61st Lakewood Library art show is rescheduled for 2027

District 14 Council member Paul Ridley and others attend the 60th Lakewood Library Community Art Show in 2025. Photo courtesy of Debbie Simurda.

In case you missed the news, the Lakewood Library Friends’ art show is being skipped this year as the library continues to undergo construction.

The art show is expected to return next spring or early summer. Exact dates have yet to be announced.

“While we’ll miss it this year, this extra time means we can come back with an even more inspiring (and less dusty) experience for everyone,” the friends group posted on Facebook earlier this month.

The restrooms are being renovated at the Lakewood Branch Library to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act standards, and that project is taking longer than expected. A May 5 newsletter from District 14 Council member Paul Ridley also reported that cast iron pipes were leaking under the building, which added to the delays.

Earlier this spring, the library friends planned to move the show to October before skipping this year entirely.

“Unfortunately, the construction is taking longer than anticipated, and we are not confident it will be completed in time for a fall art show,” said Debbie Simurda, a co-chairperson of the show’s committee.

Last year’s 60th Lakewood Library Community Art Show was a return as it had not been hosted since the pandemic. What brought it back? The community, of course.

“During that hiatus, they’d been asking and asking for the art show to come back, and at the time, Leslie Lake was our librarian, and she finally said to us, ‘Is there a way?’” Simurda said. “We got together in the fall of 2024, and we decided we can do this.”

And bringing back the art show paid off.

“It was like a party last year, and we were overwhelmed,” Simurda said. “It was just so wonderful.”

Multiple mediums of art were on display, including textile wall decor, jewelry and sculpture, plus pieces of various sizes, she said.

“It’s absolutely overwhelming the amount of talent in the community,” Simurda said. “This is all East Dallas talent, and the diversity of it, there’s something for everybody in this art show.”

Stay tuned for the dates of next year’s exhibit. Until then, check out these photos from last year’s show: