The owner/operators of {open} might not like to admit it, but the quirky bookstore/art chapel they founded in downtown’s East Village in 2003 has become a institutional pillar/load-bearing wall of Long Beach culture/cool since its 2007 move to Fourth Street/Retro Row.

And by “might not like to admit it” I mean that they “might prefer to brag about it.”  One of them, anyway; meeting sé reed just once makes you understand the importance of vigor to the survival of an otherwise-overmatched mission like {open}. Meeting the other one, shea M. gauer, reminds you of the importance of a tempering balance. That’s right, their names are sé (“say”) and shea (“shay”).

Meanwhile, tonight: {open} is presenting new work by Matty Byloos, an artist who paints and draws and writes and who tonight will be exhibiting creations of ink and spray paint to the musical accompaniment of DJ Oldboy.

Nope, I’ve never seen/heard the work of Byloos/Oldboy, either—which, for me, is part of the point of {open}: where else am I going to learn about them?

The reception is free and runs from 6-9 p.m. {open} is located at 2226 E. Fourth Street, between Cherry and Junipero, which is another way of saying between the Art theater and Portfolio coffee house.