Photo Essay: Living Traditions in the Heart of Salt Lake City

“Diverse” isn’t the word I would use to describe Salt Lake City. It was founded on July 24, 1847, by Brigham Young and Mormon pioneers, eventually contributing to the displacement of the local Ute, Shoshone, Paiute, and Goshute peoples. Since the city is fairly young, there aren’t many historic buildings, nor are there impressive skyscrapers adorning the town. Instead, identical Mormon temples are sprinkled across the valley alongside cookie-cutter suburban homes stretching everywhere you look.

When I first moved here 20 years ago, I was expecting a rich melting pot of cultures blending together. Instead, I landed in a rather gentrified, gridlocked city with neatly trimmed lawns, chain grocery stores, and hardly any pedestrians.

This definitely caused a bit of culture shock. Not necessarily a deal breaker, but not exactly a richly diverse experience either.

In May 1986, a 120-foot traveling art installation called Prairie Ship Liberty made a stop in Salt Lake City in honor of the Statue of Liberty’s centennial celebration. At each city along its journey, communities hosted multicultural festivals celebrating the many stories that shaped America. In many places, that celebration was a one-time occurrence. In Salt Lake City, however, it became an annual tradition in the form of the Living Traditions Festival.

This year marked the 40th anniversary of one of the most vibrant and energetic events in the city. This festival attracts tens of thousands of people every year. With no admission fee, it is far more accessible and appealing to many Salt Lake residents.

On Friday night, I stepped out the door ready to dive deep into the experience. I asked my husband to come along since he had never been before — but mainly so I could try more food, which I had been looking forward to all week.

Despite the fact that the festival had just opened, people were already everywhere — buzzing around happily, chatting, and enjoying the music of Bomba Marilé, Utah’s first and only Afro–Puerto Rican group, performing on the Amphitheater Stage.

In this moment, I realized one of the reasons people are so drawn to Living Traditions in the first place. As adults, we rarely experience novelty the way we did as children, when every step felt like a discovery and the world around us invited endless curiosity. The Living Traditions Festival allows adults to immerse themselves in that feeling again — discovering what other cultures have to offer through new tastes, new smells, music, traditions, textures, and customs, all without ever leaving our hometown.

I poked my head into the tents of local artisans as I meandered through downtown blocks. The first person I met was Anna Bruzha – an artist from Ukraine. She creates motanka dolls — traditional faceless Ukrainian dolls carrying a thousand stories.

Those are the kinds of stories that fill my heart. No documentary or book can substitute for authentic human connection.

Next, I made my way toward the North Stage, where I paused to admire and photograph Ballet Folclórico de Efraín Villalobos – a vibrant Latin American dance fusion performance.

The stage exploded with color, rhythm, movement, and music. Audience members were already swaying their hips, bobbing their heads, and clapping along.

Shortly after the ballet ended, Brazuca Band took the stage, and the show truly began. Led by Brazil native Diego Campos, Brazuca Band is an absolute riot, and especially popular within Utah’s Brazilian community.

At some point, I suddenly remembered that I had lost my husband a while earlier and decided to track him down. It was nearing dinner time, and I was finally ready to try all the food I had come for in the first place. Sure enough, I found him near the food avenue, and we decided to fully immerse ourselves in the street-fair-style culinary experience.

The vibrant Mexican booth offered far more than traditional food. They blasted “Macarena,” offered dance lessons, and invited everyone to join in. Unsurprisingly, their line was the longest, reflecting its ’tell me you’re in Oaxaca without actually being in Oaxaca’ kind of vibe.

Since we were starving, we skipped the seemingly mile-long line and headed instead to the Utah Tibetan Association where we ordered spicy potatoes and mango lassi.

We also tried Basque kroketak –  croquettes filled with béchamel and ham that practically melted in our mouths. Afterward, we hopped over to Greece for a chicken gyro before finishing our culinary journey in Africa with smoked chicken and collard greens.

Even though I still wanted to try more, we were beginning to feel full, and I wanted to make it to the South Stage to catch Otava Ensemble from the Ukrainian Association – the group my new friend Anna had told me about earlier.

Since it was getting late and there was still so much left to see, I shook off the bittersweet feeling and continued toward City Hall, where even more vendors had gathered.

Before heading back to the North Stage for the evening’s headliner, I stopped at a few more tents.

I met Anna – a woman from Utah County who told me she had been bringing her daughter to the festival since she was one year old.

“You can feel the energy,” she told me. “You see so many different outfits, taste so many kinds of food, and enjoy the diversity. We look forward to coming every year.”

I’m sure that sentiment is shared by many festival goers.

The sun set in shades of orange and red behind the Great Salt Lake while silhouettes of Inuit warriors emerged through smoke and backlighting onstage. The drums, chants, and dancing silenced the entire crowd. It was such a magical moment — witnessing Inuit culture right there in the heart of Salt Lake City.

I could have listened forever.

Feeling completely fulfilled and yet hungry for more at the same time, we finally made our way home. I wanted to stay longer, talk to more people, eat more food, and hear more music, but my heart was full. Maybe the secret to leaving satisfied is not trying to experience everything at once — saving a little for next time. I already can’t wait to go back next year and do it all over again.

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