“IngenuityFest adds White Mystery to celebration of tech, art, science,” News Herald
Posted Monday, September 25th, 2017 at 4:20 pm
The village features a propane dance floor, where fire spinners will entertain audiences, who can also get involved in numerous crafts. There’s metalworking in the Mechanique Biotique, with scheduled hands-on activities and demonstrations throughout the festival.
Visitors also can help found-object artist Dana Depew build homes for a neighborhood of birds and watch geometric resonance welders work with an array of local sculptors. There’s Closed Loop, a partnership with Rust Belt Riders, that presents a veritable forest of sustainable technologies — eco-friendly composting, aquaponics and waste management.
“This festival at its roots has always been about embracing the local, regional, creative roots and community that we have in Cleveland because it’s so rich,” Weiss said. “So embracing that DIY culture, we’re definitely all about that. It’s really exciting to have that movement gain momentum.”
Musically speaking, IngenuityFest features five stages with an eclectic mix of local, regional and national bands. The Sept. 22 headliner is Chicago-based, sibling rock ’n’ roll duo White Mystery. On Sept. 23, the feature act is psychedelic party folk Calliope Musicals out of Austin, Texas.
While there are plenty of attractions that, figuratively, spawn a life of its own, Weiss is excited about something new that literally adds to Mother Nature’s beauty. The Butterfly Experience’s self-explanatory name lives up to its billing. Weiss said the Louisville, Kentucky-based outfit will be filling out a dome with butterflies where visitors can learn about life cycles and pollinator plants.
“Experience a metamorphosis of our on-site teaching garden — a former scrapyard — where new life is taking root,” Weiss said. “At the end of the Fest, butterflies are released and we’ll plant a bevy of new, native blooms for them to return in the spring.”
One attraction Weiss can’t wait to see again is Nelson Morris’ Thousand Faces Project.
“He’s been here for the past two years making plaster casts of faces,” Weiss said. “There’s also an audio component. We’ll have a whole hallway dedicated to that.”
For those “Game of Thrones” viewers, the notion of a hallway of faces may be a bit freaky. Weiss confirms there will be no “a girl has no name” taking of faces to wreak vengeance on any foes.
“No, you’re just looking at the faces,” she laughed. “It’s really exciting.”
INGENUITYFEST
When: 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. Sept. 22; noon to 1 a.m. Sept. 23; and noon to 5 p.m. Sept. 24.
Where: East 53rd Street and Hamilton Avenue, Cleveland.
Tickets: $5 ($10 for weekend pass) (children 12 and under are free).
Info: ingenuitycleveland.com.
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