The excitement has been building for weeks. Youth artists and professionals have submitted their work, Concerts at the Port are under way and T-shirts and posters are everywhere. Last week, an opening celebration and an Art Dash offered an early peek at fine art shows in the Port Warehouse.
And now it’s finally time for the main event — three days of delightful colors, sounds, tastes and performances that take over downtown during the 47th annual Anacortes Arts Festival this weekend.
The festival seems to grow every year. Expect to see 250 booth artisans, more than 30 musicians at four venues, regional and ethnic foods, fine exhibits at Art at the Port, working artists and youth activities. Except for the Concerts at the Port series, admission is free.
Hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Aug. 1 and 2, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 3.
At the heart of the festival are the booth artisans who fill Commercial Avenue from Fourth to 10th streets. Most artists are local or regional, but some come from as far away as New York, Florida and Arizona. The most popular artists are invited back each year, and the remainder are selected through a juried process based on craftsmanship, originality and marketability, ensuring the widest possible variety and highest quality.
Kids won’t want to miss the Youth Discovery Area, a bright and busy place on Seventh Street, where they can get their hands onto art projects. Activities include puppet making, origami, printmaking, sand play, face painting, paddleboats, movement activities and ethic crafts. This bright and busy area will get the creative juices flowing. This year the children’s moved a block to better accommodate the Interactive Tent and an expanded line-up of interactive entertainment that includes dance, magic, drumming, Scottish fiddle, drama, movement and tango.
Between Fourth and Second streets visitors will find Island Eatery, a great place to take a break and recharge. About two dozen vendors offer a wide variety of ethnic and traditional food choices, as well as educational material on local food production and preparation. Watermark Book Co. will host a Cookbook Gallery 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day with book sales and author signings.
The Beer Garden is at the center of the food court on Third Street, across from the Main Stage. It serves a variety of domestic and Northwest micro-brews, wines and water. It opens to adults only at 11 a.m. all three days, with extended hours — until 9 p.m. — Friday and Saturday. It’s a great spot to grab a beer and listen to outstanding live music.
From Second to First Street, you will find the Working Artists area, where visitors can watch painters, basket weavers and more as they create art on the spot. This year’s artists are native carver and storyteller Ralph Bennett, the Cascade Clay Artists potters, basket weaver Katherine Lewis, muralist Bill Mitchell, Northwest Woodturners Association, Skagit/Whidbey Weavers Guild, traditional weaver and sculptor Mary Snowden, Coast Salish carver Tsul-ton (formerly Bill Bailey), painter Gustavo Vargas Ramirez and Gloria Lamson with a three-dimensional rope project. Nearby, nationally recognized painter Audrey Roll will facilitate the production of a community mural.
At the end of Commercial Avenue is the Port Warehouse, where the NuArt ‘08 juried show is mounted. Also in the building are the Art at the Port Youth Art Show and the John L. Scott Focus Gallery featuring noted sculptor Arnie Garborg.
For a complete rundown of festival activites, see the Anacortes Arts Festival Guide at the bottom of our goskagit.com home page.
