Central Appalachian Festival Project

 

Central Appalachian Festival Project (2000-2002)

Lead Artists: Nick Szuberla and the American Festival Project
Participating Artists: Nic Paget-Clarke, Fred Campbell, Rodrigo Duarte Clark, Harrell Fletcher, Shannon Hummel, Stephanie Juno, Suzanne Lacy, John Malpede, Robbie McCauley, Nouko Miyamoto,
Organizers: Forrest Gray, Danielle Burke, Thomas Hansell
Additional documentation: 17 video letters from participants, 235 photos from participants, 9 hours of video.
Sites: Evarts (KY), Whitesburg (KY), Elkhorn City (KY), Lotts Creek (KY), Clintwood (VA).

In collaboration with the American Festival Project, I produced a socially engaged, collaborative, and interdisciplinary conference between national artists and community groups in the central Appalachian region. 

The conference brought over twenty nationally acclaimed artists; including Suzanne Lacy, Elia Arce, Robbie McCauley, and Nobuko Miyamoto to central Appalachia to participate in a multi-year, multi-site community art project creating works about coalfield issues in collaboration with local expertise and communities. 

Throughout a week-long event, artists and local communities in the coalfield region of  Appalachia were invited to join forces, share insights and build expertise. Emphasizing the intrinsic significance of cultural identity, diversity, and exchange, the project aimed to foster artistic collaborations among its participating artists and the communities it engaged with. The project followed a deliberate approach that encouraged communities to unravel the intricate challenges they faced, envision positive change, and harness creative expression as a potent tool for combating various forms of injustice.

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