Kicking off the summer event season in downtown Lawrence, a street party will display art on wheels, followed by a parade the next day.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Art Tougeau. Participants transform skateboards, bikes, scooters, cars and more into artistic pieces.
The first Art Tougeau parade was held “as a way to celebrate creativity and ingenuity, with some good, clean fun on wheels,” according to the website. It has since remained a summer staple for the Lawrence community.
• Street party: The evening before the art car parade, there will be a street party and art car show-off welcome to all ages. Last year was the first year Art Tougeau featured the street party element.
“Nothin’ like some great music and wheeled fun to get you revved up for the parade,” the website says.
Latin band Son Venezuela will perform live. More activities include a U-Haul art installation, live printing, a merch table, and license plate frames and bike plates for sale. Local artists, including Lawrence high school students part of Hang12, will be present.
The street party is scheduled for 4 to 10 p.m. Friday, May 24 at 10th and Massachusetts streets, next to Replay Lounge at 946 Massachusetts St. It’s free to attend.
All guests under age 21 must be accompanied by an adult inside of Replay Lounge, and it will turn strictly 21+ after 9 p.m., according to the bar’s website.
The Olathe Leadership Lowrider Bike Club students will bring their lowrider bikes and the St. Louis Banana Bike Brigade will return, in addition to nationally recognized car artists, the website says.
• Parade: Those participating in the parade will line up at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, May 25 in front of the Lawrence Arts Center, 940 New Hampshire St.
The parade is then set to begin at noon Saturday, and folks are encouraged to observe along the sidewalks. It will start at 11th and Massachusetts and go north to Seventh and Massachusetts, then turn and continue back to the Arts Center. An awards ceremony will follow shortly after the parade concludes.
Anyone interested in participating with their mobile art in the parade can pre-register online via a Google form. People can still register to participate on the day of the event as folks start to line up in front of the Arts Center, according to the event page.
Those interested in volunteering to help with traffic control for the parade and counting the number of attendees present are also asked to meet in front of the arts center.
Visit arttougeau.org to learn more about the event’s contributors and for more general information. Follow the Instagram account, @art_tougeau, and the Facebook page for more previews.
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Maya Hodison (she/her), equity reporter, can be reached at mhodison (at) lawrencekstimes (dot) com. Read more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.
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