radiosepia band Matt Monaghan (Manchester, UK)– Guitar and Voice
Manu López (Canary Islands) – Bass and Voice
Marta Torres (Barcelona) – Violin
Enric Ponsa (Barcelona) – Percussion/Drums.
‘The Evil Seed’ (Buffalo, USA) – Mandolin/Xylo
Walk&Talk Azores Festival the most exotic and genuine public art destination.
Walk&Talk, the International Public Art Festival which is shaking the artistic community and turning the Azores into an excellence destination for creative tourists from around the world, returns through July 27th. Alexandre Farto (Vhils), Mark Jenkins, Okuda and REMED, are four among the 80 creators, from 11 nationalities, who have already participated in the festival and signed some of the 62 interventions that currently give São Miguel island the status of living and democratic museum, mapping the Azores in the new creative regions script.
Liqen Jakala (ES), W&T 2012
Each year Walk&Talk Azores Festival gathers new talents and prominent contemporary art scene names that found in the exoticism and authenticity of this Atlantic archipelago an exceptional context to develop their work, sharing genuine cultural and co‐creation experiences with the local community. Thanks to the growing Walk&Talk creative dynamics, besides the famous “Furnas” and “Sete Cidades” lagoon, today São Miguel island has also a public art museum, where visitors and Azorean can freely enjoy a circuit composed of over 62 contemporary artistic interventions.
Mural painting, installation, sculpture, dance, music, video ‐ from visual arts to performing arts and architecture, Walk&Talk Festival is based on an artistic residency model that encourages creation in permanent dialogue with public space. For this year’s edition the festival promoters promise to reinforce the bold, genuine and collaborative features that define the event, where they want to gather more than 50 artists. Walk&Talk Festival was founded in 2011 by two young Azorean, Diana Sousa (27 years old) and Jesse James (25 years old), is part of the growing Azorean cultural momentum and has turn into one of its most active agents by positioning the region as a must‐visit destination for artists and people who follow the international art scene.
Besides being an emerging event on the international art calendar, Walk&Talk Azores is a peer gathering, relaxed and collaborative art event that allows participant creators to discover the Azores in an unprecedented way ‐ as transdisciplinary and artistic contamination context, which transforms the visit into a real creative tourism experience. People who didn’t have the Azores as a priority destination get the opportunity to discover a unique environment and become spontaneous ambassadors of their creative experiences.
A case study to follow: Walk&Talk Azores Festival has particular relevance because it illustrates the transformation of the tourism image of a territory, from its “disneyfied” projection, based on the reproduction of conventional tourist codes and icons, throughout creative innovation by promoting genuine experiences, as rich and diverse as its visitor’s interests.
Crowdfunding campaign: Until July 4th Walk&Talk Azores is promoting a funds raising campaign to help support this year’s festival edition. Fans and followers may contribute with donations starting at 10 euro’s to help build and improve its production and artistic program, that will gather over 50 Portuguese and foreign artists in São Miguel island. Big fans, with donations over 500 euro’s, can see
their names drawn by an artist in a huge mural or be guests of honor, entitled to a special creative tourism package that includes travel and accommodation, during the festival. For more information and contributions, please visit: www.indiegogo.com/projects/walk‐talk‐public‐art‐festival.
About Walk&Talk Azores Festival:
• Was created in 2011 and boosts a set of activities intended to introduce new aesthetic perspectives in the local cultural scene, affirming the street as an inhabited space, attended, participated ‐ the ideal place for art sharing;
• Streamlines live interventions in public space and a dynamic artistic program characterized by its bold, collaborative and genuine character;
• Is responsible for the creation of a living and democracy museum on São Miguel island, which today owns more than 62 public art interventions by 80 Portuguese and foreign creators;
• Gathers the patronage the Azores Government, through the Regional Youth and Tourism Directorates, the support of Ponta Delgada and Ribeira Grande Municipalities, other public and private partners, including local companies and citizens who donate, among other goods, spaces for the artistic interventions;
• For more information, please visit: www.walktalkazores.org or www.facebook.com/walktalkmovement
About the Anda&Fala ‐ Cultural Interpretation:
• A nonprofit cultural association dedicated to the promotion of public space and social intervention through art, it enhances local culture and heritage and contributes to the artistic education of the Azorean population;
• It was created in 2011 by Diana Sousa and Jesse James with the vision to stimulate and promote the Azores through cultural investment, catalyzing contemporary artistic expressions that are unusual in peripheral contexts and insular regions;
• Assumes an active role in the development of creative industries and regional culture, highlighting it as a strategic sector for the Azores social and economic growth;
• Works in partnership with other cultural associations and entities within the Walk&Talk Festival network, positioning itself as a co‐creator agent in the Azorean creative ecosystem.
For more information, please contact: Sílvia Escórcio
M +351 91 665 54 56
T +351 21 807 45 54
E. communication@walktalkazores.org
The first official day of Comic Con usually starts the insanity-filled 5 day experience, and 2013 is no exception. The buzzword on everyone’s lips today was – Sherlock.
