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The Latino Arts Festival Welcomes Local And International Arts To Park City

Christian Center of Park City

This weekend will mark the start of a celebration of colors, music and culture. The Latino Arts Festival will kick off its week-long celebration at the Park Silly Sunday Market.

Event organizer Alma Ruiz said the week will be filled with movies, music and art exhibits. 

"It's gonna be colorful, it's going to be excellent, very unique… flavorful," Ruiz said. "We're going to have presentations from Colombia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Mexico, and many other countries."

The event highlights local and international artists, who will be able to both sell and showcase their art in exhibits. 

She said without a social media presence many local Latino artists can’t get the exposure they need to have work featured in galleries or exhibits. 

 

"I think that regardless of how things are managed in other galleries and whatnot, it is a little bit challenging sometimes to get the approval, or be able to get that opportunity to showcase these excellent artists, but for us, nothing's impossible," she said. "So for that reason, we're bringing all kinds of cultures."

The festival is hosted by the Christian Center of Park City. Since it began in 2016, Ruiz said it’s seen a lot of growth. 

 

"We have cities from all over Salt Lake, Provo, Ogden, and Heber, Coalville," she said. "So it's been definitely growing to the point that now we have some artists that are coming from out of state as well, to participate. And it's amazing to see this amazing festival continue to grow and expand and allow many Latino artists to showcase their art."

One out-of-town artist exhibiting his work is Hector Saldivar. The Tennessee-based artist uses his Mexican roots as inspiration to create mosaics, paper mache and ceramics. 

Credit Hector Saldivar
Saldivar's art draws inspiration from his Mexican roots

  He said he’s excited to have his work featured in a new area. 

 

"It's a big city," Saldivar said. "And because I want to start showing my pieces in big cities, maybe people like more art, than here in Tennessee."

The festival has teamed up with Artes de Mexico en Utah, which works to build cultural connections through art. The organization brings both local and international artists, including two Mayan weavers who will give a live demonstration during the Silly Market. 

Executive Director of the organization Fanny Guadalupe Blauer said they works to highlight the talent of Latinos to revive their cultural values. 

 

"Many of those community members are families of immigrants, or immigrants themselves, that come here with the mindset of coming to work," she said. "I have met so many people who are weavers, who are poets, who are writers, who are pinata makers. And they are not saying that because they know that they are here just the work behind the scenes."

She said events like the Latino Arts Festival give artists visibility in the community. And by exposing residents to more diverse art, locals may feel more motivated to connect with underrepresented groups. 

 

"I think this festival … I'm hoping that this festival provides that visibility and that opportunity for our people," she said. "Because what a great thing that we discover on artists or on Latino artists here in Utah, and then those get an opportunity to go somewhere else."

The festival runs through Saturday June 26 and will be hosted at multiple venues throughout Park City to help maintain small crowd sizes. 

 

Jessica joins KPCW as a general assignment reporter and Sunday Weekend Edition host. A Florida native, she graduated from the University of Florida with degrees in English — concentrating in film studies — and journalism. Before moving to Utah, she spent time in Atlanta, GA.