Sparkcon

SPARKcon is a showcase of creativity, talent and ideas of “The Creative Hub of the South,” the Triangle of NC. SPARKcon was founded in 2006 by Beth and Aly Khalifa and Designbox to showcase, celebrate and influence the creative momentum of the Triangle region of North Carolina. SPARKcon uses an open-source organizational approach to empower diverse creative thinkers to be inspiring community leaders. SPARKcon 2010 is now a program of Visual Art Exchange, a Raleigh non-profit whose mission is to support emerging artists and connect the community to the arts. SPARKcon’s “creative potluck” of SPARKs or creative themes such as art, music, film, fashion, etc. is put together by individuals who are deeply embedded in that specific local scene. Using a combination of networking and open calls for participants, organizers create diverse and representative events to show off local talent and connect disparate creative scenes. SPARKcon grows every time a new person gets involved with a SPARK category, creating their own event, or joining in to help an existing one. It’s an open-source, “for the people, by the people” approach with an intentionally dynamic focus. Each year, we have over 50 organizers, hundreds of local talents are showcased, hundreds of volunteers helping behind the scenes and thousands of attendees. All of these people equal SPARKcon.