Festival season is in full swing, but if you’re looking for a tad more artistic gravitas this weekend, stop by the UNC Charlotte Center City Building for its Open House and Community Day on Sept. 17.
Although the gleaming new Uptown campus is home to myriad programs in business, health and human services, urban design, urban education and continuing education, the light-flooded gallery, which has its own entrance on Ninth Street, is one of the more visible aspects of the building. I’ll be writing more about the gallery and its programming later, but let’s just say there are some parallels between it and Saturday’s family friendly goings-on.
One operating principle of the gallery is cross-pollination — which encompasses just about anything from interdisciplinary art projects to welcoming participation from surrounding community, including kids in First Ward, Uptown biz folks, and area artists/arts organizations. In a similar spirit, the Open House will showcase the inventiveness busting out across UNCC, but also tilt heavily toward arts emanating from both campus and community.
Right now, UNCC alums Antoine Williams and John Hairston are working on a mural in the gallery and will be there Saturday as well. There will also be plenty of other substantial but accessible fare throughout the building and outdoors, including film shorts courtesy of The Light Factory, dance, music, slam poetry, puppetry, step dancers, a virtual human and a fully operational race car. In addition to performances, live painting and traditional festival stuff, look for lots of participatory/interactive opportunities for all ages.
UNC Charlotte Center City Building Open House and Community Day, Saturday, September 17, 10:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. UNC Charlotte’s Center City Building is located at Ninth & Brevard Streets. Info: centercity.uncc.edu