Mirian Fuentes Romero Selected as Winner of 2021 Wheaton Arts Parade and Festival Poster Contest

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, February 23, 2021

The signature poster for the fifth annual Wheaton Arts Parade and Festival will be based on the design submitted by Mirian Fuentes Romero. The Takoma Park resident and student at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) has been named the winner of the yearly contest that selects new designs for the growing September festival that highlights the Wheaton arts community.

As the winner of poster contest, Romero received a cash prize of $300 and MICA will receive $100 for art supplies. The contest was open to all Montgomery County high school and college students.

Mirian is a junior at MICA, majoring in graphic design with a concentration in film and video. She started out as a painter and enjoyed making drawings for family members. It was at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring where her interest in graphic design was sparked after being introduced to digital art. She plans to pursue an art direction career. Mirian’s parents are from Guatemala and she is a first-generation American.

The contest prize was donated by Los Chorros restaurant in Wheaton. Los Chorros is a founding sponsor of the Wheaton Arts Parade and its owner, Omar Lazo, is a new member of the festival’s board of directors. After being selected, Romero worked with designer Josue Martinez to apply her design to the poster and other festival 2021 promotional materials, including the T-shirt.

The Wheaton Arts Parade and Festival is scheduled to take place on Sunday, Sept. 19, in the Wheaton Triangle and on the new Downtown Wheaton Marian Fryer Plaza.

In 2020, the COVID-19 health crisis prevented the tradition display of the annual parade and festival. Instead, the organization installed 13 painted pyramids around Downtown Wheaton where they could be viewed safely. The festival also transitioned many of its activities into a virtual event.

Plans for the 2021 arts parade and festival are still evolving. The current pace of vaccinations offer hope that by September, the celebration of local artists and cultural diversity can return to the streets of Wheaton.

The Wheaton Arts Parade is a day for residents, artists, businesses and civic organizations to walk together to celebrate art and Wheaton’s diverse community. At the end of the art parade, the community gathers at a festival of performances, art exhibits, and food. The day is inspired by the parade and the closure of roads so that people can pull giant floats and dance, play music and show off their art. The celebration also provides a showcase for the redeveloping downtown area.

Schools and community organizations are encouraged to make floats for the 2021 arts parade and artists of all kind are invited to push, pull, carry, wear or perform their art in the parade. There is no charge to enter.

The organization plans summer workshops to create a new community float. It also is looking for volunteers to be part of the team that produces the event. To learn more about the parade and festival, and see videos of past festivals, see the organization’s website at www.wheatonartsparade.org. If you have questions or want to get involved, you can contact the festival organizers at [email protected].

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Release ID: 21-129
Media Contact: Neil H. Greenberger 240-205-1915
Categories: Recreation