Kingston set for summer of international events
Kingston is looking forward to welcoming international visitors from across the globe as a summer of events kicks off across the Jamaican capital and the rest of the island.
For those with a love of fashion, Kingston is the place to be in June and July, as it plays host to two stylish events which will attract a host of international visitors to the city. From 15th – 21st June the Jamaican capital will host the 10th anniversary celebration of Caribbean Fashion Week, the region’s largest and most prestigious fashion event.
Top designers from across the Caribbean will showcase the latest trends and creative styles, vying for the attention of buyers alongside internationally recognised designers from across the globe. The event will take place at the National Indoor Sports Centre in Kingston, and will be attended by the world’s fashion media as well as being beamed to over 300 million people in 200 countries via Fashion TV Paris. While world famous supermodels will grace the catwalks by day, a hectic social schedule of glamorous evening events and after-parties is set to attract a host of celebrities including R&B superstar Johnny Gill. caribbeanfashionweek.com
Just a few weeks later, Style Week Jamaica will pick up where the fashion week left off, bringing together the best of local Jamaican designers with international talent from Paris, London and the US. Hosted by Saint International, the four-day extravaganza will once again attract the world’s fashion media to Kingston to cover this glittering annual event, which attracts in the region of 25,000 fashionistas each year. Style Week Jamaica runs from 8th – 11th July.
Kingston on the Edge Urban Art Festival is a nine day celebration of creativity that has quickly become a much anticipated fixture on the Jamaican art calendar. Kingston on the Edge (KOTE) provides Jamaican artists with a forum outside traditional exhibition spaces, with the aim of encouraging them to express themselves and push the boundaries and definitions of their art. Running from 18th – 26th June, the festival is a great opportunity to discover not only Kingston's vibrant art scene, but also the city itself, as more than twenty-two individual events are held in different localities around Kingston.
From 17th – 20th June, 2010, Jamaica’s finest products will be showcased at annual Expo Jamaica at the National Arena in Kingston, under the theme “Brand Jamaica to the World!” The Jamaica Manufacturers’ Association (JMA) and the Jamaica Exporters’ Association (JEA) have partnered to host this premier trade exposition, which will promote the world class quality products and services that Jamaica has to offer. International buyers from across the globe are expected in Kingston to sample Jamaica’s products first hand and enjoy an authentic Jamaican experience in the capital.
If the World Cup in South Africa all seems a bit stressful, why not enjoy a more relaxed approach to the game and take in the Red Stripe Beach Football Competition from the comfort of your own deckchair on an idyllic Jamaican beach. This annual tournament takes place in July and will be an amazing spectacle of excitement and fun for all. 2010’s competition promises bigger cash prizes, more participating teams and an invitational team featuring the defending champions. The event will include music, local food and drinks, soccer exhibitions by local and foreign teams and other forms of cultural exchanges to keep everyone entertained.
Taking place in Kingston and further afield from Kingston, the Ocho Rios Jazz Festival will have special significance this year, as artists and fans come together to celebrate the life of Cecil ‘Sonny’ Bradshaw on the 20th anniversary of this event. Widely known as ‘the Dean of Jamaican music’ and the ‘musician’s musician’ Bradshaw was one of the last links to the Jamaican big band craze of the 1940s. International Jazz artists from Europe and North America have responded to the call to commemorate Sonny's life work, and will line up alongside the very best Caribbean stars, including Big Band Swing, Straight Ahead Bop, and some stomping Blues. As well as daily concerts in Ocho Rios which will be open the public, the programme also includes nightly Jam sessions in Kingston, a ‘Jazz on the Pier’ concert at the Errol Flynn Marina in Port Antonio and a ‘Jazz on the Cliffs’ event in Negril. The Jazz Festival runs from 12th – 20th June. ochoriosjazz.com
