People Power! Art Tour
& Open House
Reception on Friday, April 5 from 6-9 p.m. at People Power of Santa Cruz County, 703 Pacific Avenue.
Photos will be on display throughout the month, and available for purchase, at the People Power office.
Photo sales benefit People Power!
On Saturday, March 30, 2013, approximately 150 people squeezed into the back patio at the Museum of Art & History for Santa Cruz’s premier Holi celebration. Participants had a wonderful time smearing friends and strangers alike with gulual, vibrant pigmented powders made from natural materials, and briefly dancing to bhangra beats.
Holi, a Hindu festival of colors, is primarily observed in India, Nepal and other locations around the world with large Indic diaspora populations. It is commemorated by throwing pigmented powders on the last full moon day of the lunar month “Phagun” (February/March) at the end of the winter to commemorate spring’s arrival. People of all ages participate, though it is highly anticipated by Indian youth who start celebrating Holi almost a week before the actual festival day.
Text by First Friday Santa Cruz
Photos by Bradley
First Friday Art Tour happens every month, rain or shine throughout Santa Cruz.
Founded by the Santa Cruz Institute of Contemporary Arts, First Friday is an independent event designed to support a strong cultural environment through the promotion of artists. Managed in conjunction with participating art venues, First Friday is a free event for enthusiastic art goers and an opportunity for our many talented artists to exhibit and promote their work.
The eighth annual Last Night DIY Santa Cruz paraded up Pacific Avenue on December 31, 2012 after gathering in the Saturn Cafe parking lot at 5:00 pm. Sticking to the tradition of Keeping Santa Cruz Weird, this year’s parade was led by local bagpipe band Santa Cruz Pipes and Drums, as well as the Women’s International League of Peace and Freedom. Curtis Reliford of the Follow Your Heart Action Network, which brings goods to people in Louisiana who are recovering from Hurricane Katrina, provided music from the top of his trailer parked on Pacific Avenue. Cocoamotion, based out of a roaming red wagon, delivered hot chocolate and marshmallows to parade participants and spectators.
The 2012 Downtown Holiday Parade took place on Saturday, December 1 on Pacific Avenue in Santa Cruz, California. It is not known which year the parade began, however it has been a community tradition for over 70 years. Although the weather was stormy on Friday, and more showers are expected Sunday, the parade did not get rained on.
Chip, a coordinator of the parade and Executive Director of the Downtown Association of Santa Cruz, writes, “For me, the magic of the Holiday Parade goes beyond just the amazing sensory experience that happens at this festive occasion. The very idea that for one day, despite the challenges that we face as a community, despite the disagreements and differences of opinions, beliefs and philosophies, a significant cross-section of the Santa Cruz community comes together and moves in the same direction for the singular reason of celebration.”