We have so much in store for you at 50Fest: a mini film festival, poster exhibition, portrait studio, and more!
Here is a sneak preview of what you will experience at 50Fest on October 7, 12:00 – 5:00 PM at WaterFire Arts Center in Providence.
FREE and open to the public!
Saturday, October 7, 2023 @ 12:00 – 5:00 PM
WaterFire Arts Center
475 Valley Street
Providence, RI 02909
Poster Exhibition
Over our 50-year history, event posters created by RI Humanities grantees have called you to listen to a lecture, come to an exhibition, see a performance, watch a film, participate in a community activity, and experience the public humanities. They have invited you to open your mind.
We have pulled 69 posters from our vast archive that cover a range of topics central to the Ocean State, including our relationships to land and sea, immigration and industrialization, identity, race, and cultural heritage and preservation.
On view: 12:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Mini Film Festival
50Fest will screen four films that explore Rhode Island’s civic life. The Emmy Award-winning Buddy (Cherry Arnold, 2005, 86 minutes), about the complex legacy of former Providence Mayor Vincent “Buddy” Cianci, Jr., will open the mini film festival at 12:00 PM. Because it is also the 50th anniversary of hip hop this year, Almost Dope: Hip Hop in Rhode Island (Ana González and Jeff Matteis, 2017, 82 minutes) will close out the day. The film explores how the state’s hip hop artists have been agents of community empowerment for decades.
Film Screenings: 12:00 – 2:00 PM & 3:00 – 5:00 PM
Portrait Studio: Future 50
When planning 50Fest, we didn’t want to only focus on our past 50 years in Rhode Island, but also to look ahead into the next 50. From 3:00 to 5:00 PM only, portrait photographer Jonathan Pitts-Wiley invites you to contemplate your hopes for our collective future. The medium-format photographs he creates will be viewable after the event at rihumanities.org and on our social media. Limited slots available. First come, first served.
Portrait Studio: 3:00 – 5:00 PM
