Nicole Shearon
Local artist Tori McKay begins sketching her chalk design in the streets of downtown Raleigh at SPARKcon on Spet. 14, 2019. SPARKcon is an annual event that aims to showcase the talents of the creative community.
From Sept. 13-15, SPARKcon 2019, Raleigh’s annual creativity festival, attracts artists and imaginative people from all over North Carolina. A large corner of the Warehouse District of downtown Raleigh was blocked off to showcase all that SPARKcon has to offer.
At midday Saturday, the artSPARK portion of SPARKcon was particularly active. Three streets were shut down and filled with people taking part in the street painting activity. Zoe Lopez, one of the participants, said the atmosphere of artists created inspiration and was a great way to make friends.
“In North Carolina there’s a lot of different traditions and cultures,” Lopez said. “Maybe I should bring in my culture and who inspires me to do art.”
Lopez used her own chalk instead of the chalk that was provided to create a portrait of Frida Kahlo. In the background, she painted a traditional Mexican rug.
Sally Conway, who attended with her family, gave her take on how SPARKcon brings people together.
“We come every year,” Conway said. “We’ve been coming for four or five years now. It’s fun not only to create art, but it is also good to see what everybody else has created.”
Conway said she first found out about SPARKcon through her family, and it has since become a family tradition to attend each year.
Besides coming for fun and entertainment, many people attend SPARKcon as students and teachers. Alyssa Armstrong, a local teacher, said she first attended SPARKcon with her students.
“[SPARKcon] is the most relaxing way to start out the school year,” Armstrong said. “It’s a great time to come together as a community.”
Although Armstrong was not with her students this year, there were a few students painting on the streets. One student, Mikiya McClain, said she began coming to SPARKcon because she is part of the Art Society Club at Southeast High School, and for the past two years it was required for the students to attend. This year, however, McClain attended for fun. Students and teachers alike came out to try their hands at street painting.
While there are other aspects of SPARKcon besides art, such as live music and a breakdance battle, the art took up the most space and seemed to have the most participants. Overall, it seemed that love for art, friendship and community brought people outside in the heat and humidity Saturday, Sept. 14. If you didn’t get a chance to experience SPARKcon for yourself, the festival revisits Raleigh every year, so be sure to check it out in 2020.