Inflatable dogs just 1 of the art installations at this year's Downtown Spark festival
"Lost Dogs Disco" by Sydney-based design studio ENESS in Sir Winston Churchill Square for Downtown Spark 2024. (Galen McDougall/CTV News Edmonton)
Downtown Spark, Edmonton's pre-summer art festival, is back for another year.
The festival will run from May 23 to June 1 and will feature various art installations throughout the core.
This year's festival features large-scale inflatable sculptures from Australia, Tasmania and the U.K., alongside new works by Edmonton-based artist Cheyenne Rain LeGrande.
The largest installation, Lost Dogs Disco, by Sydney-based design studio ENESS is set up in Sir Winston Churchill Square.
"This is the first time one of their pieces has been in North America. So really exciting for Edmonton," said Puneeta McBryan of the Edmonton Downtown Business Association.
It showcases 12 larger-than-life dogs brought to life by interactive lights and a playful soundscape of music.
"It's really something in person, the soundscape that goes with it. And there's lights integrated, so if you come down at night, it's a whole different experience," McBryan said.
The festival is also known for its dog-friendly beer gardens and video dance parties designed to get Edmontonians to explore different parts of downtown.
"There's five different locations. You start at one and pick where you're going to go," McBryan explained.
"A lot of downtown festivals, if not all downtown festivals, tend to happen on Churchill Square. You come to the square, you take in the festival, and then you leave. And the way we do Downtown Spark it's designed to force you to explore downtown."
For a full list of events happening during Downtown Spark, visit the festival's website.
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