After a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, the city of Norwalk was able to bring back their famous art festival to the community. At the Cultural Arts Center, 13200 Clarkdale Drive, ARTastic was held on March 18 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
ARTastic is an art festival dedicated to displaying the works of local artists. The festival consisted of a chalk art contest, an art walk with vendors and a scholar art competition for local high school students.
The festival catered to provide an immersive experience for guests of all ages and artists of eight years old and up.
Planning the festival since 2021, coordinators were excited to announce the return of the award-winning city event; it consisted of live performances, art walks and competitions as well as a line-up of vendors selling food and artworks.
People from surrounding cities were invited to show their support to local artists and purchase individual art works.
At the entrance of the festival, various food vendors were lined up and ready to sell freshly made carnival foods ranging from kettle corn, pupusas, agua frescas and funnel cakes.
On the left side of the festival, the city’s annual chalk art competition was held from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. displaying vibrant and colorful pieces of superheroes, celebrities, locations and more.
Tables and chairs were set up in a spread out layout throughout the festival inviting people to eat food while watching artists create or sell their work.
Towards the right side of the festival, a variety of small businesses vended a variety of artwork including jewelry, potted plants, portraits, clothing and more.
In the parking lot of the center, various activity booths were set up for folk and their families to engage in arts and crafts.
The Cultural Arts Building at the center served as a museum for the illustrations submitted by local artists and students for the scholarship art competition.
A recreation leader for the city of Norwalk shared that he believed ARTastic 2022 was a big success.
“I think the festival went really well,” Nick Johnson, a recreation leader, said, “It went really smooth and I enjoyed how well-organized and put together everything was.”
Johnson later shared that the main goal for ARTastic 2022 was for guests to leave the festival with a smile.
“It’s our job to make sure the event turned out successful, we want the community to be able to create new bonds and have a good time,” Johnson said.
The night concluded with a number of groups of performers from different age groups dancing on a main stage set up in the middle of the festival. Performers showcased a variety of tap, hip hop and contemporary dances.
