CHESTERTOWN — Kent Cultural Alliance will participate in the celebration of America’s 250th anniversary in the week leading up to the Chestertown Tea Party Festival by hosting a float-making workshop and an artist talk with Dennis McNett.
A member of KCA’s first class of visiting artists in 2024, McNett is returning to Chestertown to create and assemble a two-part “float” and engage the community through a free “Tri-Corner Hat” workshop on Wednesday, May 20 from 3 to 6 p.m. The public is invited and should register at https://kentculture.org/ to participate with the float for Saturday’s colonial parade.
McNett’s artist’s talk exploring the impact of community-based ceremonial art pieces will be held on Thursday, May 21 at 5 p.m.
The workshop and artist talk, which are free, will be held in Robert Ortiz Studios at 207 S. Cross St.
Kent County High School students also will have an opportunity to participate in a workshop hosted by McNett before the parade this weekend.
“A multifaceted maker of large-scale wood carvings, print editions, skateboard graphics and beyond, Dennis McNett is also known for his iconic, larger-than-life woodcut print-covered puppets, ships and masks that are used to lead narrative ceremonies and public processions,” a news release states.
One of McNett’s projects is “Jôrö – the Norse Goddess of the Land” for the 2024 SFW Resident Artist Program at Kent Cultural Alliance and the Parade of Clubs for Kent County 4-H at the Kent County Fair that same year.
McNett has a Bachelor of Fine Art from Old Dominion University and a Master of Fine Art from Pratt Institute, where he taught from 2004 to 2013.
For this year’s Chestertown Tea Party Festival, KCA has commissioned a large caricature puppet of King George III and a “loose” replica of a British schooner, resembling one that would have trolled the coast of the Colonies to collect customs duties.
