Press

Artville Coming to Wedgewood Houston and Chestnut Hill this fall

Nashville Business Journal
August 01, 2023

Written by Julia Masters

A free public arts festival is set to take over Wedgewood Houston and Chestnut Hill for the first time this fall. 

Artville, founded by Samantha Saturn and Jack Davis, will bring public art installations, many by regional artists, to the neighborhood from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1.

The American Artisan Festival, which usually takes place in Centennial Park in June, is moving to Wedgewood Houston during Artville, bringing 100 artists to the event.

The festival will feature 20 art installations and murals. There will also be food vendors, music and entertainment and after-dark interactive programming. [...]

“When you do a fair, it’s always about space and funding for artists. … I ended up having conversations with real estate developers in Wedgewood Houston, really just ‘What do you guys want to do? Is there an opportunity?’ ” Saturn said. “We went with this idea that if developers could invest in a public art fund and share some of the space that they have there, we might be able to create a real city experience in Wedgewood-Houston … where there seems to be already such a nice arts community.”

Saturn and Davis were able to raise a $150,000 public art fund to be invested into artists grants through partners, sponsors and local patrons, all listed on the Artville website. Founding partners for Artville include the Visitors Corp., May Hosiery Mills, Nashville Warehouse Co., Hines, CoreFund, and Cressett Partners.

Artville is not only meant to provide a way for locals to invest in and connect with Music City’s artisans, but also to draw tourists looking to experience something different in Nashville.