The Works Festival, now in its 23rd year, is a free, all-ages arts and design festival taking place across 28 locations in Edmonton. Beginning June 20th and continuing for thirteen days, the festival is the largest of its kind in North America, showcasing work from a wealth of Canadian and international artists. This year’s festival begins a three-year theme entitled “The Big Picture”, with each festival having a sub-theme: “Water” for this year, “Heat” for next year, and “Earth” for 2010. The series of festivals focuses on exhibits highlighting sustainability and environmental consciousness, combining “art, sustainability, and social responsibility in an exciting matter, while provoking discussion.”
The Works Festival was established in 1986 by The Works International Visual Arts Society, an organization dedicated to “[promoting] the visual arts among the public at large and the artistic community by developing, producing and marketing special projects, programs and events that elicit the continued financial support of sponsors in the public and private sectors and the professional support of the artistic community.” Anyone, from students to professional artists, can submit works in any genre, from traditional (paintings, sculptures) to the more cutting edge (graffiti, “sonic installations”), to be considered for exhibition in the festival. Festival-goers can watch artists as they work, or even create their own pieces.
Although the large outdoor site at Sir Winston Churchill Square offers artisans, live music, and international food, the festival also utilizes over 25 unusual venues such as office lobbies, restaurants, hotels, and even the YMCA to showcase the exhibits, many of which are as unique as their venues. One such piece “[challenges] Edmontonians to go 24 hours without their cell phones. The collected cell phones will be suspended from the ceiling of a tent and will be allowed to ring and text away for 24 hours.” Another one of the featured exhibits is that of Artist-In-Residence, Richard Watts, entitled “Arc”. He will be creating a “new large-scale work as he sandblasts away the practical, functional aspects of boats and transforms them into unfamiliar, animal-like creations. ...Using industrial and Biblical metaphors, ‘Arc’ connects with global issues of water, energy and environmentalism.”
This year’s festival also coincides with Quebec’s 400th anniversary, and The Works Festival has taken advantage of the opportunity to celebrate French Canadian art. Local French entertainment, including music, spoken word, and drama, can be heard on The Works Street Stage, and bilingual tours of the exhibits run three times daily. Keeping with the spirit of participation, festival-goers can also help create the largest French collage at City Hall.
Encompassing four holidays, including National Aboriginal Day and Multicultural Day, The Works Festival truly is a celebration of Art. Through the widespread public venues, viewer participation, and the open call to enter, the festival makes art accessible to the everyday person. For the casual individual seeking entertainment, the tents at Sir Winston Churchill Square provide the perfect diversion for an afternoon, while the guided tours will stimulate the art enthusiasts of Edmonton.

The Works Art and Design Festival
Sir Winston Churchill Square, Edmonton, AB
June 20 - July 2, 2008
www.theworks.ab.ca