Photos: Wall Ball 2009 at Third Degree Glass Factory

It's been said that the arts suffer in a weak economy, but the sixth-annual Wall Ball on Saturday seemed to thoroughly disprove that claim.

Filling Third Degree Glass Factory with 45 participating artists and hundreds of revelers, the event was as much a spectacle of live art-making as it was a fashion show for the sartorial risque.
Snaking around a taped-off thoroughfare, event-goers crowded past make-shift artist studios. The artists, meanwhile, worked with amiable diligence, unfazed by the peering throngs. Painters dominated the field, though jewelry makers, stone-carvers, glass-blowers and cup-cake bakers were also on hand.

Photo: Jessica Baran

Davide Weaver

Painting techniques leaned toward the traditional, though artist Davide Weaver found use for a 20th-century invention -- employing an electric fan to dry his canvas.

Photo: Jessica Baran

Alicia LaChance

For those there to bid on the art, the most sought-after piece was a painting thick with gloss and floral-patterned by Alicia LaChance.

Vying for the most unusual was a piece with a woman with curls made of ripped-out Yellow Pages.

Photo: Jessica Baran

Brooklyn, left, and Galen Gondolfi.

The work by Galen Gondolfi, who dragged a triangle of pita bread through a massive bowl of hummus, caught eyeballs.

Photo: Jessica Baran

DJ Mahf

The award for bravery went to a laughing, well-heeled couple who felt a sudden compulsion to bump-and-grind to DJ Mahf's throbbing but otherwise un-danced-to dance mix. Unfortunately, the dancers quickly cooled down, retouched their hairstyles and resumed their drinks.

Wall Ball supports the St. Louis City Open Studio and Gallery -- a non-profit founded by artist Jenna Bauer -- whose mission is to improve the education of children via the arts.