Schedule Of Events
11:00am to 3:00pm : Artist Demonstrations Presented by Artworks
Throughout the year, Artworks provides workshops for community members, both children and adults, in various media. Standing workshops include pottery, mosaic, dance, basket weaving, jewelry making, wood carving, photography, painting, and more. An array of local artists who often teach these workshops will demonstrate their artistic abilities at this event. They will be creating pieces on site, and will be available to answer questions and offer insight to their artistic processes. Enjoy this opportunity to watch, discuss and experience artists demonstrating their works in progress
Location : Artworks
10:00am to 4:00pm : Quilts of Valor National Sew Day Presented by the Old Jail Quilters
The Old Jail Quilters will be taking part in Quilts of Valor National Sew Day on Saturday the 1st, quilting to honor and comfort those touched by began in 2003 with a dream, literally a dream. Founder Catherine Roberts' son Nat was deployed in Iraq. From the beginning, she had definite ideas about standards of excellence for Quilts of Valor: I knew a Quilt of Valor had to be a quality-made quilt, not a “charity quilt.” Quilts of Valor would be the civilian equivalent of a Purple Heart award. A Quilt of Valor had to be quilted, not tied, which meant hand or machine quilting. Quilts of Valor would be “awarded,” not just passed out like magazines or videos. A Quilt of Valor would say unequivocally, “Thank you for your service, sacrifice, and valor in serving our nation in combat.” Anyone wishing to participate is welcome. Quilting will take place all day at Artworks. Join in the quilting or just stop by and watch the quilters make their magic. The quilts that are produced will be presented to local veterans, with one such presentation taking place as part of the Sew Day activities.
Location : Artworks
1:00pm : Welcome to Wimee's World! Presented by Kevin Kammeraad
Wimee is a lovable robot puppet who loves to make new friends and help kids increase their literacy and storytelling skills through interactive wordplay, songs, stories, and more! He's featured in the Wimee's World app and can be found hosting every episode of his show, Wimee's Words, on WimeeTV at PBS.org. Wimee has a great sense of humor and enjoys playing with words, learning new things, and meeting new people! Wimee the robot first came into being in 2016. The idea for him came from Michael Hyacinthe, founder of the Wimage app, as a fun way to engage kids in their creativity. He turned to his good friend and decades-long puppeteer, Kevin Kammeraad, for help. Together, Michael and Kevin worked with puppet builder Joe Emory to make Wimee 1.0. Nine years later, after hundreds of library presentations, school programs, ArtPrize story-telling workshops, and virtual platform appearances, Kevin brings Wimee 3.0 to Big Rapids and the 2025. Festival of the Arts for an afternoon of puppetry, music, and wordplay for families and kids!
Location : Big Rapids Community Library
2:00 to 4:00pm : Crafting the Self in Memoir and Creative Non-fiction Workshop Presented by Deirdre Fagan
In this generative workshop, we will discuss approaches to getting started, including personal reflection, research, and working with artifacts. Participants will improve upon their knowledge of memoir and creative nonfiction, as well as engage in reflective and interactive exercises to develop their appreciation for and understanding of craft. Deirdre Fagan is the author of a poetry collection, Phantom Limbs (2023), an award-winning memoir, Find a Place for Me: Embracing Love and Life in the Face of Death (2022), an award-finalist short story collection, The Grief Eater (2020), a chapbook of poetry, Have Love (2019), and a reference book, Critical Companion to Robert Frost (2007). She is a widow, wife, mother of two, and professor, assistant chair, and coordinator of creative writing at Ferris State University. There is no fee for this workshop
Location : Artworks
7:00pm : Randy Napoleon Trio: Rust Belt Roots Presented by Tuba Bach
Guitarist Randy Napoleon cut his teeth in the clubs of Detroit and throughout the Midwest in the mid-nineties, only realizing after his move to New York how much his musical identity and values were forged by that scene. The jazz masters that still populate the region swing with uncompromising commitment, deeply steeped in the Blues and the language of Bebop. For this trio performance, Randy pays tribute to three of the greatest of the mid-century "Rust Belt" masters, all of whom helped define the hardbop guitar sound: Wes Montgomery, Grant Green and Kenny Burrell. Randy Napoleon serves as Associate Professor of Jazz Guitar and Associate Director of Jazz Studies at Michigan State University's College of Music.
Location : Immanuel Lutheran Church
