At the heart of the Festival are 260 booth artisans who fill six blocks from 4th Street to 10th Street on Commercial Ave and a new "Garden Art" area between 2nd and 3rd Streets. These artists come from throughout the Northwest and as far away as New York, Texas and Arizona. Each year the most popular artists are invited back, the remainder selected through a juried process based on quality, originality and marketability.
Esther Luttikhuizen of Seattle will jury the 2010 Juried Open Competition. The theme for the 2010 Juried Exhibition is "NEXT." The purpose of "NEXT" is to showcase a body of work from selected fine artists working in both 2D and 3D. Larry Richmond of Bellingham, WA and Sally Sellers of Vancouver, WA will be the featured artists in the John L. Scott Focus Gallery. The Youth Art Exhibit curated by Anacortes Community and Youth Arts will focus on artwork created by students from the Anacortes School District from elementary to high school.
Island Eatery between 2nd and 4th Streets on Commercial is a great place to slow down and recharge with a wide variety of ethnic and traditional food choices.
The Youth Discovery Area is located at 7th Street. With the help of organizational partners, the Discovery Area offers fun activities and crafts for the youngest visitors. Activities range from puppet making to origami, printmaking to sand-play, face painting to paddle boats, movement activities to ethnic crafts. This bright and busy area will get the creative juices flowing.
The Anacortes Festival is open 10-6 on Friday and Saturday and 10-5 on Sunday. More at the Arts Festival's Web site.