Artpark - Strawberry Moon Festival

(Lewiston, NY) – As part of Artpark’s 50th Anniversary Season, we are honored to celebrate the   cultural heritage, storytelling, and the interconnectedness of all beings at The Strawberry Moon Festival on Saturday, June 29, 2024 from 2PM-8PM throughout our Lower Park.

Kicking off the festival at 2:00pm with a wide variety of free interactive programs located in Artpark’s lower park (South 4th St. entrance), including the Emerald Grove Stage and Artpark's Native American Peace Garden. These programs celebrate diverse and expressive Indigenous cultures through the arts with over 30 vendors.  Engage in a day filled with food sampling, story-telling, Interactive Lacrosse workshops with Gary and Avery Parker, music presentations, concerts, an Indigenous Discovery Zone, wampum belt teachings with Richard Hammell, workshops, Earth/Sun/Strawberry Moon connection  with Dr. Warren S. Marcus from NASA plus wonderful displays throughout the lower park. 

The ever popular and mesmerizing Smoke Dance competition has been expanded this year to include the Tiny Tots along with the youth 13-17 division and adults divisions. Visitors can also discover unique gifts from over 30 Indigenous artisans and food vendors. Admission to this festival is free.

Featured music performances throughout the day by Leah Shenandoah,  Robert “Freightrain” Parker, Tonemah, and Genevieve Gros-Louis

Amidst the beauty of nature and the richness of cultural expression, the evening will close with a special performance of Gifted by Creator: A Musical Journey of Interconnectedness and Responsibility"  to ignite the rich tapestry of creation narratives, honoring all our relations that bind us all. 

Seneca Resorts and Casinos, The Consulate General of Canada in New York and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Department of Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center are supporting sponsors of this year's Strawberry Moon Festival. 

Click here for Performer press images

More on Geneviève Gros-Louis 

A celebrated film composer, violinist, and producer hailing from the Huron-Wendat Nation. Fearlessly tackling topics like mental health, women's issues, and the challenges confronting Indigenous communities, her art resonates globally. With her captivating original compositions, Gros-Louis weaves narratives through interdisciplinary arts, showcased in esteemed museums worldwide. Notable recent appearances include performances at the Cannes Film Festival, Paris Fashion Week, and Sante Fe Indian Market. Her latest film score can be experienced in National Geographic's "Life Below Zero: First Alaskans," now available for streaming on Disney+, Hulu, and NatGeoTV. 

More on Leah Shenandoah 

M.F.A, B.S., a Wolf Clan Member of the Onyo’ta:aká: – Oneida Nation of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy. She is an indigenous scholar, artist, activist and musician currently enrolled as an Apparel Design Ph.D. Candidate at Cornell University. Shenandoah combines indigenous methodologies, material culture and activism to create a space of protection, comfort and healing through her work.. Her original compositions have received national and regional recognition. Shenandoah’s debut album, Spectra with producer JJ Boogie from Arrested Development, received a Native American Music Award for “Best Debut Album” and “Best Alternative Album '' from the Syracuse Area Music Awards. 

More on Robert “Freightrain” Parker 

Buffalo, NY Funk, Soul, Blues, and Roots American songwriter and recording artist Robert “Freightrain” Parker is a multiple award-winning Hall of Fame inductee, whose Indigenous Heritage (Seneca) infuses sensibility and intense passion in the messages he delivers, through his masterful musical landscapes. A sound that is a unique and recognizable blend of soul, funk, blues and roots. Parkers signature sound is captivating and undeniably infectious. Robert “Freightrain” Parker is recognized as one of the absolute best bassists in western New York state, and was awarded the coveted best blues album award in neighboring country Canada in 2018. Parker is an internationally recognized performer who was inducted into the Buffalo, New York Music Hall of Fame in 2015, being the first Indigenous inductee since the inception of the hall in 1983. The super-tight“Freightrain” band features accomplished musicians’ who contribute to one of the most talented musical collectives in the northern USA. 

More on Tonemah

Award-winning musician, Tonemah, is Kiowa, Comanche and Tuscarora, he has recorded 10 award winning CDs, of which include  his well known hits single “Pow Wow Snag” and “Rezzylicious”.   His songs are filled with thought provoking metaphors, and are sharp with emotion and humor that makes his music easy to relate to. He has won and been nominated  numerous times for “Best Folk Recording,” and “Best Male Artist”, “Songwriter of the year”, “Artist of the Year”, “Best Rock Album”  by the Native American Music Awards, Indian Summer Music Awards and First Americans in the Arts,  and for “Best International Artist” by the Aboriginal Peoples Choice Awards. He has also appeared in theater, several films and television shows including “Nashville”,  “Sliver of a full moon”, and “The Cherokee Word for Water.” And wrote a book called “Spray your swamp cooler”.

More on Gifted by Creator  

Gifted by Creator: A Musical Journey of Interconnectedness and Responsibility" ignites the soul with its captivating musical performance, curated by Artpark’s Indigenous producer Michele-Elise Burnett will propel audiences on an immersive experience through Indigenous ways of knowing. Rooted in the harmony and balance of Creator's original instructions, we honor the profound teachings passed down from our ancestors. With reverence, we embrace our sacred responsibility to share our gifts for the enduring well-being of the next seven generations.

Celebrated composer Geneviève Gros-Louis, renowned for her transformative scores across film, television, and theater, graces the stage to share her new compositions live. Accompanied by traditional singers, dancers, and a visual scape of our ancestors juxtaposed with the modern day, the fusion of contemporary and traditional genres unfolds into a breathtaking tapestry of sound and theatrics. Each note, each movement, resonates with the power to stir hearts and minds, embarking participants in a profound and deeply impactful journey of interconnectedness and responsibility.

Also featuring a collaboration of Haudenosaunee Singers & Dancers, Tonemah, Leah Shanendoah, Jordan Smith, Arrianna Smith, Violet Printup Richard and Artwork by: Kyle Joedicke, (Cayuga Nation, Turtle Clan)

Artpark has made a commitment to Indigenous Arts programming and awareness with a full season of Indigenous programs built for and by our local Indigenous community. Our programming, conceived and curated by Michele-Elise Burnett (Métis/Algonquin, Bear Clan and Artpark Indigenous Arts Producer) serves residents from the Indigenous community in Lewiston, Youngstown, and beyond as well as non-Native persons who are interested in learning more about the culture and traditions.

Please visit artpark.net for more information. 

Additional 2024 events at Artpark currently on sale include: DISPATCH (June 28); Orville Peck (July 1); Norah Jones (July 6); Puccini’s Greatest: A Gala Opera Concert (July 14); Jamey Johnson (July 16); Train (July 19); The Flaming Lips (July 22); Pat Benatar & Neil Giraldo (July 24); Two Door Cinema Club (July 29); SLASH S.E.R.P.E.N.T. Festival (July 30); The Machine Performs Pink Floyd w/BPO (August 3);  Backroads Blues Festival (August 10); Gin Blossoms + Toad the Wet Sprocket (August 11); STRAY CATS (August 13); Blues Traveler + Big Head Todd and the Monsters (August 16); Bush (August 17); Tedeschi Trucks Band (August 20); O.A.R. (August 27);  Cole Swindell (August 29) & Cage The Elephant + Young The Giant (September 7)

Please visit artpark.net for additional events and information.

The 2024 Artpark Season is sponsored and supported in part by: 

M & T Bank; Cullen Foundation; New York State Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation; Parks & Trails New York; Town of Lewison; Niagara County Legislature; New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, HSBC Bank;  Labatt Blue Light; Bud Light; Southern Tier Brewing; Buffalocal and Northtown Automotive Companies.