Annual Children's Arts Festival set for February First Friday

The Arts Council of Southeast Missouri will celebrate the 23rd annual Children's Arts Festival exhibition during the First Friday Art Walk from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 3, at 16B N. Spanish St. in Cape Girardeau.

According to a news release, the exhibit will feature visual and literary art pieces from more than 20 regional schools, and will be on display throughout February.

Exhibits will be judged in a variety of categories. Winners will be featured during Fine Arts Education Day on Wednesday, March 22, at the Missouri State Capitol building in Jefferson City in the offices of state Sen. Holly Thompson Rehder and Jason Bean. Some exhibits also will be displayed in Cape Girardeau's City Hall, Saint Francis Medical Center and other locations.

Exhibits will be judged by Annie Criddle, a project manager and Business Development coordinator with DILLE POLLARD Architecture in Cape Girardeau. Criddle is also a member of the design committee for Old Town Cape and a Southeast Missouri State University alum with a degree in graphic design.

The release stated the event will include performances from Fingerprint Urban Dance Studio, and live music from students of Southeast Missouri State University's Music Academy and Shivelbine's Music School. Also on exhibit, in the Arts Council's MicroGalleries, will be Huichol Indian Yarn Paintings from Scott City High School art teacher Richard Conaway .

Introduced in 2000, the Children's Arts Festival was developed to showcase the accomplishments of regional art educators and their students. The range of mediums, styles and subjects display the range and impact of art teachers, and highlight creativity among students from third grade through eighth grade.

For those unable to attend the exhibition, 360 degree scans of the gallery will be available on the Arts Council's website at www.capearts.org.

Anyone interested in sponsoring the exhibition may contact Arts Council director Kelly Downes at director@capearts.org.