How to crush the SoWa Open Market this year

One of Boston's newer rites of spring happens Sunday – the SoWa Open Market reopens for the season.

Why it matters: SoWa Open Market is one of Boston's largest marketplaces for crafts, art, antiques, specialty foods and products from the region's farms.

It's also super popular, with between 1,500 and 2,000 visitors descending on the "south of Washington" street complex on any given Sunday when the weather's nice.

• The market operates from 11am to 4pm every Sunday through October.

And starting later this month, the market will host a "Summer in the City" concert series every second Sunday of the month through September.

• Berklee College of Music has partnered with SoWa to book the acts.
• First up is Berklee jazz pianist Esli Honore.

Zoom in: To call the collection of vendors at SoWa eclectic would be an understatement. They'll have folks selling everything from macramé, knitting supplies and leather bags handmade on the premises, to craft lemonade, farm fresh honey and gourmet cookies.

• Check out a map of the dozens of vendors here.

Once a month, the venue hosts First Fridays, where the artists working in the space's converted warehouse studio spaces and galleries throw open their doors to the public.

• This year, First Fridays will come equipped with food trucks to accompany the outdoor beer garden.
• Asian street food from Moyzilla, Mediterranean from Zaaki, Mexican from Northeast of the Border and American from North American Catering will be available on different Fridays through the season.

Surrounding the lot that hosts the open market are over 20 galleries showing off some of Boston's finest working artists' crafts.

• MassArt also has a presence at SoWa, with a gallery exhibit dedicated to the art and design school's 2023 Masters of Fine Arts thesis candidates that runs from May 20 to June 4.

At the center of the complex is the massive power station, built in 1891 as a huge electrical generation plant for streetcars.

• Today, the power station hosts corporate, nonprofit and political events, and major exhibits like the recent Van Gogh immersive exhibition.