Charlotte Kesl knows how much art therapy can improve a patient’s health.
Kesl, who works as a coordinator for 352Creates, said she’s witnessed the everyday benefits of art humanizing the hospital experience for patients, which is why the organization aims to promote a healthy community through art and creativity.
On Saturday, 352Creates will host an art festival at Depot Park, located at 200 SE Depot Ave., where guests can participate in more than 40 activities from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Visitors can play live musical chairs hosted by the Gainesville Girls Rock Camp, dabble in poetry writing with the Writers Alliance of Gainesville and contribute to a 4-by-8-foot collage sponsored by Artwalk Gainesville.
Kesl said the 352Creates movement began its initiative to bring people together and inspire creativity in everyone.
“You don’t have to have a lot of supplies or money to do that,” she said. “The challenge is making people understand how simple and important it is.”
Kesl said she hopes the annual event will continue to evolve and grow more to counties beyond the 352 area code.
Kimberley Mullins, the president of the Writers Alliance of Gainesville, a nonprofit organization that helps writers develop their craft, said this is the organization’s first time participating in the event and she wants people to take the initiative to start writing.
“Writing is a freedom of expression,” Mullins said. “Everyone has a book or story in them.”
