Contact: Debra Dennis
ddennis@dcccd.edu; 214-378-1851
or
Scott Trent
Scott.Trent@dcccd.edu; 214-202-7325
For immediate release — April 6, 2017
Welding program director and instructor Byron Zarrabi assembles one of the Art on Wheels parade floats.
(DALLAS) — Art and welding students from the Bill J. Priest Institute, part of the Dallas County Community College District, will showcase their art in metal works during a three-day celebration at the city’s largest street party, the 23rd Annual Deep Ellum Arts Festival. The event brings three days of fun and artistic creativity starting this Friday, April 7, through Sunday, April 9.
Push, pull or pedal is the rule — no motorized art need appear — during the Art on Wheels Parade, and DCCCD faculty and guest artists will create metal artworks on site (and for sale) in their festival booth, too.
Here’s a rundown of DCCCD art from the BJP Institute as it rolls out on Saturday as part of the festivities in Deep Ellum:
- DCCCD events kick off at 1 p.m. on Friday, April 7, with a meeting of city art managers and other officials in Room 202 at the BJP Institute at 1402 Corinth St. Scott Trent, an adjunct faculty member at BJP and founder of the Henderson Art Project, will discuss his book “Art in the Community.”
- At 3 p.m. on Friday, students will show models or maquettes of their metal sculpting so that potential buyers can commission art projects. This “sneak peek” gives stakeholders a voice in the project and a way to witness the art as it literally comes to life, Trent said.
- On Saturday, April 8, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., various artists from the Bill J. Priest welding program will show their creations at BJP’s Hoblitzelle Auditorium.
- DCCCD students will join characters in the Art on Wheels promenade that begins at 1 p.m. on Sunday along the parade route in Deep Ellum. Artists will push, pull or pedal their art as part of the parade. Several DCCCD college mascots will be on hand to escort art works along the parade route.
“It (the art) cannot be motorized in any way,” said Trent. “We’re very excited to be part of the Deep Ellum Arts Festival with the Art on Wheels parade. This should be fun!”
For an “eyes-on” look as metal art and sculpting is created on site, festival-goers can find DCCCD welding faculty and guest artists in action between 1 and 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday at their booth, which will be located at the corner of Malcolm X Boulevard and Main Street. Sparks will fly, and the artists will offer their works for sale, too.
“We're continuing to bring art to the street with our live demonstrations of metal sculpting," Trent said.
The Deep Ellum Entertainment District stretches from the 2900 to 3400 blocks of Main Street, between Malcolm X Boulevard and Exposition Avenue, and also between Elm and Commerce streets.
For general information about the welding program and the BJP Institute’s involvement in street art and the Deep Ellum Arts Festival, contact Scott Trent at 214-202-7325 or Byron Zarrabi, program director and welding instructor, at 214-860-5880.
More information on the festival can be found at
DeepEllumArtsFestival.com.
To learn about participants in the maquette show, visit
dcccdart.com/maquette_show.html.
For more information about the art in the community meeting, visit
dcccdart.com/Art_community_meeting2017.html.
For details about the parade, visit
rollingarts.org/pageone.html.
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