The Arts Prevailed at the Crested Butte Arts Festival
The 49th annual event was filled with visual, performing and culinary arts, and family friendly activities
On the weekend of July 30th—August 1st, 2021, the Crested Butte Arts Festival once again welcomed arts enthusiasts from around the country.
With 2020 offering limited opportunity for creative community engagement, the event provided an experience to reconnect folks with friends, family and the arts in the beautiful mountain town of Crested Butte, Colorado.
Boasting the mantra, “The Arts Prevail,” the event hosted 106 fine artists in 12 unique categories showcasing their creative genius that had conspired over the past year of studio time.
With over 6,000 patrons excited to enter the festival gates, the celebratory weekend was filled with visual, performing and culinary arts, plus a healthy dose of family friendly activities inside their Children’s Art Alley tent.
Not only did the Crested Butte Arts Festival rise up from the ashes in 2021, it also jumped head first into a new millennia festival experience.
Historically, the 49 year old event had been located in downtown Crested Butte on their main street. However, with changes to the traffic configuration and business district, the event was forced to find a new home.
Luckily, the community provided and the Crested Butte Arts Festival found itself settled on 10 acres on the edge of downtown; quadrupling their allotted space from previous years.
This location not only provides the event added space to grow its offerings, but still maintains the magical quality that the festival has been so well known for with the beauty of Crested Butte still shining.
Health and safety for patrons was, of course, still a large emphasis of the festival organizers and therefore they decided to go digital with a new app and a hybrid art auction experience.
Both of these new implementations took down on high touch areas of the event and also provided folks who were not able to be physically present the chance to still feel involved. These new additions also fell in alignment with the organization’s commitment to greening the event and lessening their environmental impact.
As for what art enthusiasts can expect during arts fest weekend happening August 5—7th, 2022, the Crested Butte Arts Festival will be preparing for its biggest year yet with its 50th year anniversary.
A few highlights to keep an eye out for are: the patron VIP House, all ages’ hands on art, installation pieces on the festival grounds, music and much more!
“Our non-profit is energized and committed to our mission of providing arts outreach in our community and for all who come out and support the arts at our event. Next year our focus is on the experience that will further connect our patrons, artists and community to the magic of creativity and the beauty of fine art,” said executive director Chelsea Dalporto-McDowell.
For more information regarding the 2022 Crested Butte Arts Festival please visit: crestedbutteartsfestival.com or check out Facebook @CBArtsfestival, or Instagram @cbartsfestival.
