It’s time to go with the flow!  

Ebb & Flow 2017 is going to be extraordinary. The theme this year is Stories of our River.

Here’s what’s in store for Ebb & Flow 2017

• Monthly River Tours led by artists and scientists– these tours will blend river awareness with reenactments of historical events.
• A permanent Public Art Installation at the Tannery Arts Center: reflecting the stories of the Tannery and the San Lorenzo, this installation will be community-designed and built and unveiled at the River Arts Celebration.
• Riverwalk Temporary Art Installations: 11 temporary art installations that tell river stories will be placed at river access points, highlighting the intersections of city and nature throughout June of 2017.
• First Friday will host a river critter scavenger hunt and install flood markers around downtown, showing water levels during major floods.
• Kinetic Art Parade: on June 3rd, 2017, dozens of kinetic sculptures will flow down the Riverwalk, pausing at each access point to unveil the temporary art installations. Would you like to build a sculpture for the Kinetic Art Parade? Would you like to walk along as part of the Parade? Click here for the Guidelines & Entry form and don’t forget our Hold Harmless form.

On Saturday, June 3rd join us for the Kinetic Sculpture Parade and celebration at the Tannery Arts Center!

We want you to have a ton of fun designing your sculpture, and we want to make sure that you have all the info you need to have a great experience the day of the parade. So, before beginning your kinetic sculpture design, give some serious thought to this stuff:

• The parade route isn’t flat and it’s just over a mile and a half long – there are four underpasses. Our guidelines give you the specs for fitting under them, AND we want you to be sure you and your crew can control them going downhill and have the people power you’ll need to push them up hill.
• Not sure what we mean exactly? Get out there and walk the route. Seriously, it’s a gorgeous walk, anyway!
• Save yourself (and us, please) from preventable hassles the day of the event. Please read the Guidelines and then read ‘em again.
• Need inspiration? Check out Kinetic Baltimore’s indispensable HOW TO BUILD A KINETIC SCULPTURE guide, some assembly required!

The parade route is approximately 1.6 miles long. You and your crew should expect to be on your vehicles for at least 30-45 minutes, perhaps longer.

• River Arts Celebration: the Art Parade will end at the Tannery for a celebration where every element reflects the theme. Tables will be paddleboards slashed to sawhorses; tenting will be sails soaring over buildings; water served will come from the river; face painting will feature otters, salmon, merganzers. Aerial dancers will “fly” off the roofs of the lofts; musicians, poets, and actors on multiple stages will perform in honor of our river and the Tannery and tell river stories. The permanent Ebb & Flow art installation will be unveiled.

Be sure to sign up for the Arts Council newsletter for updates about Ebb & Flow.

Thank you to our project partners: the City of Santa Cruz, the Coastal Watershed Council and San Lorenzo River Alliance, City of Santa Cruz Arts Commission, City of Santa Cruz Economic Development Department, Tannery Arts Center, First Friday, the Downtown Association, the Museum of Art and History, Tannery World Dance & Cultural Center, and numerous public agencies. Thanks also to the California Arts Council’s Creative California Communities program.

Volunteer for Ebb & Flow