The RAF Wrap

The 13th annual Recycled Arts Festival was one of our best yet! About 40 thousand people visited Esther Short Park over the weekend to purchase and be inspired by art made from at least 75 percent recycled or reclaimed materials from 133 artists! Metal and glass garden art, home décor, jewelry, clothing, and furniture: we had something for everyone!

All of this wouldn't be possible without the help of our amazing volunteers and sponsors! Our art vendors were especially appreciative of the support from the over 125 Festival volunteers who served over 400 hours during the weekend! Throughout the weekend, the community added their own creativity to the Art Car hosted by our presenting sponsor, McCord's Vancouver Toyota, and iHeartRadio. The Art Car is currently on display at the dealership.

The Sculpture Garden

MARACATUpdx led the second annual Procession of the Species on Sunday morning. We had a variety of creatures join in the parade from a plastic bag inchworm to a cardboard beaver, and even a Dodo bird all made from recycled materials! Kids and adults had fun making their costumes and other recycled art at the Children's Art booth with Art ala Carte, and participating in the Procession.

Our main stage hosted a variety of musicians and entertainers, such as local favorites Portland Taiko and White Rhino. Everyone loved seeing the live birds and learning about raptor conservation with The Falconer's team of experts. Long lines surrounded the tiny house by Artisan Tiny Houses. And everyone who tried them fell in love with the chemical-free toilets.

But by far, the most impressive spectacle was the creativity of our artists and the variety of art. We had jewelry made from Starbucks gift cards, wallets made from beer cases, lamps made from instruments and industrial parts, notebooks made from old book covers, upcycled clothing, stained glass, wooden bowls and décor, and anything made of metal parts you can imagine and more! We had ten artists participate in the Sculpture Garden contest. David Gundlach's Sewing Machine Train, Ian Beyer's Vulture, and Tom Jackson's ​You ​Can Bank On It sculptures won the popular vote!

While the festival is about art and recycling, it's also about waste prevention and reduction. The Tossed & Found booth showed a variety of salvageable items that people threw in the trash, including several guitars and instruments which were easily fixed up into playing condition. The Clark County Repair Café provided free garden tool sharpening throughout the weekend and will continue having events where volunteers repair people's items for free

Almost 50% of attendees surveyed reported having a positive change of mind concerning the need to reduce our waste! And many artists recorded some of their best sales at the festival! If that isn't an all-around success, what is?!

A big "thank you" to our 2018 sponsors:

Presenting Sponsor: McCords Vancouver Toyota

Children's Art Sponsor: Biokleen

Main Stage Sponsor: NW Natural

Park Sponsor: City of Vancouver

Procession of the Species Sponsor: Renewal by Andersen

Sculpture Garden Sponsor: Leaf Filter

Tossed & Found Sponsor: Waste Connections, Inc.