SPRINGDALE — A new student art festival will take place at the Jones Center this fall to increase tourism and allow students to showcase their artwork.
The Spring Creek Art Festival, which was announced Wednesday during a media luncheon at The Jones Center, will take place from Oct. 23-26 as a competition for student artists, said Mike Gilbert, chief operating officer. Students in kindergarten through college graduate programs will be able to participate in the competition.
"We see the creativity in these kids and want to create an opportunity for them to showcase their work," he said.
The competition will be divided into categories including digital film and video, photography, 2D and 3D art, music, theater performances and poetry reading, Gilbert said. Entry into the competition will be free except for a $10 entry fee for the digital film and video category.
Some students in Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma are already signed up for the digital film and video category, Gilbert said. Jones Center officials will talk to local art teachers about the competition once the school year starts. They will also give these teachers entry applications and t-shirts for their students, he said.
The poster for the event will be done by a different artist each year, Gilbert said. This year's poster was created by Maser, an artist from Ireland.
Maser will sign copies of the poster, which will be sold at the festival, Gilbert said. Money from posters, entry fees and sponsors will go toward a scholarship fund to help students in Northwest Arkansas who might not be able to afford entry into local educational art programs.
Maser will be in Springdale from Sept. 20-30 to paint a mural on the side of the Youth Strategies Skills Center, the old truck wash building, at The Jones Center, Gilbert said. The mural will feature bicycling and the Razorback Greenway. Community members driving West on Emma into downtown Springdale will be able to see the mural, he said.
"That will become the gateway into downtown Springdale," he said.
Jones Center officials want to help improve downtown Springdale, said Ed Clifford, chief executive officer. Events, like the Spring Creek Art Festival, are a large part of what's needed to make this happen.
"There are a lot of people excited about downtown Springdale and what it can be for Springdale and all of Northwest Arkansas," he said.