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BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – This month, Noisy Waters Mural Festival will return to Bellingham from Aug. 16 to 18, providing Whatcom County residents a weekend filled with live art activation and community closeness. Last year the event saw 3,000 attendees, and this year they hope to double that.
“Events like this are an incredible opportunity to activate smaller towns and bring a diverse body of public art to them,” says Gretchen Leggit, cofounder of Paper Whale and Noisy Waters Mural Festival (NWMF).
Leggit is a muralist herself and was inspired to start NWMF through mural festivals she has attended around the world. The festival presented itself as the perfect opportunity to bring unique voices and cultural awareness to Bellingham as well as highlight the profound impact of art as a medium for storytelling and community empowerment.
Paper Whale has brought live art activations to both Northwest Tune Up Festival and Downtown Sounds throughout the summer of 2024. These live painting events have showcased the work of local artists such as Free Borsey, Darcie Gray and Max McNett. Leggit believes art is not limited to painting and has used these events to infuse different art forms and create a multi-sensorial experience.
This year, eight finalists will be live painting on 8’ by 8’ walls and have two and a half days to finish their murals. Over the weekend, the general public can purchase tokens and use them to vote for their favorites. The winners will receive large wall commissions throughout Bellingham.
Muralists are flying in from all over the world to attend the festival. Artists from the Netherlands, Nova Scotia, Brooklyn, Charlotte, North Carolina, Oakland, the Navajo tribes, Apache, Tlingit, Nooksack and Lummi will be competing throughout the weekend.
“I think painting murals can be so isolating. These festivals are an opportunity for us to find people who are doing the same thing and expand our community,” Leggit said. “It’s really special making those connections, so I look forward to expanding that horizon.”
The event will encourage attendees to connect through painting, as well as many more art forms. NWMF will include live music from local bands, a yoga class through Bellingham Tree House Yoga, spray paint workshops with Max McNett, a two-hour mural bike tour with Leggit and an up-cycled fashion show organized by Suzzane Lundberg, creator of The Goat’s Coat.
Festivities will commence Friday, Aug. 16, at 9:00 a.m. by the Waypoint Park waterfront and continue into each evening until the award ceremony on Sunday, Aug. 18, at 2:30 p.m. Admission is free, and all ages are encouraged to attend. Individuals looking to participate in a spray paint workshop or bike tour are advised to RSVP in advance through the events section of the Noisy Waters Mural Festival website.