Multivenue festival lights up REO Town with booze and art

Who said festivals were only for the warmer seasons? The eighth annual Art and Craft Beer Fest — a festival that has art, live music, comedy, short films, beer and more — will go down Saturday in REO Town.

Organizer Paul Starr said the festival allows people the chance to look, buy and even create their own art with hands-on demos. He said the festival is “really about the art” — photographs, paintings, sculptures are all put on display for the craft beer connoisseurs to enjoy while sipping their boutique brews.

The Art and Craft Beer Fest also features a variety of food and drinks from an array of vendors, including Shove It Pizza Truck, On the Roll Food Truck, Sleepwalker Spirits & Ale, Cigar City Brewing, Virtue Cider and the Rusty Mug.

As the years have gone on, the festival has expanded and added several more venues. This year, the festival will have events at the Cadillac Room inside Riverview Church, the Robin Theatre, A.L.T. Printing Co. and REO Town Marketplace. All four locations are located on the same strip in REO Town and are short walking distances from one another.

The festival has also expanded its hours to include activities for children. Some of these activities include slime-making, cartoon drawing and doughnut decorating.

“It’s just morphed over time and changed and I think we’re going in a good direction,” Starr said. “As a parent myself, you have your kids and you want to take them out to something.”

The Art and Craft Beer Fest is “a pretty unique festival in the area” that is interactive, family-friendly and has “something for everyone,” Starr said.

“Even if somebody’s not super into art or anything like that, you can still come out and enjoy some beers and ciders and look at the amazing art sculptures and the awesome art they have,” he said.

Starr joked it’s the best kind of winter festival to attend because you only have to go outside in the cold weather while traveling to the next venue.

“If somebody is looking to try a new festival, it’s the perfect one to give it a shot,” he said.

Art and Craft Beer Fest

Saturday, Feb. 1, noon to 10 p.m.

Ticket options start at $20

The Cadillac Room

1115 S. Washington Ave., Lansing

facebook.com/ArtandCraftBeerFest