On November 11-13, San Miguel de Allende will host an exciting new festival encouraging artistic experimentation. Its founders call SPARK “an inclusive, interactive, energizing and participatory three-day event blurring the lines between gallery, play room, carnival and art fair. Our goal is to build community through experiences that are bold, fun, and immersive. The future of art is participatory and celebrates creatives working across disciplines, mediums and genres.” SPARK is produced by Art of the Story, a nonprofit organization that also sponsors an annual children’s art festival called CHISPA.
SPARK: a celebration of artistic experimentation in San Miguel de Allende
“People like to try new things; our role is to make it easy, safe, and fun for that to happen,” explained Tina Bueche, SPARK director. “Rather than formal, sit-down-and-listen-to-the-speaker-style classes, when you walk into our festival, a variety of experiences will be happening at any given time, with artists creating art right in front of you. You get to choose which artists and performers to simply watch—and which experiences to dive into yourself.”
Festivalgoers can try their hand at a variety of artforms, from weaving, drawing, photography, collage and watercolor to chicken-wire sculpture and finger painting, from poetry to improv, with coaching from professional artists and performers. All art supplies are included.
“When you want to take a break from working on a piece,” noted Bueche, “you can safely leave it in our ‘art parking lot’ and go off to observe or participate in something else, and then come back to your project later that day or the next. Feel free to work individually or collaboratively as you create with words, fabric, paint, wire, or movement.”
The festival will feature installations, makers’ tables, live music, a (temporary) tattoo parlor and a graffiti wall, as well as spoken word events, open mic, and a screening area for short films. One intriguing example of the many experiences on offer is a project in which six Spanish-language writers will each perform their own version of the same story from six different perspectives.
At the festival’s pop-up lounge, known as Smokey Joe’s Cafe, two acts will perform each evening.
Perform or Volunteer at SPARK 2025
Bueche continued: “SPARK introduces the unexpected and the familiar in ways which provide festivalgoers with the chance to break through their comfort zones, fan the flames of their creative spark, and gain confidence in embracing new possibilities as well as in expanding existing perceptions.”
Or as poet Judyth Hill put it, “SPARK! What a much-needed, innovative, and vibrant addition to our always-exciting arts scene in San Miguel! Spark lays out a delectable feast, a wise, curated buffet of opportunities to explore many mediums of creative expression. This unique event grants everyone attending an all-access pass to explore, discover — play! As a professional writer, I adore being offered the chance to experiment in other art forms.”
There are a few slots remaining for volunteer facilitators, and Bueche noted that it is even still possible to integrate a few more artists and performers into the program. Interested applicants should contact theteam@theartofthestory.org at their earliest convenience.
Purchase Festival Passes for SPARK 2025
Tickets are available at the following rates: one-day pass US $45 (800 pesos), two-day pass US $80 (1500 pesos), three-day pass US $110 (2000 pesos). The Smokey Joe’s cover charge for the evening performances is included in any daypass; it can also be purchased separately at the door for 200 pesos, cash only. For more information, visit artofthestorysanmiguel.org.
Based in San Miguel de Allende, Ann Marie Jackson is a writer and NGO leader who previously worked for the U.S. Department of State. Her award-winning novel “The Broken Hummingbird,” which is set in San Miguel de Allende, came out in October 2023. Ann Marie can be reached through her website, annmariejacksonauthor.com.
