3rd Annual Capital Region Activated Artist Fest
About this Event
The 3rd Annual Capital Region Activated Artist Fest!
Join us at the Arts Center of the Capital Region for a day of creativity, inspiration, and art! This FREE in-person event celebrates local artists and their incredible talents. Get ready to immerse yourself in a world of colors, shapes, and imagination.
Experience live art demonstrations, interactive workshops, and unique pieces from various artists.
Don't miss this opportunity to support the local art community and discover new talents. Mark your calendars for the 3rd Annual Capital Region Activated Artist Fest! This event is free and open to the public.
Create A Space NOW is an interactive social justice platform, creating art to combat bias, racism, and systemic oppression. We believe that art is a powerful tool, and we're committed to creating space for art to inspire change, educate, and activate.
Agenda
🕑: 11:00 AM - 11:15 AM
OPENING REMARKS
🕑: 11:15 AM - 12:15 PM
Hip Hop Body Flow: A Movement for Change
Host: Hettie Barnhill
Info: Instructional Class, Guided Conversation - Hip Hop Body Flow: A Movement for Change is an interactive movement workshop rooted in the culture, history, and dance styles of Hip Hop. Drawing from its origins as an expression of need, resistance, and collective energy, the workshop invites participants to explore Hip Hop’s powerful lineage through rhythm, storytelling, and embodied practice. Participants will be encouraged to move freely, connect with their bodies, and embrace their personal rhythm as a form of communication and protest. The goal is to create a space where liberation, flow, and activation are not just discussed, but felt.
🕑: 11:50 AM - 12:20 PM
Pen, Paper, Power: Writing for Joy, Justice & Imagination
Host: Shakeema Funchess
Info: Creative Writing - Join children’s author and educator Shakeema Funchess for a hands-on storytelling experience where the audience becomes the author. Pen, Paper, Power is an interactive workshop that invites the public to co-create a brand-new children’s story, live and in real time. Through guided prompts, playful collaboration, and collective imagination, participants will build a character, invent a world, face a challenge, and write their way toward joy and justice. Rooted in the belief that everyone has a story worth telling, this session explores how storytelling can be a tool for healing, cultural pride, and social change. Perfect for all ages, Pen, Paper, Power reminds us that imagination is a radical act and that our words have the power to transform the world. Created and facilitated by Adventures In Zen Books, a Black woman-owned self publishing company dedicated to inclusive storytelling and whole-body wellness. Bring notebook or pad, a favorite memory, tradition or story.
🕑: 12:35 PM - 01:35 PM
Dance as a Form of Spiritual Freedom and Resilience
Host: Aminah Hopewell
Info: Dance Class - In this workshop, I will teach the history and experience of praise dance as a way to celebrate not only spiritual beliefs, but also the freedom and resilience of Black bodies during and after enslavement. Blends of African Diasporic dance, Modern, and Contemporary will be used within this workshop. This will be taught from my own experience of praise dancing in and outside of church as well as in my home dance studio. Religion will not be my main focus, but centering the body as a way to connect spiritually and emotionally to reach freedom within one’s self will be what I highlight. No shoes required; please wear clothes you are comfortable and able to move in.
🕑: 12:35 PM - 01:05 PM
Shining Exodus
Host: Dawn Marie Harris
Info: Theatre Workshop - Using theater to come together as one collective! Deconstructing and original screenplay. Presentation
🕑: 01:10 PM - 01:40 PM
Capturing the Moment: How Art and Storytelling Drive Movements That Matter
Host: Robert Gertler
Info: In this talk, I will examine how my work in filmmaking, storytelling, and the creative arts has shaped historic political campaigns and community movements. From early projects with artists like Danielle Ponder, to advocacy and community-building through Create A Space NOW, to amplifying the leadership of Senator Samra Brouk, and most recently my collaboration with Dorcey Applyrs, the Democratic nominee for Mayor of Albany, I have embraced the use of visual language and emotion to help industry leaders align their voice and vision with the communities they serve, authentically tell their stories, and make history.
🕑: 01:55 PM - 02:55 PM
The Harlem Renaissance through dance
Host: André Robles
Info: Dance Class - Come join us as we observe and embody the movement styles of the Harlem Renaissance. The class will begin with a brief warm up, then dive into the basics of the Charleston and Lindy Hop as we move through and across the space.
