Updated: April 22, 2022 at 10:17 a.m.
As classes come to an end, venture out into the city to appreciate local gardens, celebrate Earth Day and support local businesses and artists before leaving for summer break.
Take a breath of fresh air at community garden fest Friday, muse at an Earth Day-inspired arts festival Saturday and support international and local filmmakers at Filmfest D.C. Sunday.
Friday
Garden Fest
Get outside and smell the scent of fresh herbs and seasonal flowers at Garden Fest to celebrate the reopening of the Peace Gardens, which first opened to the public this October and will remain open through the summer. The space was founded to prevent gun violence in D.C., where locals could engage in recreation and community services. The gardens are split into three locations located just blocks away from each other in Southwest D.C. Participants are welcome to add new plants of their own to each of the sites at Garden Fest, which will feature food, live music, outdoor games and mural painting to usher in a new season of flora. Enjoy the spring weather and activate your green thumb at this garden festival.
Family Enhancement Center. 203 N St. SW.
Southwest Business Improvement District. 420 4th St. SW. 4 to 6 p.m. Free. Find more information here.
Saturday
Earth Day on the Arts Walk
If you’re looking to celebrate Earth Day and spend some more time outdoors, take a walk through D.C. while learning about sustainable practices and do-it-yourself crafts at this environmentally friendly arts event. The celebration is hosted by Brookland Arts Walk – a promenade of 27 different art studios near Catholic University – which will showcase local creatives and businesses that employ practices like upcycling, recycling, mending, thrifting and small batch and zero-waste production. Vendors will sell items like vintage and repurposed goods, vegan soaps, handmade pottery and art featuring local neighborhoods. If you’re looking to do some shopping for eco-friendly alternatives to fast fashion and mass produced goods, be sure to take a stroll through this Earth Day art walk.
Brookland Arts Walk. 716 Monroe St. NE. Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Find more information here.
Sunday
Filmfest D.C.
Watch a new film at the Embassy of France or at any of four other theaters throughout the city or stream from the comfort of your own home as Filmfest D.C . gets underway. The festival, one of the longest-running cultural events in the city, will feature 65 films from 35 countries, including movie premieres, comedies, dramas, social justice documentaries and new films by Washington filmmakers. If you can’t join in the Filmfest activities this weekend, the festival lasts for 11 days until May 1. This Sunday, take your pick between 12 movie offerings held at The Wharf and Landmark’s E Street Cinema. Check out “Happening,” a French movie about abortion rights, “Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush,” a Germany movie about the War on Terror, and “The Right to Happiness,” an Italian film about a used bookstore.
Landmark’s E Street Cinema. 555 11th St. NW. The Wharf. 960 Wharf Street, SW. Showtimes from 2 to 7:30 p.m. General admission tickets are $13, and a 10-ticket Director’s Pass is $100. Ticket information can be found here, and information about showings can be found here.
This post has been updated to correct the following:
The Hatchet incorrectly reported that Darius Baxter founded the Peace Gardens. The gardens were founded in a partnership between Southwest Business Improvement District and GOODProjects – a Southwest D.C.-based nonprofit combatting poverty. The Hatchet also reported that Garden Fest will take place at SWBID’s address on 4th Street SW. The Peace Gardens are advertising the event’s location to be at the Family Enhancement Center on N Street SW. We regret these errors.
