10TH ARTSFEST CELEBRATION SET FOR CONWAY

By Waid Rainey and Hanna Lowery
College of Fine Arts and Communication Media Office

CONWAY — The University of Central Arkansas College of Fine Arts and Communication, in partnership with Hendrix College, the Conway Schools, Faulkner County Library, The Lantern Theatre, Faulkner County Museum, Independent Living Services, King’s, Conway Downtown Partnership, and the Mayor’s Office, will play host to ArtsFest, the citywide celebration of the arts, celebrating its 10^th anniversary, Sept. 22-Oct. 1, at locations all over the city.

ArtsFest is planned and presented by the Conway Alliance for the Arts (CAFTA).

Events, free and family-friendly, range between visual art, dance, music, creative writing, film, theatre and more.

“We are excited and proud to be presenting our 10th-annual ArtsFest,” said Dr. Gayle Seymour, associate dean of UCA’s College of Fine Arts and Communication and member of the ArtsFest planning committee. “To mark this anniversary, we are using the arts to bring Conway into a conversation about community identity and inclusion.

“ArtsFest is dedicated to making the cultural life of our region more vibrant, accessible and understandable.”

ArtsFest X will kick off Sept. 22 with an Independent Living Services art exhibit at Bob’s Grill, 1112 Oak St., from 5 a.m.-2 p.m., available for viewing throughout the 10-day festival. Artworks by local artists will also be on view during the festival at venues around town. The Faulkner County Museum will host “X Marks the Spot,” an exhibit featuring work related to Faulkner County. The Faulkner County Library and Moore Art Supplies and More will host exhibits by the Conway League of Artists. Conway City Hall will be the site of a competitive art exhibit and UCA Downtown will host an exhibit titled “Looking into the Lens: Portraits from ILS.”

Hendrix College will feature an exhibit by Williamsburg painter John Lee in their Art Building A on Front Street.

Two installations by artists participating in UCA’s Artists in Residence program will be on view in various locations. “Pluralism, Social Lens #33, Direct Action” by Houston-based David Graeve will be on view at UCA’s Alumni Circle, Simon Park downtown, The Federal Building on Main Street, UCA Downtown and Independent Living Services. “Curious Devotion”, installations by artists Dawn Holder, Langdon Graves and Danielle Riede and curated by UCA assistant professor of art Sandra Luckett will be on display in the Baum Gallery of Fine Art in UCA’s McCastlain Hall.

ArtsFest’s signature events will bookend the festival this year with “Light Up the Night” live music and arts activities on Front Street Sept. 23, and “Arts in the Park” performances and hands-on art activities in Simon Park on Oct. 1. “Light Up the Night” performers include Red Octopus Theatre, The Curvy Soprano, MotherFunkShip, The Shady Rose, and Arkansauce. “Art in the Park” performers include Sidney Hopson, Red Curtain Theatre, Unison, Blackbird Academy, Hendrix College Choir, Just Cause, CJ’s LTD Edition Cloggers, Stage Door Dance Arts and Preston Palmer Studios.

The complete schedule of ArtsFest activities is available at https://conwayarts.org/artsfest/.

Among the highlights:

• Panel discussion on music entrepreneurship by the Spanish Brass, Recital Hall, Snow Fine Arts Center, UCA, Sept. 22, 1:40-2:30 p.m.

• Unveiling celebration and opening reception, “Pluralism, Social Lens #33, Direct Action,” UCA Alumni Circle lawn near Torreyson Library, Sept. 22, 6:30 p.m.

• Nitty Gritty Dirt Band in concert, Reynolds Performance Hall, UCA Sept. 22, 7:30 p.m. (tickets @ uca.edu/Reynolds)

• Opening Reception, “Looking into the Lens: Portraits from ILS,” UCA Downtown, 1105 Oak St., Sept. 23, 4:30 p.m.

• Fourth Friday Art Walk, various locations, downtown Conway, Sept. 23, 5-10 p.m.

• Grand opening reception, Art Experience Inc, 1027 Front St., Sept. 23, 6-10 p.m.

• “Light Up the Night,”, arts activities and live music featuring various performers, Kings, 1020 Front St., Sept. 23, 6-10 p.m.

• Video projection installation, “Roots” by Adam Hogan, 1019 Front St., Sept. 23-24, 6-10 p.m.

• “Neighbors, An Art Show” presented by Salter Properties, The Brick Room, 1020 Front St., Sept. 23, 6-10 p.m.

• Organist Tom Trenney concert, First United Methodist Church, 1610 Prince St, Sept. 23, 7:30 p.m.

• “110 Stories” presented by The Lantern Theatre, 1021 Van Ronkle St., Sept. 23, 7:30 p.m.

