Norwich, NY – The 25th annual Colorscape Chenango Arts Festival will take place this
Saturday and Sunday, September 7 and 8, in East and West Parks, downtown Norwich.
Ranked by Sunshine Artist Magazine as #33 in their list of top 100 classic and
contemporary craft shows in the country, the centerpiece of this free, two-day festival is
the art. Colorscape features 127 creators displaying and selling their paintings, sculptures,
fabric art, fine crafts, photography and more. Professional artists come from all over the
northeast and as far away as Florida to participate in what one calls, “the best show in the
region.”
Colorscape celebrates more than just visual arts, however. With live entertainment on
three stages throughout the festival, Colorscape will feature headliners blues artist Rory
Block, fan favorites the Slambovian Circus of Dreams, performance painter Robert
Channing, and world-champion slam poet Buddy Wakefield.
The performance schedule for these and the nearly 20 other live acts can be found on
www.colorscape.org, or by downloading the free Attendify app from the Apple Store or
Google Play Store. Attendify also provides clues to a Festival Art Hunt, which
encourages Colorscape guests to explore the festival and post their answers to 10 trivia
questions on the app, for a chance to win a $20 gift certificate to the Colonia Theater in
Norwich.
For hands-on activities, people of all ages can visit the Art Zone. In the Kids’ Art Zone,
parents are invited to bring their children, preschool through age 9, to participate in a
variety of exciting arts projects, including paper quilling, sand dollar necklaces, sensory
coloring, and fiber arts cards. In the Golden Art Zone, both children (age 10 and up) and
adults are offered an opportunity to explore the world of art and acrylic paints through a
variety of exciting projects.All materials are provided and activities are free of charge.
Additional arts activities for families can be found in Colorscape Art Row, featuring
several area non-profit agencies.
In front of Guernsey Memorial Library, the literary arts will be celebrated with two days
of poets, illustrators, and authors. Buddy Wakefield will be on hand before and after his
Saturday performances to offer inspiration to writers and poets of all ages. Local author
Suzanne Bloom will sign books, and guests can experiment with refrigerator poetry and
making paper dahlias out of old books.
The annual Student Art Exhibit will again be displayed at the Artists’ Palette on South
Broad Street. Sharing the work of school-age children from across the region, the Student
Art Exhibit will present awards at 3 p.m. on Sunday.
Colorscape Chenango has been celebrating premier artists in downtown Norwich since
1995. Media sponsors include The Evening Sun, WSKG, WRVO, WCDO, and Magic
101.7. Colorscape is made possible, in part, by the Broome, Chenango & Otsego
Decentralization Program, administered by the Chenango Arts Council and the New York
State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New
York State Legislature. For more information, visit www.colorscape.org.