Eastside Arts Society calls all artists and creatives to participate in their two-day summer art making event CREATE! Arts Festival, a youth-friendly space for learning, discovering and creating.
“I’m so thrilled that there is an art-making festival that happens outside and in the summer. It provides many people who are unable to get out of town with a wonderful day of creation by professional artists,” says Esther Rausenberg, artistic and executive director of EAS.
Running from July 22-23 at Strathcona Park, Eastside Arts Society’s (EAS) third annual CREATE! Arts Festival welcomes all who are interested in a weekend of various free and paid on-site visual and performing arts workshops, such as on photography, needle felting, pottery, glass fusing, watercolor painting, storytelling and more. Additionally, guests will be able to enjoy a wonderful array of food trucks and a fully-licensed beer garden alongside the festivities.
The two-day festival will open on a Saturday, with outdoor workshops and festivities hosted by over a dozen artists in the Eastside Arts District community. These workshops are inclusive of adults, children and youth and audiences of all skill levels, taught by recognized artists Amberlie Perkin, Taaye Wong, Tanna Po, Nathaniel Marchand, Eri Ishii and more. Guests will also be able to watch demonstrations on pottery, painting and glass beading, and partake in public art projects such as mural coloring, squeegee art, a collaborative printmaking collage and more. Additionally, local handmade artworks and goods curated by OH Studio Project will be available for purchase at EAS’ brand new Festival Art Shop.
The following and final day of the CREATE! Arts Festival will take place indoors in local art production spaces, with additional workshops featured.
About EAS
“The CREATE! Arts Festival was designed to be hands-on, family friendly and accessible to people of all ages who have an interest in creating. It’s a means to offer people an opportunity to get a “taste” of various mediums and art forms. The festival might provide that creative spark that encourages youth to continue pursuing the arts either professionally or as a hobby,” says Rausenberg.
Now in its 27th year of operation, Eastside Arts Society is a registered charity recognized for some of Vancouver’s most innovative and cherished programming for contemporary visual arts such as the CREATE! Arts Festival, Eastside Culture Crawl Visual Arts and more. For nearly three decades, EAS has inspired, educated and engaged the East Vancouver community in visual arts, as well as fostered excellence and professionalism. Rausenberg notes that the EAS’ primary mission is to create programs that connect the public to artists and the art-making process, ensuring that there are enough opportunities for youth and adults alike. Through programs and events such as the CREATE! Arts Festival, EAS hopes to succeed in this mission.
“CREATE! has taken our annual event the Crawl one step deeper into appreciating all that is involved in making a piece of art, creating a song and/or developing a story,” she says.
Looking ahead
With Eastside Arts Society being a proactive and vibrant part of the local art community, artists and creatives can remain optimistic about more opportunities for development, learning and fun in the future.EAS is currently looking at creating an Eastside Arts District and formalizing this area as a place where all disciples of art happen. Rausenberg and the EAS team are looking forward to this being an incredibly lively and spirited arts zone.
The CREATE! Arts Festival is only one of EAS’ contributions to the art community, and there will absolutely be more to come.
“This is the perfect opportunity to come out and test that desire for creating something with your own hands and immerse yourself in a community where everyone is creating something! What an idyllic way to spend a day, in the summer, in the city,” says Rausenberg.
For more information, please visit:
https://mpmgarts.com/media/ campaigns/3rd-annual-create-artsfestival
