EAST LANSING, Mich. — 'Twas the night before the East Lansing Art Festival, with volunteers and artists all stirring about. Some gone there year after year, while some are brand new with lots of art to share.
“My name is EJ Kipp. I live in St. John's. I work full time as a chemist, and then, I do printmaking on the side,” Kipp said.
In a lab by day and a studio at night, EJ Kipp has the best of both worlds.
“I was going to school for biology, and then, I had to take some extra credits to graduate, so I took some art classes because I was interested in this,” Kipp said.
This, being printmaking, an art form that begins with carving and ends with stamping.
“The things I mainly carve are Michigan native wildlife, and it's usually just stuff that I see that inspires me then I end up carving it,” Kipp said.
Right now, Kipp's studio is full of prints as he gets ready to emerge for his first festival in downtown East Lansing.
“It's been two years of this, and now, I'm doing my first like art show or art fair,” Kipp said.
“This is the 60th year of the East Lansing Art Festival in downtown East Lansing,” said Art Festival and Initiatives Coordinator Heather Majano.
Majano said, for as long as she can remember, the city has assisted new artists like Kipp.
“We have emerging artists, their tents are already set up," Majano said. "They're brand new, this is their first-ever festival.”
These artists have to pay a small fee to attend, but the city provides the tables and tents for setup.
“It's important for the longevity of these kinds of festivals to give the opportunity to new artists to experience it and see if it's something that they want to make a part of their lives,” Majano said.
Kipp said the emerging artist program is a huge help for artists like himself.
“I wouldn't be able to afford the fee and the tent and along with the supplies to build an inventory," Kipp said. "It's really nice to have the emerging artists tent itself provided for you.”
Along with the emerging artist tent, Majano said there will be returning artists, live performances and demonstrations and, of course, food.
“Last year, 2022 was our first year back full scale, and we talked to the artists and the food trucks and everybody concurs that we were back to full size, pre-COVID, 2019 numbers, so we're back," Majano said.
So, as coordinators are getting ready for the festival's 60th year, some like Kipp are getting ready for their first.
“Come out enjoy the weather," Majano said. "The Albert El Fresco Street closure is open too, so you can grab your food from the food court or one of our amazing East Lansing vendors.”
“I have a lot of stuff prepped, and I've been printing for years, and it's gonna be nice," Kipp said. "I'm getting it all packaged up now, so it'd be nice to see it all out there.”
The East Lansing Art Festival runs this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
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