Artists Creating Together prepares for 29th annual Festival Day

Each year, Artists Creating Together’s art programming culminates an annual arts celebration: Festival Day. On Friday, May 8, ACT will host their 29^th annual Festival Day. This is our community’s largest annual event that brings together children, youth, adults and volunteers with and without disabilities to experience the arts. The theme this year is “Art in the Garden- We Dig Art!”

Festival Day is an arts celebration that is uniquely designed for students of all abilities, ages 7-26. Nearly 100 special education classrooms from throughout Kent County, 27 teaching artists, art organizations and over 500 volunteers gather at the Lincoln Campus in Grand Rapids for an amazing day of art and fun.

The day is full of creative exploration and adventure for the students, and the value of this day is seen by each of the teachers and aides who participate. A classroom teacher that participated in the 2014 Festival Day noted, “Festival Day is such a wonderful day for my students. They just come to life when they get to experience this art.”

Throughout this day, students participate in a series of hands-on workshops in a variety of disciplines, including visual arts, music, dance and more, as well as a variety of outdoor activities.

Opening ceremonies will feature the ACTion Drummers and a local break-dance artists, and the KVO Choir, Dance group and Bell choir. Interactive workshops taking place throughout the day will be led by ACT’s professional artists, and will feature local art organizations and groups including: Master Arts Theater, the Grand Rapids Civic Theatre, Grandville Ave Arts & Humanities, and the Grand Rapids Art Museum.

Another activity that we offer each year is truck-painting, in which students get to ride a hi-low and paint canvases on a semi-truck using rollers and paint sprayers. Truck Painting is always a highlight of Festival Day. One student from last year wrote ACT saying, “Thank you for letting me come and paint the truck at the Arts Festival Day. I enjoyed meeting new people and looking at different art.”

ACT is very excited to host this special event again this year. You can support Festival Day by visiting artistscreatingtogether.org to donate or contact ACT to learn more about how to contribute.