05 Sep Artzilla on 8th Street!
This year, the Artzillards are on 8th Street. Join us in celebrating 10 local artists live creating during Augusta’s biggest Arts and Culture Celebration of the Year. Find Jon Pascal, A. C. Daniel, Carrie Brooks, Christina Miller, Blaine Prescott, Alex Foltz, Jackie Mayo Van Dyke, Francie Klopotic, Boper9, and Leonard Porkchop Zimmerman near the Truist Bank Parking Garage at 8th and Reynold’s Street. We are thrilled to have these amazing local creatives activate our festival in such a unique way.
Artzilla is a collective of artists local to Augusta, GA that dabble in various forms of visual creation, with several traditional painters, graphic artists, illustrators, mixed media artists, and more. What began as a small live painting group that gathered during the Arts in the Heart of Augusta Festival has blossomed into a monthly meet up to create amazing work publicly.
Beginning in 2006, Artzilla (initially known as ART45) was created to give local artists the opportunity to live paint together around Augusta, GA during Arts in the Heart of Augusta. Over the last 18 years, artists involved have included Blaine Prescott, Jacki Mayo Van Dyke, Alex Foltz, Katie Scarborough, Ashton Maya, Jacob Boland, Deb Estep, Heather René Dunaway, Lexi Kay White, AC Daniel, Tiphiknee De Herrera, and many more. In the past, Artzilla has been sponsored by local businesses such as The Book Tavern, Metro Spirit, and Weir/Stewart where they would gather to paint. Eventually, they moved onto the festival map, and in 2023 back to the center of the festival by the Global Stage. During the three days of Arts in the Heart they create in front of an audience of more than 100,000 festival goers. After which they host a reception and invite arts lovers to bid on their works in the Artzilla Auction.
After the close of the festival in 2023, Artzilla decided to meet up monthly and paint live in various locations and businesses, including ANBU Art Collective and most recently Fifth and Finch. Brushstroke by brushstroke, the live painters push themselves to be vulnerable through the messy process. This gives the onlookers an opportunity to get a “peak behind the curtain,” and witness the entire creation process from blank canvas, to finished a masterpiece.
Stop by the Artzilla booth and watch these masters create their masterpieces all weekend long.
