JULY 2021: RiverArtsFest back for 2021 in new location
MEMPHIS, TENN. (July 26, 2021) – – – RiverArtsFest, the region’s longest running fine arts festival, will return to downtown Memphis for its 15th Anniversary in October 2021 following the cancellation of the 2020 event due to COVID-19.
This year’s RiverArtsFest will take place Saturday, October 23 and Sunday, October 24, 2021, at the Renasant Convention Center in downtown Memphis. The move from Riverside Drive (where RiverArtsFest was held in 2018 and 2019) was necessitated by the ongoing restoration of the cobblestone landing and construction along Riverside Drive.
“We’re excited to be back in person this year and we’re thrilled to have found a site back downtown at the newly renovated Renasant Convention Center,” Bonnie Thornton, festival director, said. “This beautiful, accessible space will provide protection from the elements while still showcasing the incredible views and amenities in downtown Memphis.”
More than 150 juried artists will be featured this year as well as demonstrating artists, musical acts, food and more. Artists represent all 50 states but many of this year’s will be local or regional.
The festival will utilize the entire main street lobby and main level meeting spaces to host the Artists Market, as well as incorporate the center’s outside perimeter at Main and Exchange to present its demonstrating artists, children’s station Hands On Art and other festival activities
Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 6 to 12, and free for children 5 and under.
COBBLESTONE LANDING CONSTRUCTION:
https://www.memphisriverparks.org/
https://www.memphisflyer.com/tom-lee-park-demolition-begins-with-final-plan-approvals
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MAY 2018: Riverfront park getting a million-dollar renovation
The Mississippi River Park is getting a million-dollar renovation.
Friday, the City of Memphis filed a $1.4 million building permit for renovations to Mississippi River Park, located near the entrance to Bass Pro Shops at the Pyramid. Last month, the City of Memphis and the new Memphis River Parks Partnership, formerly known as the Riverfront Development Corp., submitted plans with the Memphis and Shelby County Office of Planning and Development to build open-air dining pavilions out of deconstructed shipping containers and elevated tree houses reminiscent of bird nests.
Carol Coletta, president and CEO of the River Parks Partnership, said the work should begin the first week of June and is expected to be completed just after Labor Day weekend, so the park can host the 2018 RiverArtsFest.
In April, the nonprofit, all-volunteer fine arts festival announced it was relocating from its 11-year stint on South Main, between Webster and Huling avenues, to a closed section of Riverside Drive, between Jefferson and Union avenues. The renovated Mississippi River Park will border the festival on the west.
Temporary street closures due to the return of the trolley line and construction underway at Central Station caused the festival's board of directors to look for another location. “
We are delighted to welcome RiverArtsFest to what will be our newest jewel on the riverfront, Mississippi River Park at Fourth Bluff,” Coletta said in an April press release. “This will be one of the first public events in the new park, which we expect to complete this fall. It is a perfect home for an event of this scale.”
Michelle Corbet, Reporter
Memphis Business Journal
https://www.bizjournals.com/memphis/news/2018/05/22/riverfront-park-getting-a-million-dollar.html
