A new countywide arts program backed by $350,000 in tourism funding will put three events on Clearwater's calendar this fall, capped by a Japanese lantern festival at Coachman Park on Dec. 6.
Creative Pinellas published the full lineup for its inaugural Art Everywhere celebration the week of Aug. 6, detailing nearly 30 funded arts experiences spread across Pinellas County from Nov. 1 through Dec. 6. The Clearwater Arts Alliance is one of two outreach and event-support partners for the program, alongside the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance.
The money comes from Visit St. Pete-Clearwater through the county's arts tourism funding program. Creative Pinellas, which managed the grant process, said it received nearly 140 applications before selecting the final slate.
Clearwater's share
Three of the 28 funded experiences land in the Clearwater area:
- Clearwater Illuminations: Lantern Festival & International Night Market — Dec. 6 at Coachman Park, 300 Cleveland St. Organized by Clearwater Sister Cities, the event is inspired by a tradition from Clearwater's sister city of Nagano, Japan. The park's waterfront will feature Japanese lanterns, live music, art-making activities, cultural performances and international vendors.
- Suncoast Jazz Festival — Friday through Friday, Nov. 20–22, at Clearwater Beach, with more than 75 performances across three indoor venues.
- World Music Heritage Festival — Nov. 14 in downtown Clearwater, presented by Opera for Earth.
The Lantern Festival serves as the program's closing event, giving downtown Clearwater and the Cleveland Street District the finale spotlight.
Tourism play
Creative Pinellas built Art Everywhere partly to draw visitors during a slower stretch for fall tourism, according to LocalShops1, spreading programming countywide rather than concentrating it in one city. The program is also the first Creative Pinellas initiative open to for-profit arts organizations, not just individual artists and nonprofits.
Creative Pinellas said in a Facebook post Monday that the selected experiences range from music festivals and exhibitions to theater premieres, public art, dance, film and literary events.
As we reported Aug. 4, the World Music Heritage Festival was already in the works before Art Everywhere funding was announced.
What's next
The full lineup is available at creativepinellas.org. Art Everywhere kicks off Nov. 1 with St. Petersburg Museum Week and runs through the Dec. 6 Lantern Festival at Coachman Park.