• Hendrix College Choir, Chamber Orchestra and Wind Ensemble concert, Staples Auditorium, Hendrix College, Sept. 24, 10 a.m.

• Author Fair, Faulkner County Library, 1900 Tyler St., Sept. 24, 1-4 p.m.

• “Angel Street” presented by the Faulkner Academy of the Arts, 2201 Washington Ave., Sept. 24, 6:15 p.m.

• Pianist Francine Kay recital, Snow Fine Arts Center, UCA, Sept. 24, 7:30 p.m.

• Conway Composers Guild concert “Under the Dome Recital Series,” First United Methodist Church, 1910 Prince St., Sept. 25, 3 p.m.

• Organist Tim Allen and Soprano Christine Westhoff in concert, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 925 Mitchell St., Sept. 25, 3 p.m.
  

  Jeremy Zhu

  

  Francine Kay

• Violinist Jeremy Zhu and Pianist Francine Kay in concert, Snow Fine Arts Center, UCA, Sept. 25, 3 p.m.

• Peter’s Coffee House with performances by Rackensack and the Fat Soul Band, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church Parish Hall, 925 Mitchell St., Sept. 25, 7 p.m.

• Screening of documentary “Pink Houses,” The Lantern Theatre, 1021 Van Ronkle St., Sept. 26, 7 p.m.

• Harold Thompson Recital Series: Endangered Instruments of the World,” Trieschmann Fine Arts Building, Hendrix College, Sept. 26, 7:30 p.m.

• Conway Writers’ Group Reading, Faulkner County Library, 1900 Tyler St., Sept. 27, 7 p.m.
  

  Kelly Link author; photo credit Sharona Jacobs Photography, LLC

• Reading, Q&A and book signing with Slipstream fiction author Kelly Link, College of Business Auditorium, UCA, Sept. 27, 7:30 p.m.

• Creative Writing reading by UCA MFA students and preview of Ray Bradbury’s “The Halloween Tree” puppet performance, The Lantern Theatre, 1021 Van Ronkle St., Sept. 28, 7:30 p.m.

• Opera Scenes performed by UCA music students, Recital Hall, Snow Fine Arts Center, UCA, Sept. 28-29, 7:30 p.m.

• Multimedia interactive art installation and s’mores reception by Kristen Spickard, Laurel Park Pavilion, Sept. 29, 6-8 p.m.

• “An Evening of Art, Music and Poetry,” Arkansas Beautification Society Gallery, 1014 Front St., Sept. 30, 7 p.m.

• “The Addams Family” presented by Red Curtain Theatre, Trieschmann Fine Arts Building, Hendrix College, Sept. 30, 7 p.m.

• Recital by composer and percussionist Blake Tyson, UCA Downtown, 1105 Oak St., Sept. 30, 7:30 p.m.

• Conway Schools Art Exhibit, Conway Police Department Headquarters, 1105 Prairie St., Oct. 1, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

• “Art in the Park,” family-friendly arts activities and live performances on the Kris Allen Stage, Simon Park, 839 Front St., Oct. 1, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

• “Give Art a Turn” vending machine art, UCA Downtown, 1105 Oak St., Oct. 1, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

• “Visual Voyages, Travel and Exploration,” The ArtMobile from the Arkansas Arts Center, Simon Park, 839 Front St., Oct. 1, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.

• Reading and book signing by children’s author Maria Hoskins, Conference Room, Conway City Hall, 1201 Oak Street, Oct. 1, 12-2 p.m.

• The Art of Food, presented by UCA Nutrition faculty and students, UCA Downtown, 1105 Oak St., Oct. 1, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.

• “Twelfth Night” presented by Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre, The Lantern Theatre, 1021 Van Ronkle St., Oct. 1, 2 p.m. (ticketed event)

• Conway Film Festival, The Lantern Theatre, 1021 Van Ronkle St., Oct. 1, 6 p.m.

Support for David Graeve’s installation is provided by the UCA College of Fine Arts and Communication, Salter Properties, Ralph Behrens Fund, Conway Advertising and Promotion Commission, and the Arkansas Arts Council, an agency of the Department of Arkansas Heritage, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Spanish Brass acknowledges the financial support of Artistas, Intérpretes o Ejecutantes – AIE and Generalitat Valenciana – Culturarts Música in making their appearance possible.

The UCA College of Fine Arts and Communication includes the Departments of Art, Music, and Film, Theatre and Creative Writing as well as the School of Communication. The college’s primary mission is the preparation of the next generation of artists, educators and communicators. For more information about CFAC, visit www.uca.edu/cfac or call (501) 450-3293.