Celebrating ArtWalk NTC’s 10 Year Anniversary
Article by Sherehe Hollins
The highly anticipated festival, ArtWalk NTC, returned for its 10th year to showcase a collection of art at its finest. From the eclectic to the refined, ArtWalk NTC celebrates the diversity of the art world through colorful displays of paintings, sculptures, photography, jewelry, wood, glass and metal work, live entertainment and culinary delights. The two-day outdoor event held in Point Loma’s Liberty Station, attracts art lovers, collectors and curious onlookers as they engage in free art activities, outdoor galleries and artistic play that create a fun-filled day for all ages.
This year’s festival featured an array of 200 local, regional and international artistic talents. This year also showcased the work of San Diego native, Inocente, a 21-year-old alumni of the National City based youth arts program, ARTS (A Reason To Survive). Inocente’s art career began at the tender age of 14, when ARTS was still housed inside of Liberty Station’s arts district. In 2012 she was the focus of the Academy Award winning, self-titled documentary, Inocente, which followed her journey through homelessness, as she discovered through art, a reason to survive and thrive.
When asked why ArtWalk NTC is important to a community, Inocente remarked, “Because it shows how people are recognizing that art is becoming more of a need than a want. I decided years ago that art would be the thing that would change my life.” Through Inocente’s participation in ArtWalk she is making a difference in her life and the lives of other young artists. During the festival she donated a portion of the proceeds earned from her art sales to further ArtReach’s education programs. ArtReach is a non-profit organization that brings teaching artists to schools that lack arts education programs.
The same team that produces the annual and widely attended Mission Federal ArtWalk in Little Italy also organizes ArtWalk NTC. The presence of ArtWalks, which continue to grow inside and outside of San Diego County speaks to the broad interest, impact and influence that art has on the lives of communities. ArtWalks’ affirm that through the power of art, communities find a common voice through which they can collectively express and share their uniqueness, diversity and creativity.
