ARLINGTON, Texas – The Cultural District is home to arts and entertainment in Arlington, and among the several attractions, there is now a live music listening room.
A year ago, F6 Gallery and Art Lounge joined the scene, creating a place for artists to interact with the community.
The studio sits inside an art gallery, equipped with acoustic drapes and panels for clear sound performance. This intimate space connects performers with the audience by providing a close and personal experience.
Its mission is to promote kindness and gratitude through the love of art.
“It’s a creative space to grow,” Michael Smith, owner of F6 Gallery and Art Lounge, said. “I want people to leave here with happiness and joy.”
Originally, Smith opened the F6 gallery by itself in 2007. It started as an “art party” in an old warehouse located on Division Street.
Artists across the Metroplex came together to create a piece on a giant canvas—the warehouse walls. The concept, called Dallas Meets Fort Worth, spread through social media and quickly became a weekly tradition.
Two years after opening, the gallery developed into a nonprofit and began working with the city to put on events.
Smith said he wanted to create another place like this, somewhere where you come in, put your cellphone down and be present.
A similar concept for musicians was inspired by the gallery’s ability to bring artists together for the common purpose of sharing their art and working with others to create more.
Last September, he finally found a place, inside the Cultural District, to bring his vision to life.
“I’ve played music all my life in bars and everywhere else, but every time you go it’s loud and everybody’s having a conversation with each other,” Smith said. “It just wasn’t about coming to hear music.”
F6 Art Lounge is a place for music. It lets visitors simply enjoy the sounds. It creates an opportunity to become part of the performance.
In an effort to be the place for musicians in Arlington, the art lounge hosts an Open Jam every Thursday. Similar to an open mic, the event welcomes musicians from all backgrounds and skill levels to create music.
Coincidentally, Open Jam is where F6 Gallery and Art Lounge employee, Bree Hardin, was first introduced to the business.
Hardin grew up in Mansfield, Texas, where she noted there weren’t many opportunities for artists to showcase their work in an inviting space.
“Some nights you get a night full of rock, some nights you get a night full of Latin or jazz music,” she said. “One of the biggest things about F6 is that it’s inviting to young people, under 21. You have a place where, if you love music, you can either just come here, or you can even try to play.”
Although the art lounge is known for Thursday nights, it put on several shows, often featuring local musicians in the area. These performances are recorded and uploaded to the art lounge’s YouTube channel, where Smith hopes to foster a community and grow the business.
Smith said he enjoys promoting artists by helping them showcase their work, which gives them an opportunity to shine.
To add to this goal, he said he is trying to develop house bands to display local talent in an unplugged environment.
The art lounge also aims to help students by offering internships to the community of musicians at UT Arlington. Throughout their time with F6, students are placed in the live music environment.
Hardin, an audio production junior, said sometimes young musicians feel terrified of messing up but said F6 is a safe space to feel out one’s skill levels and work on improving.
This program gives students a platform and necessary skills to survive in the industry.
“I think some people look at music, and notice there can be some very judgmental spaces, which makes them scared to share their creative side and put themselves out there in a jungle, but with places like this it makes it easy for you to learn in a healthy way,” Hardin said.
The F6 Art Lounge and Gallery is a community effort, consisting of five other employees and several volunteers. Smith’s wife, Dollie, is also part of the team and works to get community engagement.
Smith said he and his wife set out to build a creative place to play music, noting that sharing art makes it much more enjoyable.
