- By Caroline Garrett, A&E Editor -
SPARKcon, the Triangle’s annual festival for creativity and the arts, will take place this year during the weekend of September 14-17 on Fayetteville Street in downtown Raleigh. Now in its twelfth year, SPARKcon is planned by Visual Art Exchange, a gallery located on Martin Street just blocks away from the festival. Designed to be an open-sourced, community-centric series of events, SPARKcon is divided into fourteen individual “sparks” covering a variety of artistic and creative endeavors, spanning dance, art, literature, food, and more. Over 2,000 visual artists, performance artists, dancers, actors, poets, and so on will collaborate to produce 200 events over the course of the four-day festival.
SPARKcon does more than showcase local artists of all ages; it also allows visitors to participate, with options including collaborative street art, free dance classes, open mics, and writing workshops. In past years, Meredith College’s Artist’s Alliance has reserved a 5’x5’ square for one of artSPARK’s more iconic events, street-painting. Everyone is sure to find something that piques their interest! While most events are free, street-painting requires an entry fee, and a few after-hours events have a small admissions charge. Events begin Thursday evening and continue through Sunday evening. A full schedule and list of “sparks” can be found at http://sparkcon.com/. Located just 15 minutes from campus, SPARKcon is sure to offer a fun-filled weekend and an unforgettable experience of Raleigh’s creative culture for all.