More than 100 artists and musicians are scheduled to fill Newark Station this weekend for its fourth annual Arts & Music Festival.
In partnership with Midland Theatre, Newark Station will host the free event at 325 W. Main St. in Newark from 5-10 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 4; noon to 10 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5; and noon to 8 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 6.
“We are really looking for ways to make art accessible in the community, and so we wanted to start a tradition where we celebrate local art and music all weekend every year,” said Emily Evans, the Newark Station director of operations.
Started in 2021 by Newark Station co-founder Todd Alexander, the festivals annually to bring the Licking County community together and introduces artists and musicians from the community.
The Yard, which is the outside area in this warehouse redevelopment, serves as that gathering space, Evans said.
“We’re really hoping to make it a valuable experience for everyone involved,” Evans said.
The event will include central Ohio bands, arts and crafts vendors and live painting. Food and drinks will be available at Station venues.
Among the artists scheduled to perform this weekend is Joey Aich, a Columbus hip-hop artist. He has been a consistent performer at the festival, and said this will be his third year performing there.
“Being there feels like home,” said Aich, a 2016 Denison University graduate who made his mark on campus while performing during the first WDUB “Doobie Palooza,” a music event hosted by the campus radio station.
Aich said he was a poet first and seriously started pursuing music during his sophomore year of college.
This year will be the first time he performs with his band, which officially goes by Joey Aich & The Head Band. The full schedule for the event is found on the Newark Station Facebook page.
Newark Station is a former warehouse and industrial site “turned active arts, hospitality, and recreational community,” according to its website. “After years of sitting empty, the site is in the process of a multi-year redevelopment plan.
Its history says the first structure on the property was a wooden, A-framed building occupied by Simpson Soap Company. Simpson chose the location due to the proximity of the Ohio canal, which ran through the site, and was used in the production of soap. In 1910, Simpson Soap Company was replaced by Pharis Tire & Rubber as the canal was replaced with a railroad line.
“In 1943,” the website says, “the U.S. Government commissioned the 120,000-square-foot warehouse that remains on the property in an effort to increase rubber production during the war.”
In 1948, Pharis closed, and the property was acquired by Westinghouse Electric Company, a manufacturer of electric appliances, until it closed in the early 1990s.
“The property was used for the warehousing and shipping industry from that time until the purchase of it in December of 2020,” the Station website says.
Ellen Hansen writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s Journalism program, which is supported by generous donations from readers. Sign up for The Reporting Project newsletter here.