Arts Council Teams Up With Wake Forest Baptist, Wexford and Others for May 3 Event

‘b/eats on the street’ will feature food,

music and activities for all ages

"The Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County is partnering with Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center and Wexford Science & Technology, a BioMed Realty company, to bring a family-friendly food and entertainment event to Wake Forest Innovation Quarter. The free event, “b/eats on the street,” will be held from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 3, in the parking lot at the corner of North Patterson Avenue and Fifth Street in downtown Winston-Salem.

Co-sponsors of the event are Art Nouveau of Winston-Salem, a group of art leaders under age 40, and the local chapter of Arts for Life, an organization that provides educational art programs to people with serious illnesses and disabilities.  

“b/eats on the street” will feature live musical performances, local food vendors, a family art and activity zone, face painting and “Chalk for Life,” a sidewalk art contest put on by Arts for Life to raise money for critically ill children at Wake Forest Baptist’s Brenner Children’s Hospital.

“Downtown Winston-Salem is developing several complementary districts including the Theatre District, Restaurant Row, the Arts District and the Innovation Quarter. We are just beginning to understand the potential of these areas and to take advantage of opportunities for public events in each of them,” said Jim Sparrow, president and CEO of The Arts Council. “The vibrancy that we have seen in the city center is moving east with the development – both commercial and residential – that is under way in the Innovation Quarter.

“We are particularly glad that Arts for Life is involved in this event,” Sparrow added. “They do great work in using the arts to promote wellness and healing that is both inspirational and pace-setting.”

Additional local nonprofit organizations – including the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art, Old Salem Museums and Gardens, Winston-Salem Festival Ballet, Sawtooth School for Visual Art and Authoring Action – will provide the children’s activities at the event and offer information about summer arts programs and camps for young people.

Winston-Salem’s robust arts community accounts in large part for the recognition the area continues to receive as a great place to live.

“Winston-Salem is known as the City of Arts & Innovation,” said John D. McConnell, M.D., chief executive officer at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. “Through this partnership, we look forward to generating awareness of the arts in Innovation Quarter.”

The Arts Council of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County, the first locally established arts council in the United States, enriches the lives of area residents every day. It raises funds and advocates for the arts, sponsors events in conjunction with other arts organizations, promotes and funds arts education, creates cultural opportunities, develops social capital and aids economic development. In 2013, The Arts Council made Organizational Support Grants to 19 Funded Partners totaling $1,675,000, and other grants brought the total awarded to $1,905,000."

Submitted by Carroll Leggett