Kingston Creative Artwalk Festival to Be Staged on Sept. 28

Downtown Kingston will come to life on Sunday, September 28, as the Kingston Creative Artwalk Festival will be staged from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The Festival has become a flagship event for Downtown Kingston, bringing together thousands of attendees each month to experience Jamaica’s cultural and creative industries in a safe, family-friendly environment.

Business Development Manager at Kingston Creative, Dominic McDowell, told JIS News that the Kingston Creative Artwalk Festival continues to grow as a national platform that highlights the power of the creative economy to build pride, drive tourism, and contribute to Jamaica’s sustainable development.

“Since the start of the year, we have seen a growth in terms of the number of vendors who have participated in the Artwalk festival. These vendors have a wide variety of business products and services that they offer as creative entrepreneurs, from craft to textiles, to jewellery, to clothing, to food. You name it. If it is a creative output, it is generally on display at the Kingston Creative Artwalk,” he said.

Mr. McDowell said the Festival has changed from a monthly event to a bimonthly event to increase visibility of the creative industries.

“The upcoming Festival is the fourth bimonthly staging of the Artwalk festival. It has been eight years of us doing this festival. This one is under the theme of food and fashion… It is going to be a wonderful celebration which highlights the intersection of culture, community, and entrepreneurship here at Downtown Kingston,” he said.

This month’s event will feature the fourth edition of the SAINT International’s Downtown Kingston Model Search – a partnership with Kingston Creative – to expose new talent from the communities.

The highlight of the day will be a performance by Reggae Artiste, Jahmiel and the SAINT runway show, featuring local designers, including Marsha-Rae McBean, Nadine Thompson, Marcia Adams, and Howard Janseen Graham.

There will be over 80 artisans offering handmade Jamaican products in the Artwalk Village. Other activities throughout the day include mural and walking tours, Hop-On Hop-Off bus tours that stop at popular Downtown landmarks, and Paint and Sip sessions hosted by Great Wall Motors.

Patrons will also be entertained by the ‘Avant-Garde’ Costume Competition judged by Costume and Production Designer/Creative Director and 2024 Prime Minister Youth Awardee for Arts and Culture, AnnaIXE, with a $10,000 prize for the winner.

The best of Jamaican cuisine will be on offer with an array of food tastings from local chefs and vendors, including live cocktails demos by Dr. Spirit, and a Beer Garden hosted by Red Stripe Flavours.

Also participating in the event is the National Gallery of Jamaica, which will debut its new exhibition, ‘One Nation, New Symbols’ at 1:30 p.m.

The day’s event will wind down with a poolside afterparty hosted by ROK Hotel.

“This upcoming staging is our largest staging in terms of the number of confirmed vendors. We will have over 100 vendors here on Sunday. Church Street all the way up to Tower Street will be blocked off with vendors all along (these corridors). We have seen significant growth with the number of patrons that have been attending and feedback from our vendors is that they are pleased with the growth of the festival. They are pleased with the number of people who are turning out,” he said.

The event is supported by the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ), Great Wall Motors, Catherine’s Peak, the Kingston and St. Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC), and the Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB).

Secure parking is available at Myers, Fletcher and Gordon and Great Wall Motors/ Stewarts, which will provide shuttle services throughout the day.