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Mayor Hosts Arts Organizations at City Hall to Launch Arts Initiatives in April
Dallas Arts Week, April 7-14,includes a social media contest, Mayor’s forum
DALLAS (April 3, 2013) To officially kickoff a month full of arts celebrations, Mayor Mike Rawlings is
hosting a wide variety of arts organizations at City Hall on April 3. The Mayor will officially proclaim April
7-14 as Dallas Arts Week and the month of April as Dallas Jazz Appreciation Month (D’JAM). Other
signature arts events in Dallas this month include: Dallas Art Fair, Dallas Art Ball, ARTsPARK, the new
public art works at Love Field Airport, the official historical marker of the Dallas Black Dance Theatre,
Dallas International Film Festival, Deep Ellum Arts Festival, Target Second Saturday at the Latino Cultural
Center, Dance Planet 17, the League of Historic American Theatres Conference, the Arab Film Festival,
Visit Dallas' BIG campaign and many more performances and exhibitions around the city.
The first DallasArtsWeek will launch April 7-14 with a social media photo contest using the hashtag
#DallasArtsWeek, and Mayor Rawlings moderating a free panel discussion called Dallas Arts: A Creative
Conversation at the new City Performance Hall on April 10 at 5:30 p.m.
“April is becoming a month of celebrations to showcase how far our city has come as a cultural
destination and a place where artists can thrive and influence the future of our community,” said Mayor
Rawlings. “Our city’s passion and commitment to supporting and advancing the arts is evident in every
festival, performance and event you attend. It’s a spectacular thing to see.”
To document Dallas Arts Week,Dallasites are encouraged to share their experiences with art around the
city on social media. Participants can enter the contest and win prizes by sharing their photos using the
#DallasArtsWeek hash tag on Twitter and Instagram, or by visiting the photo contest tab on the Dallas
Arts Week Facebook page. The grand prize packages include hotel stays, memberships and tickets to
exhibits and performances throughout Dallas, kindly donated by The Ritz-Carlton Dallas, The Fairmont
Dallas, Friends of the Park (Klyde Warren Park, The Crow Collection of Asian Art, Theatre Three, Craft
and Growler, Dallas Historical Society, Perot Museum of Nature and Science, Kitchen Dog Theatre and
Black Dance Theatre, amongst others.
On April 10, Mayor Rawlings will moderate a panel called Dallas Arts: A Creative Conversation,
sponsored by the Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau. The event will take place at the Dallas City
Performance Hall from 5:30 to 7:00p.m.and will focus on the state of the arts. Panelist will discuss the
opportunity for Dallas to attract aspiring and established artists and continue building a vibrant arts
center for Dallas. Individuals and organizations citywide are urged to attend and participate in the
discussion. Likewise, venues advocating for the arts are also encouraged to host their own events to
deepen the dialogue and broaden the spectrum of participants in the conversations reflecting the
diversity of artists and venues in our community.
“Dallas’ commitment and support for the arts continues to build each year with a diversity of new
talent, venues, programs and events,” said John Paul Batiste, chairman of the Dallas Cultural Affairs
Commission, TACA board member and founder and CEO of AVOI, an arts advocacy consultancy.
“DallasArtsWeek will bring awareness and celebrate the renaissance that is happening in our unique
cultural communities and art centers.”
KERA’s Art & Seek calendar (http://artandseek.net/)has a full list of arts events occurring in the city.For
more information on DallasArtsWeek and the social media photo contest, please visit
www.facebook.com/DallasArtsWeek.
About DallasArtsWeek
DallasArtsWeekis a week-long event designed to build awareness and appreciation for the cultural
renaissance occurring in Dallas.The campaign encourages Dallas residents and visitors to document their
encounters with the arts by taking photos and participating in the DallasArtsWeek social media photo
contest on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Directed by Mayor Mike Rawlings and the Dallas Cultural
Affairs Commission, DallasArtsWeek will coincide with Dallas Art Fair, Dallas Art Ball, Dallas Jazz
Appreciation Month (D’JAM) celebration, Deep Ellum Festival, the opening of new public art works at
Love Field Airport, the official historical marker of the Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Dallas International
Film Festival, Target Second Saturday at the Latino Cultural Center, Dance Planet 17, the League of
Historic American Theatres Conference and the Visit Dallas' BIG campaign, allowing the entire city to
participate. For more information on DallasArtsWeek, please visit www.facebook.com/DallasArtsWeek.
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