Newest articles on The Sacramento Press tagged as "visual art"

Arts, Music & Craft Beer Collide in Midtown

2012-10-17T04:54:53Z

Families, art enthusiasts, music lovers, beer aficionados and everyone in between are invited to the second annual Midtown Arts Festival (MAF) Saturday, Oct. 20th, from noon - 6 p.m. in the heart of Midtown on 20th Street between J and K streets. This free event is part of ARTober – Fall for the Arts, a Sacramento regional arts campaign running the entire month of October. This vibrant, artistically diverse outdoor festival will cover a broad spectrum of creativity, from the exquisite to the experimental, the visual to the performing, and every medium in between.

The festival will feature performance programs on two stages: The SMUD Performance Stage and the SUBMERGE Band Stage as well as artist and craft vendor booths, a kid’s Arts Area and interactive arts activities.

“The Midtown Arts Festival is a special experience. Families can enjoy live performance art as well as hands-on arts projects all in one place in one afternoon," said event organizer Heather Philpott of the MIdtown Business Association. "Celebrating and supporting the arts in Sacramento is easy with so many talented individuals and organizations … and you’ll find them right here in Midtown for the Midtown Arts Festival."

New to the event this year is a craft beer area, Untapped, which will feature at least 10 local breweries.

“MBA is excited to highlight the region’s most talented local brewers at the Midtown Arts Festival,” said Elizabeth Studebaker, executive director of the MBA. “Brewing is, after all, an artform that has been celebrated for generations. The growing Sacramento craft beer industry, as evidenced by the success of companies like Rubicon Brewing, Ruhstaller and Track 7, to name a few, contribute to the character of Midtown, and bring quality local products for our restaurants and bars to serve. Featuring brewers alongside painters, sculptors, dancers, and singers just makes sense.”

Patrons will have the option to purchase a beer sampling package or purchase pints of beer to enjoy.

Music lovers will enjoy an afternoon filled with local bands including the Live Manikins, The Royal Jelly, Sicfus, and Project for Trees.

In its first year, the Midtown Arts Festival received rave reviews and exceeded attendance predictions, bringing in more than 1,000 residents and regional visitors. With the expanded scope in 2012, including Untapped and increased live performances, the Midtown Business Association projects attendance of 3,000 throughout the day.

Full event details, including performing arts, band stage lineups, vendors, and arts activities can be found here.

Disclosure: Lauren Machi currently works with the sponsoring organization, the Midtown Business Association.

Free event this weekend in Midtown- Midtown Modern Arts Festival

2011-10-13T20:08:37Z

The Capital Cities Artober celebration is in full effect and Midtown is excited to give the Sacramento region another opportunity to explore and commemorate the arts in a big way. This Saturday, October 15th, the Midtown Modern Arts Festival (MMAF) will take place on 20th Street between J & K. The FREE family-friendly street-fair will occur from Noon – 6:00pm and is guaranteed to offer attendees a broad spectrum of creativity including Music, Dance, Comedy, the Visual Arts and every medium in-between.

The festival will feature a performance program on two separate stages: the KlickNation Stage and the MARRS Building Stage. Performing artists include the Sacramento Ballet, The Sacramento Philharmonic, Capital Stage Company, The Sacramento Comedy Spot, Pamela Hayes Classical Ballet, the Harley White Jr. Orchestra, the Element Brass Band and many more.

"The Midtown Modern Arts Festival presented itself as a great opportunity for the Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra to reach out to our community in a fun and unique way. Sacramento's arts are so diverse and we are fortunate to have an event like this that showcases the different art forms” stated Greg Wellman of the Sacramento Philharmonic.

In addition to the live performances there will be a variety of interactive art activities and live artistic demonstrations. Some activities to look forward to are: Sugar skull decorating led by the La Raza Galería Posada, the musical instrument petting zoo, and the children's craft corner. Attendees of all ages will also have the opportunity to explore a variety of innovative art process that will be demonstrated during the festival, such as sculpting and portrait drawings.

"The Midtown Business Association is happy to be able support and promote the performing arts groups and galleries that represent Midtown and the greater Sacramento area. This event showcases the great talent and creativity our community provides and we are thrilled to be a part of this premier event." Amber Schmaeling, Program Director.

Don't miss out on all the excitement and entertainment this Saturday, October 15th from Noon-6:00pm at the Midtown Modern Arts Festival!

Disclosure: Heather Philpott is the producer of the Midtown Modern Arts Festival. She currently works for two of the sponsoring organizations, the Midtown Business Association and the Heller Pacific Company.

The Night Harlem Came To Stockton Blvd

2009-08-30T13:33:44Z

Milton Bowens would like to believe that when you look at his art work you're not merely viewing paintings, his personal opinion or guarded pieces of his soul. You the viewer are being asked to confront history, truth, cultural stereo types and engage the possibilities of the future. Because when he paints he is not just engaging the viewer or confronting the critic over artistic merit, style and validity, he is confronting the use of art as a tool to communicate. He is asking questions, He is seeking solutions.

Born and raised in Oakland, Calif., Milton Bowens is the fifth boy of ten children. Milton’s artistic promise began at the age of five with nothing more than a few pencils and cut up brown paper bags used as sketch paper, thanks to his mother’s ingenuity of making the best of lean times.

Bowens received education under the mentorship of Fine Artist David Bradford, head of the Art Department and instructor at Laney College (Oakland). Inspired by great artists such as Jean Michel Basquiat, Robert Rauschenberg, Romare Bearden, Jacob Lawrence and Andy Warhol, Milton changed his focus from illustration to fine art. That shift proved crucial for Milton now considered a great artist in his own right and inspirational public speaker/community activist in the struggle to keep art a vital part of public education and a tool to help build self-esteem in youth.

Milton works tirelessly to create thought-provoking exhibitions that will help restore a level of hope in communities desperately in need of inspiration. Bowens just wants to paint. Bowens paintings has been showcased at Avisca Fine Art Gallery in Atlanta, GA, 40 Acres Art Gallery in Sacramento, CA, on the walls of the Sacramento Mayors office, and the African American Art & Culture Complex in San Francisco, CA just to name a few.

The Night Harlem Came To Stockton Blvd exhibit is Bay Area acclaimed artist, Milton Bowens, first time ever showing of his 9 piece collection of Afro Classical: The Subway Series on the West Coast. Afro Classical is an anthology of paintings depicting the importance of Jazz, Art and Words during the Harlem Renaissance. Bowens will speak on the importance of documenting African American art.

Join Master Barber & Beauty Shop as we step back in time to salute the Harlem Renaissance and the importance of African American Art, Music and Spoken Word in American society. Come and enjoy the viewing of Milton Bowen’s Afro Classical: The Subway Series and welcoming local NeoSoul and Jazz recording artist Miss MouthPeace. Miss MouthPeace is a dynamic vocalist, whose music is compared to Billie Holiday and Eryka Badu. She will be performing an acoustic set live.

The Opening Reception will be held Second Saturday, September 12, 2009 from 7:00pm - 10:00pm. Refreshments and Wine will be served. Addmission $5 donation, all ages welcomed. A portion of the proceeds will benifit C.T.D. Dream Builders.

Milton Bowens and Miss MouthPeace are available for interviews. For more information, please call (916) 457-8708 or email: Masterreport@hotmail.com.