Canvas 1 of 5: Welcome to 2013!

The Canvas

May 9, 2013

Countdown to the Festival

With less than two months to go before the 23rd annual Cherry Creek Arts Festival, we're gearing up to present you with an engaging and memorable experience to take place in the backdrop of beautiful and vibrant Cherry Creek North.

In addition to the juried art exhibits, Artivities, demonstrations, music, and other events, the Arrow Five Years Out Art Challenge adds a new dimension to the Festival. We're building an experience that truly embodies our theme - Live Love Art!

Terry Adams

Sixty volunteer committee chairs are already at work to enhance the visitor, artist, and sponsorship experience.

Plan to join us July 5, 6 & 7 to Live Love Art. We look forward to your participation!

Terry Adams
President and CEO

2013 Festival poster by artist Tres Taylor on sale now!

The 23rd commemorative Cherry Creek Arts Festival poster is available now for sale at the Festival Art Shop.

The poster artist, Alabama multi-media artist Tres Taylor, explained, "It is a story about a monk who loves life so much that he occasionally sneaks out of the monastery at night to dance with the Cuban Cha Cha girls. Wherever he goes, daylilies bloom in his footsteps. He rides through the villages on his bicycle and throws flowers at the doorsteps to remind us that everything is illuminated; everything is beautiful."

Opportunity for a signed poster

Festival enthusiasts who order the poster before June 11 will be invited to the Poster Signing Party with the the artist,Tres Taylor, and Festival VIPs on June 11.

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NEW for 2013

2013 Festival features 258 visual artists

More than 70 first-time exhibitors will join returning artists, and eight emerging artists to display their works at the Festival in 13 different categories: ceramics, digital art, drawing, fiber, glass, graphics and printmaking, jewelry, metalworks, mixed media, painting, photography, sculpture, and wood.

The 258 exhibiting artists, from the US, Canada, and Argentina, were selected from more than 2,000 entries by an experienced jury of artists and art professionals.The jury chose works based on the artistic excellence of the original handcrafted works. The high number of entries puts the Cherry Creek Arts Festival in the forefront of art shows, making it one of the most competitive art shows in the nation. To view the list of this year's artists, visit 2013 artists.

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New Cherry Logo

Each year, the Festival is symbolized by a new cherry logo inspired by the poster art. This year's logo reflects the circles in the monk's robe. According to R. Tony Smith, Marketing and Operations Director of the Festival, someone interpreted it as representing the multiple dimensions of the festival - 13 categories of arts, four music venues, scores of activities - while inviting you to look deeper into the layers of the Festival, as if it symbolizes the invitation to Live well and Love Art.

But the interpretation, said Smith, is up to the viewer. Like all art at the Festival, it's meant to spark new insights, new views of the inner and outer worlds.

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Arrow Five Years Out Art Challenge

The Cherry Creek Arts Festival is partnering with 2013 Festival sponsor Arrow Electronics in the Arrow Five-Years-Out Art Challenge, an international challenge to inspire artists to interpret the concept of innovation and express what five years out looks like in the art world, translating ideas into their artistic medium.

Through a competitive and collaborative selection process, a jury comprised of regional artists and art professionals will award each of five finalists with a $5,000 commission to create a forward-thinking piece to be displayed at the 2013 Arts Festival, July 5, 6 and 7. The pieces will become part of the innovative collection of artwork at Arrow and may be featured in a global ad series and in offices around the world.

Out of the five finalists, the jury will select one winner to receive the Innovation Award, granting that winner a $10,000 prize and a jury-exempt invitation to exhibit at the 2014 Cherry Creek Arts Festival.

Arrow, ranked #133 on the Fortune 500 list, moved its headquarters to Colorado in 2011.

Be the heart of the Festival - Volunteer!

The Festival is host to about 350,000 visitors a year, plus more than 250 exhibiting artists, sponsors, entertainers, and others. Cherry Creek Arts Festival needs volunteers to help make the Festival an enjoyable, safe, and green event for everyone. Click here to sign up! Thank you!

The volunteer program is presented by Xfinity.

Spotlight on the Janus Youth Art Program

Janus inspires youth to love art

Going strong in its 12th straight year, the Janus Student Art Buying Program engages youth and the community in purchasing art for local schools. It's a multi-phased program that provides art education both before and after the Festival as well as an experiential learning opportunity at the event itself.

This year 24 schools from communities all over Colorado were selected to participate. Each of the selected schools has received a Student Art-Buying curriculum to be used by teachers. It also encourages the schools to engage in a school-wide survey in which all students are asked about the type of art they would like to have in their school. According to Tara Brickell, Associate Director of the Festival, "Students apply their newly acquired knowledge through a hands-on art-buying opportunity at the Festival where they purchase artwork with a budget from Janus. The art becomes a permanent installation at their school."

Students will attend the festival on Saturday, July 6th to purchase an artwork, after which they will present their choice to a 'jury' to explain the reasoning behind their selection of the particular piece.

Another aspect of the Janus sponsorship is the Mobile Art Gallery. Four of the selected schools have been chosen to purchase an artwork for the Mobile Art Gallery, the Festival's touring Art collection. The MAG travels around the state and engages students with art throughout the school year.

The MAG consists of two different collections of approximately 40 works of art each from nationally recognized artists, all of whom have exhibited at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival. The Mobile Art Gallery reaches approximately 15,000 students annually.

According to Brickell, this year Cherry Creek Arts is engaging the community in helping to select the art for the Mobile Art Gallery. "We're asking you to select the artist that the students will purchase work from for the Mobile Art Gallery. Please go to www.cherryarts.org/voting to vote now," she said.

This important program supports the Festival's commitment to bringing the inspiration of original art to Colorado youth. It truly embodies Cherry Creek Arts mission of art education and encourages youth to Live with a Love of Art.

Live Love Art by becoming a Cherry Creek Arts Friend

$10 Friend of the Festival benefits:

Buy one, get one drink coupon for use at the Festival Member Lounge
Discount on Festival merchandise
Access to the Member Lounge on site at the Festival, shaded dining areas, special Beer Garden Stage views and access to luxury member bathrooms.
Discounts at participating Cherry Creek North merchants
E-newsletter and special offers
Pays for itself!
Enroll today and get more out of your festival fun!

Other levels of Friendship, VIP and Gala Patron are available. Please visit the membership page.

The Cherry Arts 365 Membership Program is presented by King Soopers in association with Heinrich Marketing.

Note from a Presenting Sponsor - Toyota

Your seven Neighborhood Toyota Stores are proud to be one of the presenting sponsors of the 2013 Cherry Creek Arts Festival. We form partnerships that enhance and strengthen the communities where we live and work. Providing sponsorship support to an iconic Denver community event like the Cherry Creek Arts Festival is especially exciting. We look forward to a long and productive partnership that benefits the exhibitors and visitors to the Cherry Creek Arts Festival.

2013 OFFICIAL SPONSORS

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