YUBA CITY, CA (MPG) - The upcoming Yuba City Mural Marathon, Art and Health Festival from April 19 to April 21 will be a six-ring circus of art, music, health, wellness, social awareness and community. It will be the biggest free public art event of the year, according to the Yuba Sutter Arts. 

 Oakland-based West Grand Brass Band perform often. Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Arts

While five professional mural artists are creating murals on the side of the Sutter Theater Center for the Arts at 754 Plumas Boulevard, live music will be performed across the street.

The live music lineup for April 20 kicks off at noon in the parking lot at Church and Plumas streets adjacent to the theater with the West Grand Brass Band from Oakland. They are a high energy group of six talented musicians that combine the brass band tradition with modern musical styles and timbres. Their music takes the form of an ever-changing mix of traditional songs, re-imagined covers and genre-expanding originals. The West Grand Brass Band prides itself in creating a party wherever they perform. 

 Multi-instrumentalist Jim Achilles will perform on Saturday, April 20. Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Arts

The Fenix Drum and Dance Ensemble will also perform, starting at 3:30 p.m. April 20. Fenix is a world music troupe specializing in dance and drumming from West Africa, the Congo and the Caribbean. Their high energy multi-generational, multi-ethnic group highlights the richness and complexity of traditional dance and music of the African diaspora.

 The Fenix Drum and Dance Ensemble will bring dance and drumming inspired by African culture. Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Arts

Americana musician Jake Houshmond will get started at 4:45 p.m. Houshmond grew up playing with his father in a Memphis-style jug band, the South Sac Jukes. He plays a multitude of instruments, including guitar, washboard, jug, harmonica, and wash tub bass. 

 Americana musician Jake Houshmand plays his washboard, one of his many talents. Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Arts

The musical day will wrap up with the Yuba Sutter Big Band Orchestra from 6 to 8 p.m. Led by Becky Stewart, dance music is from the Great American Songbook.

 The finale of the mural marathon will be the Yuba Sutter Big Band Orchestra. Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Arts

Also from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.  April 20, artists and craftspeople will sell their works. To date, the list includes Mary Ann Nation, Miranda Rolfe, Sonja Christenson, Sinklair Art, Starberry Studio, Happy Paintings by Craig, and Roger That Bunny.

The Blue Zones Project will anchor the health information aspect of the festival and be joined by Health & Human Services of Yuba County, Sutter County Public Health, Sutter County Children & Families Commission, Casa de Esperanza, Tri-County Diversity, The Sedona Project, Yuba Sutter Habitat for Humanity, Pathways Prevention and Soluna Mental Health. 

All of this will happen against the magnificent backdrop of the mural artists working on the wall right across the street, according to Yuba Sutter Arts. It will be a sprint to the finish line for the artists and the public is invited to this free event to watch the magic happen as these stunning images unfold.

This civic beautification and education project is being made possible thanks to a major grant received by the Yuba-Sutter Rotary Night Club from the Upstate California Creative Corps. The project is a collaboration with the Yuba Sutter Rotary Night Club, the Blue Zones Project, the Partnership for Health, Equity and Inclusion, and Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture.

 Guests are invited to “Paint a Picket.” Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Arts

The Mural Marathon is part of a larger statewide grant program to illuminate key themes including public health awareness, awareness of environment-related issues, civic engagement, social justice, and community engagement. The murals and adjacent festival address all these objectives.               

The public can also be part of an adjacent Chalk Art Festival. Chalk will be provided for a pilot chalk art project on the surrounding sidewalks. A community mural project will take shape as everyone is invited to “Paint A Picket.” Paints and fence boards will be provided for all to paint a portrait for an upcoming art installation. More information is at yubasutterarts.org.

 The Chalk Art Festival will also take place at this same time. Photo courtesy of Yuba Sutter Arts