Media Contact
Kim Padgett
The Padgett Group
713-588-4130
Mayor Sylvester Turner Joins the Bayou City Art Festival to Launch the “Save Our Art” Campaign
HOUSTON (August 10, 2020) – The Art Colony Association, Inc. (ACA), the producer of Bayou City Art Festival, and in partnership with the City of Houston and KPRC 2, has launched Save Our Art – One Passion. One Purpose. One Community – a fundraising campaign to help Bayou City Art Festival continue its mission, support the local arts and its local nonprofit partners.
“The Bayou City Art Festival, artists and art organizations are important for our city’s identity, and they need our support,” said Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner. “It is up to us to preserve our art as it is a platform that tells our story.”
For almost five decades, the Bayou City Art Festival has supported exhibiting artists and celebrates performing, visual and culinary arts while promoting the powerful impact it has in the community. Dedicated to supporting arts education programs and inspiring young artists, the Middle School Art Competition program offers students 5th-8th grade the opportunity to participate in a 2-D juried art competition. With strong community engagement and successful events, Bayou City Art Festival shares the proceeds with local nonprofits that are making a critical impact on the lives of those they serve.
Kelly Batterson, Executive Director of the Art Colony Association, added: “We remain committed to our mission and believe saving our art is critical for the future of our festivals and also for the community and those who rely on art organizations such as Bayou City Art Festival for inspiration and support.”
Under the ongoing campaign, Bayou City Art Festival will host several fundraising events including a Virtual Happy Hour series that will launch on Thursday, August 20, 2020. Each virtual happy hour will feature a different artist sharing their process and inspiration in a storytelling format. The artist may also provide a live demonstration and auction a donated piece of art during the happy hour. The program will have a moderator that will host art trivia with chances to win prizes and take questions from the audience during the Q&A segment.
Additionally, Bayou City Art Festival will host a four-day online art auction leading up to the Bayou City Art Virtual Experience, which is replacing this year’s in-person festival, on October 9-11, 2020. The virtual event will highlight participating Bayou City Art Festival artists, and include online performances, art projects for kids of all ages with Bayou City Art Festival nonprofit partners, creative activities with festival sponsors and more.
Sponsors of Bayou City Art Festival and the “Save Our Art” Campaign include: City of Houston, KPRC 2, Frost Bank and Stella Artois.
Individuals and corporations can ensure the Bayou City Art Festival’s return to Memorial Park and Downtown Houston in 2021 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of providing art and programming in the community by participating in virtual fundraising events and by committing to donate. Contribute to the “Save Our Art” campaign by texting “SaveOurArt” to 243725, visiting www.artcolonyassociation.org or via Facebook.
For the most recent updates, follow the official event hashtags# SaveOurArt #HouArtFest and #BCAF, like the Facebook page, or follow on Twitter and Instagram. Also, subscribe to our newsletter here.
About Bayou City Art Festival:
In its 49th year since the founding of the Westheimer Art Festival, now known as Bayou City Art Festival, the Art Colony Association, Inc. has raised more than $3.6 million for local nonprofit programs from proceeds of its festivals. Bayou City Art Festival Memorial Park in the spring and Bayou City Art Festival Downtown in the fall has provided a venue for more than 20,000 artists to showcase their work to thousands of art lovers from all over the world. The festivals are funded in part by grants from the City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance, corporate sponsorships, private contributions, in-kind support and volunteer assistance.
For more information, please visit www.artcolonyassociation.org.
###