Come Celebrate the Chain of Parks Art Festival’s 20th Anniversary!

¡Ven a celebrar el 20o Aniversario del Festival de Arte de la Cadena de Parques!

By Powell K. Kreis

Come Celebrate the Chain of Parks Art Festival’s 20th Anniversary! – The Chain of Parks Art Festival will be celebrating its 20th anniversary this Spring in Downtown Tallahassee, April 18th & 19th, 2020. The event is free and open to the public, filled with family-friendly activities. Visitors will see over 160 juried fine artists, eat a mix of local cuisine, hear live music all day, explore the children’s area called The Village, and so much more.

This is the Festivals’ fifth-year being recognized as one of the Top 100 Fine Art Festivals in the Nation by Sunshine Artist Magazine, in addition to being named a Legacy Event by Visit Tallahassee.

The Festival is focused on community inclusivity, encouraging artists and visitors from all backgrounds to attend. They are excited to welcome back the celebrated Hispanic artist couple, Carmen Lagos & Gustavo Castillo, award winners from previous years.

Before they were full-time artists, Castillo was a commercial pilot and Lagos was studying to become an architect, attending the university in Castillo’s hometown of Barranquilla in Colombia. In 1973 Lagos arrived from Santiago de Chile, leaving her country amid a challenging political environment. The couple discovered their love of painting while in school and moved to the USA in 1986 with the help of many wonderful people. Pivotal to this move was their first exhibition at the LeMoyne Art Gallery in Tallahassee, FL. After this exhibition, they were able to become full-time painters and continue their dream of being professional artists in America.

NEW to the festival will feature Chalk Artists in Action! Professional chalk artists from all over the country will create original pieces based on Florida themes and historical figures throughout the festival weekend. These works of art will have the optical illusion of being 3-D! One of the chalk artists is international artist Carlos Alberto, who will be flying in from Mexico for the festival weekend.

Carlos discovered a love of art at an early age, spending most of his childhood drawing and painting. He started his career in restoration and art conservation, working on important projects in Mexico — formally working as an archaeological restorer on the Mayan peninsula. Once Carlos discovered the world of street art, he started showcasing his work in galleries and participated in international street painting and mural expositions all over the world. His work has brought him to countries including the United States, Cuba, Sweden, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany, Russia and at home in Mexico. Due to his success, he now works as a full-time professional artist creating unique murals all around the world, frequently collaborating with his sister Adry del Rocio.

The Festival will feature all types of fine artists throughout the weekend and will get you dancing at the Evening Groove with Tallahassee Nights Live! April 18, 5:30 p.m., on the Main Stage. Come explore this culturally diverse community event and experience the art scene in Downtown Tallahassee.