Denver’s Cherry Creek Arts Festival – 350,000 visitors a year

Every Fourth of July weekend, Denver Colorado hosts the Cherry Creek Arts Festival in it’s upscale Cherry Creek shopping district. It is a very competitive, juried festival and the artists are selected from around the country. The jury selects the artists based on the quality of their work, the diversity of the styles & media and the marketability of their art for the festival’s large target audience.  230 artists selected from 2,100 applications and over 350,000 visitors and Colorado residents stroll through the street-fest. Here are selections from past Cherry Creek Arts Festivals.

The artworks presented are created by top-level artists and artisans from across America. The Cherry Creek Arts Festival is a non-profit organization, 501(c)(3). It’s stated mission is to provide a broad array of arts experiences at the annual event and for on-going support of arts education in Colorado.

If you are at all interested in “What images resonate in America’s regional art festival market, this show is a good barometer. There are many whimsical, surreal and “magic-realism” images, both in painting and sculpture; also many cherubic faces and figures, some with wings, some imaginatively combined with stylized body parts, animals parts or objects; there were graphic “design motifs” ie: stripes and checkerboards; clouds and trees seemed to dominate the landscape artworks; nostalgic imagery was popular; and many pieces featured flowers, birds and rabbits. Of course, there were other subjects, many others and many other approaches. Like any generalization, the above observations are strictly personal impressions.

The following images show just a fraction of the art at the show and are published with the permission of the artists. Most of these pictures were taken on location, through protective glass or plastic, and inside the crowded tents – which I feel gives a feeling for the street festival itself. Rather than comment on the art or publish all of the artist’s statements, I prefer to let the art exist as it would in your home, speaking its own language. The artist’s names and hometowns are above the images. If you would like to know the titles, sizes or price of these works, please contact the individual artists.

NOW! Art from many corners of America! We present to you some highlights of Denver’s Cherry Creek Arts Festival.

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