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The EVOLUTION Magazine Partners to Promote Local Artists
Art Garden KC and Troost Market Collective ( AGKC / TMC ) launched Kansas City ’ s largest grassroots artist-centered collaboration powered by over 1,500 local creatives , volunteers , and community builders this year . Together they focus on curating free festivals , community-centered programming , and inclusive local markets with a mission rooted in upward mobility for under-represented small businesses .
The EVOLUTION Magazine is proud to partner with AGKC / TMC to support its mission , featuring works by local AGKC artists on its monthly front cover . “ We ’ re excited to collaborate with Art Garden KC artists and feature the natural intersection of creativity in our industry . These local artists will bring visually unique works of art to our monthly covers , and we ’ re eager to be a platform for local talent ,” said Clayton Stallings , director of marketing for The EVOLUTION Magazine . “ Once an artist ’ s artwork is submitted and selected for an upcoming issue cover , their vision of the art featured and examples of the artist ’ s works will be included on a page within that issue .”
Art Garden KC in collaboration with Troost Market Collective , a 501 ( c )( 3 ) Non-Profit arts initiative , has worked together to develop community programming from Troostapalooza , the Big Balloon Build KC , city-wide maker markets , and the KC Art on the Block — BLM Murals . Together they function as an entrepreneurial “ test kitchen ,” providing over 1,400 diverse artists , makers , and innovators with low-risk access to large retail markets and educational opportunities . Over 80 % of the artists are from minority and low-income zip codes within Kansas City ’ s urban core .
During 2023 , Art Garden KC will host over 76 affordable and accessible pop-up markets and festivals in premiere Kansas City locations , bringing locally made goods and art to the masses — building our local creative small business economy .
Its festivals held at Berkley Riverfront Park are quickly becoming Kansas City ’ s most anticipated weekly festival , drawing thousands of patrons each Sunday ! The festival is free to the public and runs every Sunday from April to October from 11 a . m . – 4 p . m . These weekly markets feature food trucks , live art , yoga-in-the-park , yard games , live music performances , and a large market of over 70 unique local vendors with a diverse range of locally handmade products from paintings to ceramics , custom clothing , décor , jewelry — and more art !
To learn more about future Art Garden KC festivals and events , visit www . artgardenkc . org or follow them on social at @ ArtGardenKC . For vendor information , email hello @ artgardenkc . org .
Art Garden KC member artists interested in submitting potential cover art for The EVOLUTION Magazine should contact Clayton Stallings at clay . s @ theevolutionmag . com for more details regarding
22 May 2023 participation , creative design ideas , concept sketches , final art submission guidelines , and deadlines .
You can also learn more about Troost Market Collective ’ s mission to create equitable economic opportunities for local creative entrepreneurs by visiting www . troostmarketcollective . org . If you ’ d like to become a sponsor for the 2023 year of programming , please mention The EVOLUTION Magazine for exclusive discounts and opportunities .
About the Cover & Artist
Cheyenne Banda
This month ’ s cover artist Cheyenne Banda describes her vision and inspiration for the art . Here ’ s what she had to say :
For this month ’ s cover design , I wanted to represent how one can open the mind about cannabis . May is mental health awareness month , and I wanted to keep that in mind with what I decided to do . This design idea is close to my heart as an artist for that reason , and I wanted to find a way to make it work for the cover .
I went back and forth between making realistic eyes or making them cartoonish . The realistic eyes came off creepy , which I didn ’ t like . I settled on the cartoonish ones because I think they give it a more playful fun vibe , which is what I was going for .
For the background , I was messing around with the idea of adding storm clouds toward the bottom of the page to add to the idea of how cannabis helps with mental health , but I wasn ’ t sure if that would be too much composition-wise . With this final design you can see how the smoke from the joint is melting into the clouds , implying that the scenery is coming from the joint , symbolizing how cannabis can help with calmness and give a peaceful outlook .
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