Art Crawl & Street Stories Bring Local Artists to the Forefront
On Sunday, Nov 8, Swan Brewing and the streets surrounding Lake Wire will once again become a gathering place for artists, performers, makers, and art lovers during this year’s Art Crawl. This year’s event will add something new to the experience: Street Stories, a community mural project created in partnership with Art Crawl. The partnership feels like a natural fit for two events with a shared goal: both are interested in what is happening here in Central Florida and in giving local artists opportunities to build an audience, make connections, and have their work seen outside traditional gallery spaces.
Art Crawl began in 2013 with support from the Polk Museum of Art (now The Ashley Gibson Barnett Museum of Art). From the start, Art Crawl has created space for emerging artists, performers, art organizations, and grassroots movements that might not fit the traditional art festival model. In 2017, Art Crawl became its own nonprofit organization and is now run by a volunteer board of professional art educators, artists, and arts advocates.
That mission remains at the heart of the event. “Art Crawl is really a home for local artists who are in between,” says Ellen Chastain, founder and director of Art Crawl. The event gives artists a place to show work beyond school or internship level that doesn’t quite fit in a traditional gallery space or fine arts event. The event has grown immensely since its first year, when Art Crawl was held in the Polk Museum of Art parking lot. Today, it takes over the area around Swan Brewing and Lake Wire, creating a much larger environment where artists and visitors can interact directly.
This year, Chastain says Art Crawl received approximately 70 to 100 applications, including artists who have participated in previous years and are returning to the event. Contemporary art remains a major focus, with an emphasis on artists bringing new ideas and fresh voices to the local scene.
Visitors can expect live painting, interactive art, art battles, performance art, dance, poetry, food and beer, along with plenty of opportunities to talk with the people creating the work. Guests have the chance to meet artists, learn about their work, and become part of the creative process. A heart for HERO’s Inc. will bring a “horse artist.” Watch a very special horse create art.
The event will also feature an art battle hosted by local Lakeland gallery Notta Gallery called “Notta Swan.” Ten artists will compete while the public votes for their favorites, with awards and cash prizes going to the winners.
Local students and performers will also be part of the event. Harrison School for the Arts will participate with spoken word, while FrediDANCE Project will bring a performance to the festivities. That mix of disciplines has always been part of Art Crawl’s identity. The event’s original motto was “Art, music, and food,” and its history includes helping provide a home for other local creative projects. The Lakeland Punk Rock Flea Market, for example, was born at Swan Brewing through Art Crawl. Swan Brewing has continued to serve as an important partner and home for the event.
This year, Art Crawl is expanding that spirit with Street Stories.
Created by Sabrina Sanchez and Jon Sierra, Street Stories is a community mural and cultural experience that highlights the people, stories, and creativity already present in Lakeland. Sierra has been connected to Art Crawl since 2016 and says the project grew out of his desire to give back to the community in his own way.
Around 30 artists applied to participate in Street Stories, with six ultimately selected. The artists have been working on their murals at the Depot Arts District, run by the Lakeland Art Association. The pieces will arrive at Swan Brewing approximately 90 percent complete, allowing visitors to watch the artists finish their work live during Art Crawl.
At the end of the event, the murals will be auctioned.
The six muralists represent a mix of established and newer voices from around Florida. Lakeland artists Fonz, David Cedeno, Travis Doodles, Sharard X, and Mae Carroll will be joined by St. Pete Beach artist Merritt Horan Capurro.
Their backgrounds and approaches are varied, which is part of what makes Street Stories especially connected to the larger mission of Art Crawl.
Fonz has worked as a creative professional for 20 years. In contrast, Capurro, a native Floridian and UCF graduate, spent eight years in New York City as a textile artist before returning to Florida. She has since created approximately 26 murals around the St. Petersburg area, developing a style rooted in contemporary realism and still life.
Several of the participating artists have deep ties to Lakeland and use their work to reflect the community around them. Sharard X creates large-scale public artwork focused on community, history, education, and culture. Mae Carroll grew up in Lakeland, studied visual art and graphic design locally, and now works as a creative director, graphic designer, and muralist while supporting local businesses and organizations through her work.
Travis Doodles uses art and storytelling in his work with Worth and Purpose, a nonprofit focused on serving people experiencing homelessness. For Street Stories, he is sharing his mural with Reggie, another artist whose story reflects resilience and creativity.
David Cedeno, born and raised in Miami, uses art to process his experiences and connect with viewers through personal expression.
Together, the artists show what both Art Crawl and Street Stories aim to accomplish. The events are not simply bringing outside talent into Lakeland for a weekend. They are creating opportunities for artists already part of Florida’s creative community to connect with audiences, build relationships, and find new paths forward. This local focus matters in a place like Lakeland, where the arts community continues to grow through independent artists, small businesses, galleries, schools, nonprofits, and grassroots projects.
On November 8, those communities will come together around Swan Brewing. For visitors, Art Crawl and Street Stories offer an afternoon and evening of art, music, performance, food, and drinks. For the artists, the event is more personal: a chance to be seen, meet other creatives, connect with potential supporters, and share their work with the community around them.
At its core, that is what Art Crawl has been doing since 2013. This year, with Street Stories joining the celebration, that mission gets a little bigger while remaining firmly rooted in the same place: Lakeland and the artists who call Florida home.
ART CRAWL & STREET STORIES
November 8, 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Swan Brewing
115 Pine St, Lakeland
IG @artcrawlfl
