LAAFF lives on in Asheville

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Here’s the press release. Folks will recall that the Lexington Avenue Arts & Fun Festival had some financial difficulties last year. We’ll see how they do this year:

The newly dubbed LAAFF Asheville Street Festival (yes, the same acronym minus the full-on spelling out of the name) is scheduled to return in all of it’s magnificent fur-trimmed, sparkle hooped glory this year. This creative explosion of local artists, musicians and performers intermingling in a celebration of Asheville’s entrepreneurial, creative and fun-loving spirit has grown over the last eleven years since it’s inception in 2001. What started as a small street fest to showcase, celebrate and support Lexington Avenue businesses, has now outgrown its britches and revisited the original manifesto to rework the mission and goals of the fest while maintaining the steady focus on uplifting and supporting local business and artisans.

“I’m very much looking forward to presenting Asheville’s only all local & original street festival this Labor Day! This year will have some exciting new changes as well as all of the fan favorite LAAFF activities that have made it such an integral part of our artistic community,” Festival Director Arieh Samson lovingly gushed.

Last year’s festival made a few changes in expanding its footprint to include parts of Rankin Avenue as well as adding an evening pub crawl prior to the historical one day event in an effort to make the event profitable for all involved. Unfortunately, as former organizer of the event stated on Facebook at the end of the last event, “those risks did not pay off”. However, with a renewed vision, invigorated paint-splattered jazz hands and creative, locally caffeinated minds on the team along with several members of the old cast & crew, LAAFF is re-birthed this year with a centralized focus to create a participatory, innovative, art-focused, street festival that builds the local community through fostering:

* A reconceptualization of art as inherent to humanity’s ultimate evolution and wellness

* Connection amongst community members

* Creativity and joyous experiences

* The transformation of social and economic ideologies towards equality

* Interactive, enjoyable education

* Promotion of personal, social, and environmental health and well-being

This year’s festival will take place during its traditional time slot Sunday, September 1st Labor Day Weekend on Lexington Avenue.

The new LAAFF website is currently in creation. For more information on the festival activities, please contact laaff2.0@gmail.com.

More LAAFF background here and here.