While Sacramento is home to foodie-focused eateries, boutique shopping, and the state’s higher-ups, it’s well on its way to becoming a major player in the art world. You can usually find us wandering around at our beloved Crocker Art Museum, perusing the latest shipment of cool finds, both local and nationally renowned. However, the art scene is evolving, adding modern musings to its repertoire. In the last few years, the Sacramento region has seen an unprecedented uptick in devotion to the arts– music, theater, art, architecture, design– and we’re excited about it. With independently owned art galleries popping up as frequently as new pizza places, and opportunities to be a part of a hometown mural festival or award-winning chef cook-off challenge, Sacramento is welcoming the art community with open arms and a warm embrace.
ArtStreet 916 is the perfect example of the art world being infused into our valley town. Put on by M5-Arts, ArtStreet is a free, temporary, multi-disciplinary art project in one of Sacramento’s up and coming downtown neighborhoods. The exhibits show a little bit of everything from beautifully textured paintings to sculptures and interactive artwork suspended from the vaulted warehouse ceiling. Featuring over 100+ artists from all over the world, ArtStreet shines a light on different political, economical, and societal issues and how they can be further tapped and explored via creativity.
It’s amazing to see our hometown show up on the radars of major news outlets and publications all in the name of art. Press came from all over: Huffington Post, Juxtapose Magazine, and Submerge Magazine, just to name a few. Being in the creative field ourselves we’re always keeping our eyes peeled for what’s new and what’s next and what will inspire new trends and movements.
Some of our favorite installations used bright, bold color and texture, forcing our design brains to place the pretty portraits above mantles and master bedroom suites in our head. Others were think-pieces, art that you had to step back and wonder where the artist was at when creating such an intricate display. All of them, though, were beautiful and interesting and spoke to Sacramento and its journey toward becoming a design hub.
How has art inspired your community? Do you find that art shows off trends first, or recaps them after they’ve been introduced?
