As Ohio State makes moves to create a more integrated arts district, student organization Ohio Staters Inc. looked into its archives for inspiration for Festival of the Finest.
“We have a room in the Union that (adviser) Cathy (Montalto) works to restore that contains a lot of artifacts from a bunch of different projects that we were doing,” said Victoria Alesi, a third-year in dance and event co-chair.
When looking in the room one day, Alesi found a program for the 2009 Festival of the Finest, which showcased multimedia works en plein air.
It hasn’t been held since 2010, but this Friday, it’s back for a third year. The Festival of the Finest is set to take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the Wexner Center for the Arts plaza.
Event co-chair Alex Biddle said the event will feature 50 artists displaying visual art. Live music and performances from organizations such as the Yoga Club and Jump Rope Club will also be held throughout the day.
The co-chairs also found application forms from 2009 in the storage room, which they then revamped into a online form, for students to submit their art.
“We asked what their majors and minors were and very few were in the art curriculum,” said Biddle, a fourth-year in Spanish and international studies. “It’s a great medium for people to express themselves if they don’t have the chance to in their academia.”
Biddle also said that the festival hopes to expand what people consider art. Attendees will have the opportunity to write on chalkboards their answers to questions such as “How do you express yourself?” and “What does art mean to you?” People will also be able to create their own artwork in chalk in a square on the plaza.
“We’re more than just a football school and STEM programs,” Biddle said. “That seems to be a lot of what Ohio State is associated with, but there is really so much artwork and art just in general taking place here.”
