CINCINNATI — The Cincy Music Festival, one of the largest concert series in the country, is canceled for the second year in a row because of the pandemic.


What You Need To Know

  • The Second Annual Cincy Music Fest Outdoor Museum kicked off on Saturday

  • Over a dozen art pieces were displayed, all of which were created by Black artists

  • Each art piece represented a small Black-owned business in Cincinnati
  • This event was created in an effort to promote local businesses and the arts

But that hasn’t stopped the Cincinnati community from coming together to celebrate music and the arts.

Nytaya Babbitt has been passionate about painting for as long as she can remember.

“I always gravitated towards art ever since I was young, but I paint because it’s a lot more expressive than any other tool that I use,” said Babbitt. 

It’s because it leaves room for error.

“I can mess up a lot, start over with the same canvas without it interfering with anything,” she said. 

Babbitt is one of 15 Black artists whose artwork is featured at the Cincy Music Festival’s Outdoor Museum. It Is not meant to replace the music fest. Rather, it kicked off in tandem with a series of concerts happening in Cincinnati this weekend. 

Babbitt’s painting is of a non-binary person meant to represent Cincy Nice, a community engagement arts collective company in Cincinnati.

“The idea was to personify their logo and to make it into a physical non-binary being so people feel represented,” she said. 

Babbitt has spent close to 36 hours working on this piece. She’s made sure to add plenty of color and texture to the painting, especially the hair.

“I like to give the hair a little bit more oomph and a bit more 3-D texture so people can actually feel like its something that’s jumping off the page,” she said. 

This is the second year of the Cincy Music Festival Outdoor Museum put on by P & G and ArtsWave. Unlike last year, the artists have partnered with Black-owned businesses and organizations to expand their reach.

“That’s why I’m so happy we’re at Washington Park getting all this traction from all these people who might not get to see us,” she said. 

The Cincy Music Festival is expected to return to Cincinnati in July of 2022. And if the outdoor museum continues next year, Babbitt said she’s looking forward to participating.

“They asked me this year and I was excited to hear that so if they ask me next year I’ll take part in it again,” she said. 

You can check out the outdoor museum all month long at Washington Park. For more information, click here to visit artswave.org/outdoormuseum