PERSPECTIVES

Ingenuity Fest provides unusual perspective on Greater Cleveland arts

BY EDUARDO OTERO

The third annual Ingenuity Fest last weekend proved that downtown Cleveland could still be an interesting place to visit, much to the surprise of its more cynical residents.

The three-day festival featured about a dozen up-and-coming artists across scores of programs and presentations celebrating innovative forms of interactive art and technology, combined with the city’s distinctive urban setting, for audiences of all ages and backgrounds.

The festival’s sister event, Screaming Tiki Con, attracted science fiction fans from around the world, along with such international film and television stars as Edward James Olmos, Sam Witwer, Michael Rosenbaum and Ray Park.

Those who attended this year’s gala would likely agree that the city’s situation is not as dire as it has been presented in comedian Mike Polk’s Hastily Made Cleveland Tourism Videos.

That it will take more than one annual festival to ensure the liveliness and continued longevity of Cleveland as a city is certain. Nonetheless, it is events like Ingenuity Fest that can perhaps best serve as examples to remind Clevelanders that they are part of an exuberant and durable community that could surprise a larger, national audience if given the chance.