Fourth annual summer festival additions include co-presentations with Rickshaw Theatre, Mascall Dance, Firehall Arts Centre, 604 Records, Light Organ Records & more
Vancouver, BC — Eastside Arts Society (EAS) presents the 4th edition of its newly expanded, immersive summer arts event, CREATE! Eastside Arts Festival, at various Eastside Arts District (EAD) studios, breweries, and performance venues, in addition to its traditional all-day outdoor festivities at Strathcona Park from July 22-28, 2024. Celebrating the diversity of performing and visual arts in Vancouver’s Eastside, CREATE! offers arts workshops, live music and dance performances, a beer garden, public art activations, an art shop, and countless opportunities for art lovers of all ages and abilities to explore and discover.
Photo credit: Wendy D
Provided by Eastside Arts Society
“We are thrilled to see the evolution of the CREATE! Eastside Arts Festival into a true, district-wide event that illuminates all that the EAD has to offer,” says Esther Rausenberg, Artistic & Executive Director of EAS. “The significant growth of the CREATE! festival as we enter into our fourth year, showcases the rich cultural network of venues, artists, and artist production spaces that make the EAD one of the most unique and vibrant cultural communities in Canada.”
From Monday, July 22 to Sunday, July 28, the festival will offer affordable ticketed art workshops and performances at pop-up locations, such as breweries, studios, and performance venues. Community highlights include CREATE! pop-up art workshops at Off the Rail Brewing, Luppolo Brewing, and Strange Fellows Brewing from July 22-26 and studio art workshops at 1000 Parker Street, The Mergatroid Building, and The Arts Factory on July 28; Canadian musical artist Paul Pigat at the Firehall Arts Centre on July 25; legendary Canadian singer songwriter Art Bergmann at the Rickshaw Theatre on July 26; a roving piano and dance performance from Mascall Dance on July 26; live mural painting by Eastside Culture Crawl co-founder Richard Tetrault at E. 4th Ave and Ontario St. from July 22-26; and so much more. Visit createartsfestival.ca/schedule for a full list of events.
On Saturday, July 27, the festival returns for a full day of festivities at Strathcona Park, with a series of outdoor art-making workshops taught by EAD artists, including: weaving, summer florals, introduction to flamenco (all abilities), crochet, charcoal drawing, and a BIPOC expressive art workshop.
For the first time this year, CREATE! will partner with 604 Records and Light Organ Records to present a live music concert stage at Strathcona Park (July 27 from 2-6pm), featuring homegrown artists Haleluya Hailu, Fur Trade (Steven Bays and Parker Bosley from Hot Hot Heat) and Sarah Jane Scouten. All-ages tickets are $20 and will include access to the festival’s Art Zone featuring public art activities, beer garden, food trucks, and Art Shop.
CREATE! Art Zone public art activities will include whimsical mushrooms using markers and vivid watercolours; zine making, including the chance to contribute your own chapter to a community zine displayed throughout the day; planting flowers and painting your own pot to keep; and fun with cyanotype, a photographic printing process activated by the sun.
A curated selection of local handmade artworks and goods will be available at the Festival Art Shop, and visitors can enjoy a fully licensed beer garden, serving beer, cider, and wine from Strange Fellows Brewing, as well as a delicious assortment of food from a collection of food trucks, including Camion Café, Midnight Joes and Varinicey Pakoras.
Also on July 27, participants in Eastside Arts Society’s 9th annual Art! Bike! Beer! Crawl Brewery Tour Fundraiser will end their day of cycling/walking and imbibing at the CREATE! Art Zone, to enjoy a last pint, live music, art shop, public art activities and food trucks. All fundraiser proceeds will benefit the Eastside Arts Society’s yearly activities and community events.
Art workshops are $35 for youth/adults and $20 for flamenco and children’s workshops. Children under the age of 12 must be supervised by an adult. The general public can access festival activities with a $20 CREATE! Festival Concert pass (entry for children under age 12 is free). For full festival details and ticket info, visit createartsfestival.ca.
The CREATE! Eastside Arts Festival is made possible through the generous support of Intergulf Development Group, Onni Group, Opus Art Supplies, Beedie, East Village BIA, Gastown BIA, La Casa Gelato, PCI Developments, Ruth & David Group, Strathcona Business Improvement Association, Trail Appliances, Strange Fellows Brewing, Stir, The Georgia Straight, Wendy D Photography, City of Vancouver, Province of British Columbia, BC Arts Council, Canadian Heritage/Government of Canada, Canada Council for the Arts, and Vancouver Foundation.
Event Partners: 604 Records/Light Organ Records, 604 Studios, Alternative Creations Studio, Firehall Arts Centre, Flamingo Room, Guilt & Co, Lobe Studio, Luppolo Brewing, NOW Society @ 8EAST, Mascall Dance, Off the Rail Brewing, Rickshaw Theatre, Slice of Life, Strange Fellows Brewing, and The Heatley.
About the Eastside Arts Society (eastsideartssociety.ca)
The Eastside Arts Society (EAS) is a visual and performance arts organization dedicated to connecting the public with the arts. EAS produces the annual Culture Crawl Visual Arts, Design and Craft Festival held in November that involves artists on Vancouver’s Eastside opening their studio to the public. The event involves painters, jewelers, sculptors, furniture makers, weavers, potters, printmakers, photographers, and glassblowers; from emerging artists to those internationally established. EAS produces additional programming including Talking Art, juried exhibits, Studio 101 arts programming for children in the DTES, and the Moving Art Film and Video series.
In 2021, EAS began a pioneering new initiative: developing an Eastside Arts District (EAD). The EAD will transform the arts and cultural assets in the Eastside from an informal and grassroots network of stakeholders, into a formalized organization with stable funding and secure, long-term facilities for artists and cultural venues. The EAS also produces the CREATE! Eastside Arts Festival.
| LISTING INFORMATION | CREATE! Eastside Arts Festival |
| Dates & Times: | View full festival schedule at createartsfestival.ca July 22-28, 2024 Various workshops and pop-up events at various studios, breweries, and performance venues Workshops: Daily from 7-8:30pm Events: Dates and times vary by venue July 22-26, 2024 Live mural painting by Eastside Culture Crawl co-founder Richard Tetrault 10am-4pm E. 4th Ave. and Ontario St. (north wall of alley) July 27, 2024 All-day activities at Strathcona Park, including art workshops, public participation art projects, live music, art shop, food trucks, and a beer garden. 12-6pm Strathcona Park, 857 Malkin Ave Workshops: 12:30-2pm & 2:30-4pm Live Music, Public Art Activities & Art Shop: 2-6pm Art! Bike! Beer! Crawl Brewery Tour Fundraiser: 1-5pm |
| Prices: | $35 for Workshops ($20 for flamenco and children’s workshops) $20 for CREATE! Concert Festival Pass* $55 for Brewery Tour Fundraiser** *Workshops not included. Entry for kids under age 12 is free. **19+ Event |
| Website: | createartsfestival.ca |