Animals and nature subjects were much in evidence as organizers of Southern California’s largest arts festival revealed Wednesday the eight featured artists of the 33rd annual ArtWalk.
The 2-day festival, sponsored by Mission Federal for the past nine years, attracts 100,000 people to Little Italy and is scheduled for April 29 and 30.
Neville Billimoria, chief advocacy officer for Mission Federal, said his company believes art and creativity are crucial to a 21st century innovation economy in San Diego.
“The cool thing about artists is that they are critical to our future,” he said. “In this world of coders, artists are the decoders.”
The eight featured artists were recognized at a reception at the Westgate Hotel downtown. They are:
- Moni Blom from San Diego
- Franco Forte from Las Vegas
- Matthew Grabelsky from Los Angeles
- Jason Humphrey from La Mesa
- Mildred Gil Parada from Mesa, AZ
- Iris Scott from New York
- Ivano Stocco from Placentia
- Michael Summers from Oceanside
In addition to the featured artists, three individuals and organizations were recognized with Arte Awards: Scripps Health, Voice of San Diego’s Kinsee Morlan, and artist Jane Wheeler.
