The 65th annual Art City Austin takes place April 25-26 in downtown Austin.[/caption]
Art Alliance Austin will host the 65th annual
Art City Austin this weekend. The April 25-26 downtown Austin event is considered the city's second-oldest outdoor festival, according to event organizers.
About 120 local and national artists will sell original works, making the event the largest Central Texas art marketplace, according to Asa Hursh, who took over as Art Alliance Austin executive director last August after previously serving as the nonprofit advocacy group's deputy director.
The event is made up of two portions, Hursh said, with the first being a juried fine arts fair that serves as a marketplace for attendees to purchase new work. About one-fifth of all work shown at the art fair is local, he said.
The second and new portion of this year's event is Austin Art Pavilion, which will feature artwork curated from five Austin galleries:
Tiny Park Gallery,
Pump Project,
Camiba Art,
Co-Lab Projects and
Wally Workman Gallery. Nearly all of those art works will be Texas-based, Hursh said, with most originating from Austin.
"What we're trying to do is a smaller, more grassroots version of a regional art fair that integrates the existing marketplace by adding local galleries," Hursh said. "I don't know that I've found another art fair that's combining those two elements."
The event reinforces Art Alliance Austin's ongoing mission to boost Austin's recognition of local artwork and artists, he said. Hursh points to Art Alliance Austin programming, such as Austin Art Weekly and Austin Art Breaks—a monthly education opportunity for organization members, as examples that increase awareness about Austin-based artistic efforts.
"We're trying to build that community and engagement," Hursh said.
Also new at this year's event will be the Black Fret Music Stage on the west end of the festival. The lineup includes a group of nominees and grant award winners from
Black Fret, a nonprofit that uses member dues to award artists grant money that helps fund performances. The stage includes various Austin-based acts, such as East Cameron Folkcore, Lincoln Durham, Jitterbug Vipers, Amy Cook and Jonny Gray, among others.
This year's event takes place 10 a.m.-8 p.m. April 25 and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. April 26 on downtown Cesar Chavez Street between Guadalupe Street and Lamar Boulevard. General admission tickets are $10, and
two-day collector's passes are $75 each. Children 12 and younger are admitted free.
Event organizers began preparing for the event early April 24 during light rain storms. Hursh said the event has been delayed from rain but always occurred regardless of conditions, and he anticipates Art City Austin continuing that streak—rain or shine.
"All things seem good to go for Saturday, and hopefully the rain stays off for Sunday," he said.
The 65th annual Art City Austin takes place April 25-26 in downtown Austin.[/caption]
Art Alliance Austin will host the 65th annual Art City Austin this weekend. The April 25-26 downtown Austin event is considered the city's second-oldest outdoor festival, according to event organizers.
About 120 local and national artists will sell original works, making the event the largest Central Texas art marketplace, according to Asa Hursh, who took over as Art Alliance Austin executive director last August after previously serving as the nonprofit advocacy group's deputy director.
The event is made up of two portions, Hursh said, with the first being a juried fine arts fair that serves as a marketplace for attendees to purchase new work. About one-fifth of all work shown at the art fair is local, he said.
The second and new portion of this year's event is Austin Art Pavilion, which will feature artwork curated from five Austin galleries: Tiny Park Gallery, Pump Project, Camiba Art, Co-Lab Projects and Wally Workman Gallery. Nearly all of those art works will be Texas-based, Hursh said, with most originating from Austin.
"What we're trying to do is a smaller, more grassroots version of a regional art fair that integrates the existing marketplace by adding local galleries," Hursh said. "I don't know that I've found another art fair that's combining those two elements."
The event reinforces Art Alliance Austin's ongoing mission to boost Austin's recognition of local artwork and artists, he said. Hursh points to Art Alliance Austin programming, such as Austin Art Weekly and Austin Art Breaks—a monthly education opportunity for organization members, as examples that increase awareness about Austin-based artistic efforts.
"We're trying to build that community and engagement," Hursh said.
Also new at this year's event will be the Black Fret Music Stage on the west end of the festival. The lineup includes a group of nominees and grant award winners from Black Fret, a nonprofit that uses member dues to award artists grant money that helps fund performances. The stage includes various Austin-based acts, such as East Cameron Folkcore, Lincoln Durham, Jitterbug Vipers, Amy Cook and Jonny Gray, among others.
This year's event takes place 10 a.m.-8 p.m. April 25 and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. April 26 on downtown Cesar Chavez Street between Guadalupe Street and Lamar Boulevard. General admission tickets are $10, and two-day collector's passes are $75 each. Children 12 and younger are admitted free.
Event organizers began preparing for the event early April 24 during light rain storms. Hursh said the event has been delayed from rain but always occurred regardless of conditions, and he anticipates Art City Austin continuing that streak—rain or shine.
"All things seem good to go for Saturday, and hopefully the rain stays off for Sunday," he said.
