The Bayou City Art Festival Memorial Park kicks off spring in Houston.
Touted as one of the nation’s top three annual outdoor fine art events, this three day affair boasts more than 300 national and international, juried, fine and visual performing artists including Chris Coffey, Dolan Geiman, Tanya Diskova, Randy O’Biren and Gregory Story. Working in 19 media, these artists and more will showcase their fine and pop original works ranging from decorative and functional clay to photography, pastel drawings to oil paintings, furniture to jewelry, leather goods to mixed media and sculptures with art purchases totaling more than $6 million annually.
The 19 media formats represented are: clay (decorative), clay (functional), digital (not photography), drawing/pastel, fiber/textiles, furniture (functional), glass, jewelry, leather, metal, mixed media 2-D, mixed media 3-D, painting (acrylic or oil), painting (watercolor), photography (digital or computer manipulated), photography (traditional), printmaking (intaglio, relief and planographic), sculpture (3-D media), and wood.
Popular attractions within the festival include:
• the Green Mountain Energy Children’s Creative Zone, an interactive area where children can explore the imaginative world of art while creating projects they can take home;
• the Adult Creative Zone, which exhibits the work of local artists and craftsmen through artist demonstrations while providing a relaxed environment for adults to express their own creativity;
• the Bayou City unLIMITed Stage featuring live performances from regional artists and bands;
• the Houston Arts Alliance Cultural Stage, which highlights the cultural diversity of the performing arts programs in Houston; and
• fine and festival fare will be offered from some of Houston’s most popular restaurants and hotels and adults can indulge in libations from top-tier sponsor Stella Artois as well as Barefoot Wines.
Now in its 43rd year, the Art Colony Association has raised more than $35 million for local nonprofit programs through the festivals. This collaborative nonprofit event puts 100 percent of the proceeds back into the community through their 15 nonprofit partners. Bayou City Art Festivals is funded in part by a grant from the City of Houston through Houston Arts Alliance.
The cost is $15.00 for adults and $3.00 for children ages 3-12. Advance tickets can be purchased at www.bayoucityartfestival.com.
