How we can get our hands dirty at Saturday’s Artspire in La Crosse with Allison Krzych

Pump House Executive director Allison Krzych in studio to talk about how everyone can get their hands dirty and their dance on at the 12th annual Artspire festival happening Saturday in La Crosse’s Riverside Park.

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Artspire is free and happens from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. If the weather doesn’t cooperate, the 70-plus artists, the bands, the Mexican Folk Art Collective and everything else will move into the La Crosse Center.

The highlight of the festival, Krzych helps describe, is everything surrounding the Mexican Folk Art Collective, which includes Ometochtli folk dancers and letting attendees create Alebrije.

People will be able to make — for free — these magical, mythical elemental creatures out of clay or wire. And that’s just one of many free exhibits where adults and children can get involved making art.

Along with previewing Artspire, we also asked Krzych how the event got started — which was an interesting story involving grant funding — and how it has evolved.