Creativity is about to run wild as Kent State University and the city of Kent team up for the second annual Kent Creativity Festival on Saturday, Sept. 30, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., on the Lester A. Lefton Esplanade between Kent State’s Rockwell Hall on Lincoln St. and downtown Kent, near Haymaker Parkway.
The event will feature a wide variety of interactive creative activities presented by local and regional artists and art educators.
“We are thrilled to again plan this well-received event to the community,” said John R. Crawford-Spinelli, dean of Kent State’s College of the Arts. “The event is meant to engage and inspire people of all ages to explore their own creativity and realize the transformative power of making art and sharing it with others. All arts activities are free and multi-generational, so everyone is encouraged to participate.”
The event will include hands-on activities involving musical instruments, printmaking and screen printing, weaving, songwriting, creative writing, a special poetry experience hosted by the Wick Poetry Center, drawing workshops, indigo dyeing, improvisational choreography, theatrical activities and various painting opportunities.
Two unique additions to this year’s festival include an invitation to the community to help student Kelsey Merritt from Kent State’s Fashion School break the Guinness World Record for the Largest Barefoot Painted Mural at 30,000 square feet.
Also, the Kent Interfaith Alliance for Racial Justice and Reconciliation’s UNITY Project, which promotes human flourishing, will build a structure made up of posts that each reflect a different personal identity (I’m a parent, I speak English as a second language, I am LGBTQ.) Participants will attach colorful yarn to each of the posts to intertwine with others and create a magnificent web of interconnectedness.
Other activities include live entertainment by local performers, including the Kent Roosevelt High School Marching Band and the Rootstown Marching Band.
Free parking is available in Kent State’s Fashion School lot and on-street parking. Additional parking is available in the city of Kent parking garage for a fee. For a full list of activities, visit www.kent.edu/kcf.