Artwalk will begin Friday in downtown Moscow amid presentations of local and regional artists, musical acts, food vendors and various art demonstrations.
Downtown moscow will play host to more than 115 artists, a host of paintings, sculpture and performances on Friday. photo illustration by Joseph Engle | summer arg
“Every year we have artwalk it’s an opportunity for us to reach more businesses and have them participate,” D.J. Scallorn, assistant in the Arts Department for the City of Moscow, said.
In this year’s artwalk, 69 businesses will feature more than 115 artists. The opening ceremonies will begin with a public art reveal of the Helio-Terra at the Wren Welcome Garden (next to Gritman Medical Center) at 3 p.m.
The artist of the Helio-Terra, Robert Horner, was selected based on a proposal he submitted to a committee in the Arts Department.
“There were 21 submissions that was then narrowed down to the top three. Those three submitted proposals for their design for the sculpture for the garden,” Scallorn said. “It’s a wheat seed and it has something to do with the solstices and the way that the shadows fall. It’s rammed earth – the way I understand it is it’s earth that’s had some additives mixed in and constructed in a mold that is taken off when the earth has set.”
Scallorn said the public art reveal will include a barbeque and will be the “kick-off for the rest of the artwalk festivities.”
Main street between Third and Fifth streets will be closed from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. to accommodate artwalk.
In friendship square, live bands will begin playing at 4 p.m. with Thorncreek Express, a local band from Gennessee. Thorncreek Express will be followed by a brass band known as Hog Heaven Big Band from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. and The Fabulous Kingpins from 8 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.
Scallorn said businesses will host opening receptions with their artists from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and are also encouraged to bring in their own live music acts. Food vendors and art demonstrations will line Main Street and also be included in the opening receptions at several of the businesses.
Demonstrations will include tattooing at Untamed Art, as well as glassblowing, woodturning, lacemaking, chalk drawing, sword fighting, and historical crafts.
“Art is so universal. It can be performance art, it can be drawing, it can be painting, it can be sculpture. It can be anything an artist uses to express their ideas,” Scallorn said.
Against the Grain, a skateboard demonstration and concert with local hip-hop bands will take place at the grain silos at the south end of Main Street.
The first documented Moscow artwalk took place in 2004.
“It started before me, but the chamber of commerce director at that time was Paul Kimmell and Deena Heath – they got together and decided it would be fun to do a downtown artwalk. That first year there were 24 artists,” Kathleen Burns, arts director for the Moscow Arts Department, said.
Burns said artwalk has developed as a self guided tour of Moscow.
“Initially the artwalk was just so the businesses would have art for summer tourism but it’s kind of morphed into a way for new businesses to get to know the community,” Burns said.
Scallorn attributed the success of artwalk to the sponsors who support the event.
“Without our sponsors artwalk would not be possible,” Scallorn said. “A lot of sponsors will donate monetarily, but others will donate other things and we’ll put their name on our brochure or something. They benefit, we benefit.”