of the 3 is the large weight on your shoulders rendering. But all 3 are well done. Overall very cool piece is a public art heavy short north area. Fun stroll to take for public art lovers like me and my family.

This mural is one of the newest in the Short North neighborhood and it is by far the biggest!…read moreActually, it's officially confirmed as the tallest in all of central Ohio, coming in at 11 stories tall and 11,000 square feet total between the three pieces (located on both sides of the building). It even includes an "augmented reality" component which can make it a 3D experience. It's also the largest of its kind in the entire world, pretty rad right?! We're lucky to have such an abundance of art in Columbus and I'm glad this piece is here to stay. While it wasn't painted by local artists, it was painted by two extremely talented artists from LA and was inspired by Columbus and the large number of immigrants that come here, specifically from Somalia. The Short North Arts District did a write up on it last summer and it was really cool to learn more about the different components of the artwork and the stories of courage and resilience it portrays. The colors are super vibrant and I love how you can see it from a distance as you walk down High St. I live in the area and greatly enjoyed watching it go up, as it did so rather quickly in my opinion. While I walk by it often, I can't help myself, I always have to stop and snap a picture and admire it. I suggest you do the same!

Love Stands Tall Mural is a downtown Columbus public art mural located in the cities short north…read moredistrict. The piece is part of an art initiative in the area in which each alley/block has similar murals at the street front. This is a colorful and very tall mural that features very tall skinny women in very colorful and vibrant wardrobes. Overall a cool and interesting piece located in a great area to take on slender nice and interesting public art.

We rented the Clintonville Woman's Club as the venue for a retirement party where we expected about…read more150 people to attend. We also hired them to cater the event. The facility is a very nice venue for an event like a retirement party. It has plenty of parking, and the building has large windows with nice views of the outdoors. We have ordered a menu of "heavy hors d'oeuvres" along with non-alcoholic beverages. The food was delicious and the wait staff kept the serving tables well stocked during the event. This was the first event I've ever attended at the Woman's Club but it's definitely a great venue for a party. Good location, nice facility, good food.

Great place for a wedding and other events…read more I'm a member of the club so I attend their luncheons, evening dinners, and other events. 1. The club has interest groups so you can find like minded individuals who enjoy gardening, reading, pairing, photography, playing euchre, and so on. There are many retirees but there are working women too. 2. There is regularly scheduled big band/jazz music where it's encouraged to dance but listening is fine too. 3. There are annual events such as the Corn Roast, Beat Michigan breakfast, Fall Craft Bazaar and Luncheon, and Candlelight Luncheon. The catering manager is easy to work with when trying to determine how much food is needed for an event. The building can be rented for weddings, meetings, and off-site retreats.