Founders Ben and Susan Uchitelle
2004 Jazz Fest"
2010 Big Read"
When you buy from an independent artist you are buying more than just a painting or a novel or a song. You are buying hundreds of hours of experimentation and thousands of failures. You are buying days, weeks, months, years of frustration and moments of pure joy. You are buying nights of worry about paying the rent, having enough money to eat, having enough money to feed the children, the birds, the dog. You aren't just buying a thing, you are buying a piece of heart, part of a soul, a private moment in someone's life. Most importantly, you are buying that artist more time to do something they are truly passionate about; something that makes all of the above worth the fear and the doubt; something that puts the life into the living.
Rebekah Joy Plett
OUR STORY
Cultural Festivals was founded in 1994 by a group of passionate art enthusiasts who wanted to breathe life into the cultural landscape of St. Louis. The organization began under the official name "The Saint Louis Art Fair" and aimed to showcase high-end visual art and stimulating live performances.
The Art Fair Sourcebook has ranked the our Art Fair in the top ten art fairs and festivals to visit. In 2001, due to the popularity of the live musical performances at the Art Fair, the organization decided to create a second event dedicated specifically to jazz musicians. Thus, the Jazz Fest was born, and with it, a new organization name that better encompassed its growing mission to bring a variety of cultural events to the St. Louis community–Cultural Festivals.
In 2006, a third event called "The Big Read" was added to the Cultural Festivals lineup that emphasized reading as an important instructional tool in education, in art, and in life.
In 2008, the Cultural Festivals board of directors decided to focus their efforts on producing festivals and events that were free and open to the public. Therefore, they made the decision to withdraw the Jazz Festival from the Cultural Festivals schedule of events, but continued to pursue the next great cultural event for the Greater St. Louis area.
In 2010, after reviewing the business and strategic plans of the organization, the board made the decision during the tough economic time to work towards the sustainability of the organization by focusing on the production of the Saint Louis Art Fair.