people &places
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Center of Creativity BY LEAH BERRY | PHOTOGRAPHY BY EDWIN BARNES
Durham Arts Council’s 48th annual CenterFest returned to downtown in September 2023.
The longest-running outdoor juried arts festival in North Carolina saw a record attendance of 34,827 people celebrating our creative community in Durham’s vibrant City Center. This year’s event showcased 89 visual artists (including 23 from Durham) who traveled from cities in towns within North Carolina and nine other states to display their work, as well as entertainment from 67 performers across five stages. Attendees enjoyed fare from a variety of food trucks and vendors set up in CCB Plaza and a beer garden at Bull McCabe’s Irish Pub in addition to refreshing beverages from Durham Coca-Cola Bottling Co. throughout the rest of the festival. The little ones frolicked in a kids zone with creative activities and rides; the event also highlighted the city’s civic functions, with representatives from dozens of nonprofits and state and local government services sharing their messages with passersby. 5
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d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3 / ja n ua ry 2 0 24
1 Takiri Folclor Latino performers at CCB Plaza. 2 Sanha Kim and Sofia Dahlgren. 3 First Place Visual Artist Merit Award Winner Soonja Cook of LazyRiver Gallery. 4 Regina Gale & Friends perform at Duke Arts’ Five Points stage. 5 Artist Saudamini Madra. 6 Scott Weiner with his cat, Keeley. 7 Sandra Losa-Ward with Andjay Ward, 10, Elia Ward, 9, and Aisa Ward, 8.
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