Kicking off the festival season this summer, join The Works Art & Design Festival on Churchill Square, June 27 – July 1. Ignite your senses in vivid colours, playfully massive sculptural installations, the inspiring live music of our all-ages patio, and everything that The Works’ Food Street and Vendor Row vendors have to offer!
This year at The Works Art & Design Festival, expect an exciting shift in your perceptions as we blur the lines between artist and audience!
Be sure to check back here and follow our social media pages for program updates.
ABOUT THE FESTIVAL
The Works Art & Design Festival is a celebration of visual art & design in Edmonton’s Downtown Core! The Works attracts artists, designers, and patrons from around the world, and boosts the city’s vibrancy and imagination at the start of each summer through exhibits, large scale Installations, multi-disciplinary performances, demonstrations, and workshops. The Works is North America’s largest free outdoor festival dedicated to visual art. It is a time and place for anyone to experience, discover, and explore creativity through art & design.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The Works International Visual Arts Society respectfully acknowledges that we are located in amiskwacîwâskahikan ᐊᒥᐢᑿᒌᐚᐢᑲᐦᐃᑲᐣ, on Treaty 6 Territory and the homeland of the Métis Nation of Alberta, Region 4. This is the ancestral and traditional territory of the Cree, Blackfoot, Nakota Sioux, Tsuut’ina, Dene, Saulteaux and Métis, whose histories, languages and cultures continue to cultivate and influence this land and our communities.
Our Festival site, Sir Winston Churchill Square, is located on the territory of the Cree, Michif Piyii (Métis), Tsuut'ina, and Nêhiyaw-Askiy ᓀᐦᐃᔭᐤ ᐊᐢᑭᕀ (Plains Cree) and Niitsítpiis-stahkoii ᖹᐟᒧᐧᐨᑯᐧ ᓴᐦᖾᐟ (Blackfoot/Niitsítapi ᖹᐟᒧᐧᒣᑯ).
The Works recognizes that upholding mutual respect between Indigenous nations is an ongoing process which includes recognizing and uplifting Indigenous cultural self-determination. As historical arbiters of cultural legitimization, settler art institutions have a responsibility to address the harmful legacies of colonialism which we inherit and uphold. These calls must inform our actions and outputs.
The Works has the privilege to exist in virtual spaces, such as this website and social media platforms. Our online presence is contingent on land and resources—as our data is stored in servers across the world, and our technology and networks rely on metals such as gold, lithium, cobalt and cesium. We actively strive to make space across online platforms and to celebrate and amplify Indigenous voices through sharing and promoting Indigenous content.