Make a special trip downtown to visit. Visit the next time you’re downtown. Visit on Saturday morning and drop by the Charleston Farmers Market. Just go, because there’s never been a better time to visit Historic City Hall Arts and Cultural Center.

Right now, there is so much to see and such a range of art and history, something is sure to cause every type of viewer to pause, appreciate and ponder. (Plus, many of the works on display are available for purchase.)

Start – or end – on the first of three floors, with The Artisans’ Gallery. This multi-media collection of work titled “Spring Opulence” features pottery, ceramics, paintings, baskets and mixed media as varied as the artists.

“It’s the perfect spring show,” said Amanda Donaldson, Director of Cultural Affairs. “These artists have been together for some time and many of them have been practicing their passion for most of their lives.”

Gallery member Sally Cappel took up the paintbrush as a child, but her works have been absent in Artisan Gallery shows for about four years. The vibrant, abstract pieces in this show were completed over the past year. She has always loved color, calling it a “vehicle for joy,” and each time she applied that joy to the canvas, she moved a dab closer to regaining her own vitality.

A master craftsperson, Emma Hughes, weaves traditional materials into an art form, baskets that combine functionality and aesthetics.

“March of the Sandhill Cranes” by Charlene Kaough is a framed woodcut printed on linen.

“It was inspired by an outing I took to some farmland southeast of Lake Charles a few years back,” she said.

In addition to these artists, the exhibit has work by Anita Ahrens, Marjorie Cormier, Ronald Gibson, Donna Price, Cathy Terrio, Buddy White, Jessica Smith and Sue Zimmermann.

See it through June 17.

Historic City Hall is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Admission is always free. The Charleston Market is open Saturday, 8 a.m. to noon. To find out more, call 337-491-9159.