Kick your summer off right with the largest outdoor arts festival in Utah. The Utah Arts Festival has won awards for its production each year in downtown Salt Lake City on local, national and international levels. The festival’s attendance hits record numbers of 80,000 a year when it comes to town in the last week of June. With over 160 visual artists and 100 performing groups, the UAF committee promises that this year will be “the best yet.”
The Utah Arts Festival is a multidisciplinary festival, meaning all types of art are promoted there. A quick glance at the festival website shows some of the art types you will encounter at the festival include: culinary art, jazz, film, visual arts, dance, music, performance art and chamber ensembles. At last year’s festival, there was a whole section dedicated to graffiti art. The UAF is a non-profit organization committed to enhancing Utahns’ lives through the sharing of art.
Taking place from June 21-24, there is a never-ending variety of booths, activities and arts-related things for patrons to do. This year the festival has added a summer concert segment titled “Amplify your Utah Arts Festival Experience.” All of the concerts will take place on the Amphitheatre Stage. On Thursday, Americana artist Ron Pope and indie rock band Gomez will perform. On Friday, hip hop DJ A-Trak will take the stage. On Saturday, Los Angeles native duo People Under the Stairs will perform hip-hop music. On Sunday, soul-infused rock band St. Paul and the Broken Bones will end the festival. Tickets for each day are priced $25 and include same day festival admission.
Additionally, BANDALOOP — a group of dancers based in Oakland, California — will perform each night of the festival. Their stage will be the ceiling of the downtown library. BANDALOOP performs complex choreography while suspended from ropes.
On the last day of the festival, there will be a Big Deal Brunch to kick off funding for next year’s event. The brunch will consist of culinary goodies like fresh juice and a breakfast buffet. There will also be live entertainment. Tickets for the brunch are priced at $35 and include admission into the festival for the day. Brunch will last from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The true heart of the Utah Arts Festival is not something that can be described in a preview. It’s something you need to see for yourself. There is something for everyone at the festival, no matter what type of art you enjoy or how old you are. Don’t miss the chance to see what artists here in Utah have created with their brilliant minds in 2018.
You can buy general admission tickets to the festival at the door as well as online, for $15 per ticket. Tickets for specific events can be purchased in advance on the UAF website. The festival is located at Library and Washington Square. The festival will last from June 21 to 24 and will be open each day from noon to 11 p.m.
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