IdeasCityWS Festival and the Marketplace of Ideas this Saturday

A guest post from Wake the Arts and Wake Forest’s Office of University Collaborations.

On Saturday, Oct. 2, the IdeasCityWS Festival comes to Bailey Park as art, tech, design, and culture lead the conversation forward. Featuring interactive exhibits from two dozen local creative organizations, we’ll engage with a range of working ideas poised to move our communities forward as we reimagine a post-pandemic Winston-Salem. Vice Provost for the Arts & Interdisciplinary Initiatives Christina Soriano asks, “Winston-Salem has so many talented artists and scientists doing important work, yet often separated from one another. How can educational institutions be leaders in bringing these communities together more powerfully?”

Here’s where Wake Forest will be participating in the Marketplace of Ideas and panel discussions:

• Donovan Livingston, hip-hop performer and assistant dean in the Office of University Collaborations will be performing and co-moderating a “Music of Winston-Salem” panel.
• Alana James, associate director of Wake Downtown, and University Collaborations Team Member, moderates a panel discussion with art/tech entrepreneurs.
• ByteSize Learning, a startup by WFU senior Andrew Rust with hands-on demos of software that helps teach kids computer skills
• Lam Museum of Anthropology demonstrating how 18th century British explorer Captain Cook and 21st century blockchain technology are connected.
• Christina Soriano will be moderating a discussion on the arts and community. Derek Hicks from Wake Forest’s Center for Research Engagement and Collaboration in African-American Life (RECAAL) will be one of the panelists.
• Wake Forest Center for Entrepreneurship will host an exhibit featuring student entrepreneurs.

“Collaborating with nearly forty Winston-Salem partners as well as our New Museum counterparts over the past year to create IdeasCityWS has given us tremendous pride in our community and optimism for the future,” says Martha Allman, Senior Assistant Provost and Dean of University Collaborations.“This will be a festival like no other in Winston-Salem, bringing together visionaries from our arts community, the entrepreneurial ecosystem, research and tech labs, our partner universities, and featuring outstanding homegrown musical talent.”

We look forward to seeing you on October 2 in Bailey Park! IdeasCityWS is family-friendly, open to the public, and also features an array of food trucks and beverages.

Visit ideascity.events.wfu.edu for a complete list of exhibitors, panels, performers, and a schedule of events. You can read further coverage in this article in the Winston-Salem Journal.

WFU Campus shuttles to Wake Downtown will operate on a regular basis during the Festival. WSSU will offer shuttles for its students from the WSSU campus to Bailey Park.

Although all IdeasCityWS events will be held outdoors, for the safety of exhibitors, performers, and festival goers, we request that masks be worn at all times.

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