🕑: 01:55 PM - 02:25 PM
You Me and Poetry
Host: Adonis Richards
Info: Poetry, Creative Writing -You me and Poetry is a creative writing session that incorporates storytelling and poetry incorporating elements of literacy, creativity, expression and more.
🕑: 02:30 PM - 03:00 PM
The Importance of Culture
Host: Celia Hernandez
Info: During this session I will talk about my experiences as an afro-latina in a hispanic household. I will explain how each part of a culture is important in a buildup of a child.
I will have a slideshow and I will discuss a trip I took with Ithaca College, down south and how that affected my identity as a person of color in America. I will include things that people told us down south and experiences from the legacy museum. The objectives of this presentation are to encourage people to seek out every part of their identity and find their place.
🕑: 03:15 PM - 04:15 PM
Dancing the African Diaspora: Dunham Technique/Umfundalai Movement Class
Host: Saroya Corbett
Info: Movement Class - This workshop is focused on African diasporic dance, particularly the dance techniques of Dunham Technique and Umfundalai. The main objective is to provide participants with movement experience combined with some history and cultural context. Dunham Technique is a fusion Afro-modern technique created by Katherine Dunham. This technique surfaces out of Dunham's anthropological research in the U.S., Caribbean, and other African diasporic cultures around the world. Umfundalai is a contemporary African technique created by Dr. Kariamu Welsh. Dr. Welsh created Umfundalai from her training with legendary dance anthropologist Pearl Primus, her studies of Dunham Technique, and her research of culture and dance in Africa, particularly Zimbabwe. Dr. Welsh acknowledged that Umfundalai stands on the shoulders of Dunham Technique and was clear about the connection between the two techniques. Attire: Lapa, wrap skirt or loose pants. Be prepared to be barefoot in movable clothes.
🕑: 03:15 PM - 03:45 PM
Six Weeks Til Freedom; Blackness in a Different World.
Host: Jayson S. Andrews
Info: In this session, we will read along and hear one scene from my screenplay Six Weeks Til Freedom. There will be an open discussion about the world of Blackness here and the world of Blackness each character, lives, thrives and survives in there. Please be prepared for a conversation about Blackness, its beauty, its challenges and constants
🕑: 04:15 PM - 04:30 PM
Performance Series: Intuitive Song Alchemy with Ari
Host: Ari
Info: Join Ari for a cozy, spirit-led journey of healing through music, rhythm, and reflection. Together, we’ll add words to a collective pot—emotions, dreams, and stories—and Hannah will intuitively weave them into a live, improvised song reflecting what is alive within us. We will create beats together using our bodies, voices, and simple objects (claps, snaps, hums, table taps, or gentle foot stomps), allowing the rhythm to move through us as we co-create the song in real-time. This is an invitation to feel music in your body and let your voice and energy shape the moment. Reflection: Please bring a paper and pen
🕑: 04:30 PM - 04:45 PM
Performance Series - The Shapes of Human Creation: What is the value of Art?
Host: Hasson Shakor Harris Wilcher
Info: Let's explore the question: What is the value of Art? We will dive into different artworks to determine if they have anything important to say and examine how that expression changes depending on the creative medium. Highlighting the human spirit and the power of art to influence hearts and minds alike through the power of storytelling.
🕑: 04:45 PM - 05:00 PM
Performance Series - Dance To The Stars Project- Ballet meets Hip Hop
Host: Shanta Thorpe
Info: A Performance and presentation to bring awareness to Dance To The Stars Project, the health and wellness practices of the art of dance and fitness and connecting the dancer inside of all of us with one another to express ourselves through various creative movements and disciplines.
🕑: 05:00 PM - 06:00 PM
Evening Ceremony
Host: Create A Space NOW
Info: As the day’s energy reaches its peak, we’ll come together for a powerful keynote address that spotlights a impactful artist-activist whose work embodies the spirit of social justice & community, then honor a community changemaker with our Activated Artist Award, and finally close with remarks that call us to carry today’s inspiration into tomorrow’s actions.
Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 0.00
