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Oct 1, 2026 · 6:00 PM–7:00 PM ET
Creative Lens with Folklore Scholar Dr. Mintzi Martínez-Rivera
Columbus Museum of Art, 480 East Broad Street, Columbus, OH
A gallery talk linking folklore and the Clare Rojas exhibition; free with registration at the Columbus Museum of Art.
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Local spotlight · existing destination
North Market Downtown
59 Spruce Street, Columbus
Browse the downtown market and its merchants. Check the market’s official page for current hours, parking and upcoming events.
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YOUR LOCAL LISTEN
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A capital built for the job
Columbus began with a job to do: become Ohio’s permanent state capital. The city was founded in eighteen twelve, and state government moved here in eighteen sixteen. Ohio’s earlier capitals had been Chillicothe and Zanesville. Choosing a central location helped settle a debate about where government should live. That origin still helps explain Columbus today. Before the university, the major hospitals, or the national restaurant brands, the business of state government gave this new city a reason to grow.
Nearby is the Ohio Statehouse, the home of Ohio’s state government. At Broad and High streets, it anchors the center of Columbus. Its classical columns and broad grounds make it quite different from a modern office building. This is a place to connect the city around us with decisions that reach every corner of Ohio.
Nearby is LeVeque Tower, one of the most recognizable buildings in the Columbus skyline. Its Art Deco design belongs to an era when skyscrapers were expressions of ambition as well as places to work. Today the tower also contains a hotel. When the skyline comes into view, its distinctive upper stories are worth looking for.
Nearby is the Ohio Theatre, one of downtown Columbus’s grand performance spaces. The building began in the age of lavish movie palaces, when going to a film could feel like a special occasion before the show even started. Its preservation kept that sense of occasion alive for later generations of audiences.
We are near the Scioto Mile, the downtown riverfront that links parks, paths, and public gathering spaces. It invites people to experience the Scioto as part of everyday city life. From here, Columbus can feel like a city facing its river, with places to walk, meet friends, and enjoy the skyline from a different angle.
Nearby is COSI, Columbus’s major science center. Its approach is built around exploration: science becomes something to investigate, rather than simply read about. For visitors with children, it is one of the city’s best-known destinations. Its riverfront location also places science and learning directly across from the heart of downtown.
We are near German Village, one of Columbus’s best-known historic neighborhoods. Its identity is tied to German immigration, brick buildings, and streets shaped for an earlier city. Preservation helped keep that character part of a living neighborhood. The appeal is not one monument, but the experience of an entire district that still feels distinctive.
Nearby is North Market, a Columbus public market established in eighteen seventy-six. Markets bring together the practical business of buying food with the pleasures of discovering something new. Today, its food businesses reflect a variety of culinary traditions. It is a good place to experience the city through the people who cook, sell, and gather there.
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