The International Arts & Peace Festival (IAPF) is a one-day community event on Saturday, Aug. 6 at the Taylor Conservatory and Botanical Gardens. This event will feature artists, musicians, photographers, crafts, fashion and more to share their work, and how it impacts the communities around us.
In addition, this event will bring together impactful community organizations to raise awareness about their work. IAPF is sponsored by Southeast Michigan Rotary Clubs and the Wayne State University Center for Peace and Conflict Studies. This is a pre-conference event of the 2022 Taking Action for Peace Conference.
“Rotary is not just an organization that provides scholarships and hosts fancy dinners. To me, Rotary to me is impact — the impact of creating a vehicle for forming communities and having the capacity for creating ingredients that are critical for peace building,” said Devankar Mukhi, event organizer and student assistant with WSU’s Center for Peace and Conflict Studies. “An artist, musician and community organizer are the same since they all possess the same goal — to create. Whether that is artwork or a service project, we are all artists because we can all create the world that we want to live in.”
This event will award community peacemakers, including Dylan Morris, a senior at Oxford High School who founded No Future Without Today, a nonprofit dedicated to expanding access to mental health services.
“The IAPF fits our mission to promote art and culture and preserve our natural environment,” said Erin Dobbins, executive director of the Taylor Conservatory. “Rotary has been a key player in creating and maintaining the Conservatory. We are very pleased to co-host this event with Rotary, especially on the day our City of Taylor is celebrating its 175th anniversary.”
This event will feature Michigan, Texas and New York performers. Attendees will hear music genres from indie/alternative rock, pop, rap, R&B, hip-hop. In addition, there will be a comedy bit, fire spin show and a native Ugandan dance performance.
”As an artist, it’s extremely important for me to use my art as a voice for change. Being a part of this event is a perfect space that celebrates such ideas,” said Alex Oaiza, indie/alternative rock artist. “This is our band’s first show outside of Texas, and we are so excited to be coming to Michigan!”
Vendor tables will include organizations such as the Rotary Clubs of Detroit, Livonia and Southgate; Operation Pollination, an effort to protect pollinator habitats; Chole’s Cowgirls and Indians, teaching native and Mexican American culture through crafts, jewelry and clothing; and Chaldean American Ladies for Charity, a nonprofit founded in 1961 dedicated to providing programs that guide, support and empower individuals to achieve self-sufficiency with dignity and hope.
To purchase an advance ticket ($10) or to make a donation to IAPF, visit Eventbrite. Tickets will also be available at the door. For more information, contact Devankar Mukhi at devankarmukhi@gmail.com.