CULLMAN – Cullman City Parks and Recreation (CP&R) will host the annual Art in the Park event this Saturday, April 15 from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. In the past, Art in the Park has taken place at Heritage Park; however, this year the event will be at City Park off of Main Avenue.
“We really want to highlight the different types of art being practiced in the community and center the event around the Art Guild building, which was recently renovated within the last year,” said CP&R’s Waid Harbison, who oversees events and marketing.
The event is free to attend and will feature more than 30 arts and craft vendors, live craft demonstrations throughout the day, several free crafts for kids, an art show in the newly renovated Art Guild building and live music throughout the day by Shannon McNeal (See the Tribune's profile on McNeal here).
The popular sidewalk chalk art contest will also take place for kids of all ages from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. at the park; the winner will receive a free three-month family pass to the waterpark at the Cullman Wellness & Aquatic Center. There is no charge or pre-registration to be in the sidewalk chalk contest; participants just need to be at the park between 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
Cullman Mayor Woody Jacobs and the Park Board will be on-hand to unveil plans for the future of City Park.
“We obviously want to continue to have this event annually at City Park,” Harbison said. “However, we will be holding a ribbon-cutting during the Art in the Park, renaming City Park the ‘Art Park.’ It is here that we will have sculptures and feature local artists’ work, all centered around the Art Guild building that will host art classes throughout the year.”
Harbison said that the event will feature jazz and acoustic music. He hopes Art in the Park can grow to become not only one of Cullman’s essential yearly events, but one of the biggest events in the county.
“We have really never done anything like this before,” he said. “We would love to have around 1,000 people show up for this. It is going to be a lot of fun and a unique event for sure.”
Since parking at City Park is sparse, CP&R is facilitating parking across the street and will have attendees leading cars to the parking area and directing traffic for safety. The roadway that runs alongside City Park will be closed for the event.
For more information on Art in the Park, contact CP&R at 256-734-9157 or visit www.cullmanrecreation.org.
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