Xpand Fest, produced by Xpand Your Vision in partnership with Art Studio World is proud to share additional programming information with our media partners. Xpand Fest has created a blog series with more information on our performers, and educational aspects that will be included on the street June 9th from 12 pm - 10 pm. Additional blogs on food and beverage, family activities and our pledge to sustainability still to come. Each of these blogs is accompanied by a Facebook live video given by one of our staff, each THURSDAY at 1:11 pm preceding the event. On June 9th Coxe Avenue will officially be named Xpand Fest’s ArtRow and will be filled from Zapow Gallery all the way down to Open Hearts Art Center with creative art booths. Ranging from jewelry, fine art, pottery, clothing and some fun interactive activities including Silly Face Ink, who will do on the spot caricature drawings- there is bound to be something for everyone’s taste. There will also be a very limited amount of some special new ladies tank tops and t-shirts for 2018 (with some of the most sustainable clothing companies in Asheville) that we think Asheville’s community will get behind. Our info booth will also sell any performing artist merch they give us to help promote them and their creative merchandise! We love to truly support local and think purchasing ANY LOCAL ART to be found in ArtRow is the way to go for the perfect graduation, birthday or celebration gift! We also have an entire Interactive Arts Arcade and CommUnity Corner. In this section of the festival, you will find a variety of nonprofits, healing arts, and organizations that will educate and stimulate your way of thinking about our community and how to build a more sustainable world. For the full list of Interactive Arts Arcade and CommUnity Corner participants, please check them out here, but we definitely want to highlight a few of the things you might find in this section. There will be opportunities to meet and interact with a variety of electric vehicles and their owners, to learn about our composting and agriculture systems in Asheville, to play Forest Defender Superhero Games with Dogwood Alliance and of course to engage in some good fringy fun from the folks at Asheville Fringe Arts Festival. A variety of local cultural community organizations, as well as healing art modalities, will also be represented including WNC Latinos, Descubre Asheville, Date My City, The Urban News, Word on the Street/LaVoz de los Jóvenes, Hoot Tours, Bountiful Cities healing touch, reiki, massage, acupuncture and more! There will also be a variety of unique roving performances scattered throughout the streets. Included in this line up will be hula hooping by Full Circle Flow Arts, slacklining with Slack Librium, boffing games provided by the Wandering Swordsman, giant puppets by Street Creature Puppets, interactive toys and pop up puppet performances by Toybox Theater, as well as juggling and circus arts performed by Mountain Circus Arts. With everything, Xpand Fest is offering we are sure to please everyone’s interests and look forward to cultivating a day of creative conversation around sustainable development. Also just announced: an official After-After party schedule at Ambrose West from 8-10 p.m., featuring Window Cat and David Earl and the Plowshares, emceed by Ryan R&B Barber