On Saturday, September 8th, we closed down Park Avenue for the third annual Art-i-fax Street Party. The pop-up plaza, which stretched from Colfax to Humboldt, was filled with live music, local food, fun activities, interactive entertainment, and of course, art!
This year’s theme was Generations, which meant Art-i-fax had a little something for everyone. Green Door Fitness kicked off the party with a group workout by the stage. Throughout the event, guests enjoyed activities such as mini walking tours with Historic Denver, the aerial acrobatics of Rainbow Militia, and storytime led by a few of Colfax’s most well-read drag queens.
The musical acts were as diverse as the programming. Xicano funk band Los Mocochetes was the first band to hit the stage, and their energy was contagious. Country darlings Chella & the Charm brought the honky-tonk in the afternoon and local lyricist Connor Ray closed out the day with a high-energy and inspirational hip hop set.
Art was a big fixture at this year’s party, with everything from the detailed watercolor paintings of AfroTriangle, handmade greeting cards from The Gathering Place, and Colfax’s own comic artist Karl Christian Krumpholz, to a fashion show from the ladies of Studio Colfax. For the second year in a row, Mythica brought the street to life with her trademark colorful chalk art. Even pets got in touch with their artistic side at Peaceful Touch Pet Salon’s paw printing station.
Local restaurants The Goods and Spices Cafe served up delicious pozole and boxed lunches. Attendees got a sneak peek (or should we say sneak scoop) of Smith and Canon’s ice cream – they’re opening at York and Colfax in the fall. The Colfax Cakewalk was a big hit, with each winner walking away with a whole pink box of yummy goodness from Voodoo Doughnut. Our friends at Xbar kept the drinks flowing and the party going with beer and canned cocktails courtesy of Argonaut Wine & Liquor.
We presented the second annual “Characters of Colfax” awards to a couple of special community members. The first award went to the National Arts Honor Society of East High School, for their incredible work bringing our utility boxes along Colfax to life with Vision Zero art. The second award went to Marty Amble, who was instrumental in getting trees planted in the blocks on Colfax between Lafayette and Downing 32 years ago – we have him to thank for our ability to enjoy them now.
Closing Park Avenue from Colfax to Humboldt provided a great central space for the party, made the intersection of Colfax and Park safer for pedestrians and vehicles, and gave attendees a feel for what the space could be like if it were converted to a public plaza.
The location of the street party reflects the vision in our Streetscape Plan that this football field-size area could be converted to a public plaza for the community. We received lots of valuable feedback that will help us as we begin to implement pieces of the plan. You can view the Streetscape Plan in its entirety at colfaxave.com/streetscape.
Thank you to everyone who made Art-i-fax possible, from our amazing squad of volunteers, to our artists, Colfax businesses, and of course our sponsors. Click here to see more photos from the event. See you next year!
Shoutout to all of our sponsors – Albus Brooks – City Council District 9 | ArtHouse Design | Aponté & Busam Public Affairs Consultants | FirstBank | Front Range Services | Green Door Fitness | llegal Pete’s | Kentro Group | One Colorado | Peaceful Touch Pet Salon & Massage | St. Charles Town Company | Studio Colfax | UMB Bank | Voodoo Doughnut | Wayne New – City Council District 10 | X Bar Denver