West Arts Fest Exclusive Interview with Josh Perry

West Arts Fest is just around the corner! Join us for our annual summer art walk here in Central City on July 18th 2024 from 4 pm - 7pm! This year we are focusing this event on the Artistry of Glass as Blenko Glass Company will be sponsoring the event and bringing the Blenko Mobile Hot Unit. What better place for all kinds of artists, glass blowers, and glass enthusiasts to come together than the Central City Antiques District? Of these many artists, Joshua Perry, a ceramics artist and army veteran from Huntington, WV. Read on to learn more about Josh and what public art events mean to him as an artist and small business owner!

Joshua Perry, an artist and army veteran from Huntington, West Virginia, began his art career in 2021 when he studied graphic design and ceramics at Marshall University’s School of Fine Art and Design. Beyond the studio, Josh dedicates his time to collaborating with various veteran outreach programs. His mission is to share the healing power of art with fellow veterans who, like Josh, bear visible and invisible wounds.

For Josh, he says art is about community and healing. “I’m lucky to have art as a coping method as I struggle with the same physical and mental issues as so many leaving military service do.” Josh said events such as West Arts Fest not only allow him the opportunity to showcase his own work but also “starts conversations.” He added, “My hope is always just to start a conversation and introduce fine art to those who may not have been exposed otherwise. Coming from a military background art tends to be the furthest thought. It’s an opportunity to help others like me see that there are so many ways to create and express what’s in the mind, to say whatever it is they need to say to the world.”