When talking about the upcoming 53rd annual Edmonds Arts Festival, Alyson Harwood has only one word: “Fabulous.”
The volunteers. The view. The artists. And of course, the new wine bar. They will all, Harwood confirms, be fabulous.
Okay, she is the director of marketing for the festival, but she may have a point. The locally loved festival is a summer standard at this point, and was voted “Best Street Fair” in Western Washington by King 5’s Evening Magazine last year.
So the expectations for this year’s event are high— and Harwood is pretty convinced the festival will meet them.
“It’s totally family friendly,” she says. “There’s something for everyone.”
The festival, which takes place June 18-20 at the Frances Anderson Center in Edmonds, will once again feature about 230 artist booths, a juried gallery and a student art exhibit. These include traditional visual arts, crafts and culinary arts.
Both new artists and returning favorites will grace the field this year.
“We have returning artists, like artisan Heather McGilvray, with her exquisite weaving talent and techniques alongside a fairly new artist (Mary Ann Tokars-King, who works in clay) in the festival who is thrilled to have her work acknowledged in sculpture,” Darlene McLellan, museum director for the Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation, said in an e-mail. “These two artists have received awards in addition to being accepted into this juried selection.”
Other areas of growth for the festival are in photography, miniatures and printmaking arts, McLellan said.
“It’s always wonderful to see the artists who work in the many forms of printmaking. …This year there are about 12 of these artworks incorporated into the large gallery … in the gymnasium.
“One of the Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation Scholarship award recipients, Doug Bosley, continues to shine with aquatint and etching work in the Juried Gallery,” McLellan said.
Visual arts will be complimented with two performing arts stages – a main stage on the festival plaza and one in the Kids’ Creative Corner, which will also host activities and art projects for children.
This year, festival organizers anticipate between 75,000 and 85,000 attendees, Harwood said.
As with any good summer festival, there will be a food court with over 20 vendors with fair food offerings. But the culinary highlight of the festival, Harwood said, is the new Grotto Beer and Wine Garden. Hosted by Edmonds’ Olives Cafe and Wine Bar, the venue will serve Mediterranean small plates, wine and beer in a garden setting.
“It’s the big new thing,” Harwood said.
Admission to the festival is free, and it is completely run by volunteers; nevertheless, there are plenty of opportunities to pull out your wallet at both artists booths and the festival store. Proceeds from the Festival benefit university scholarships, educational and community grants to arts and public art installations.
And, Harwood reminds, the festival is the perfect chance to find a last minute Father’s Day gift that’s, well, fabulous.
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