From trapeze artists to Bo Diddley Plaza performances and good ‘ole barbeque, more than 40,000 guests attended the Downtown Festival & Art Show, “for and by Gainesville-based artists,” in its 44th year.
The festival, consistently ranked in the top 200 shows nationwide by Sunshine Artist magazine, was created in 1981 to celebrate local artistry. It has since expanded, with about 200 artists coming from across the country to fill downtown with booths of paintings, clothing, decorations, jewelry and more. Two judges spent Saturday scoring each artist booth based on factors such as originality, presentation and quality of work.
One of the busiest corners of the festival was the new “participation station,” an all-ages art-making space.
“We've always had an imagination station for kids to do hands-on art, but I really wanted a place where people of all ages can participate in art,” festival coordinator Lilli Tzou said.
Saturday’s participation station featured smooth flava dance, swing dance and international folk dance, along with Afro-Brazilian drumming and samba-reggae lessons.
Sunday’s focus shifted to art, with local art groups teaching risographing, printmaking, ceramics, stamping and crochet.
Meanwhile, the kids’ imagination station was in disarray, overflowing with painting supplies, paper crafts, chalk art and pipe cleaner crafts.
The festival also highlighted performances by Gainesville Belly Dance Company and Gainesville Circus Center, as well as a full lineup of live music.
More than 10 food vendors offered barbecue, Greek, Peruvian, Latin, Thai and other food options alongside downtown restaurants that were busy throughout the event. Nonprofit organizations also staffed booths to raise awareness of their missions.
Saturday also included Mayor Harvey Ward’s presentation of a key to the city to artist Jim Wilson.
“Wilson is a Gainesville native who has just given back to the community all these years and is just an unsung hero,” Tzou said, “it’s a rare honor that they give out every once in a while to people who have made a mark on Gainesville.”
One of this year’s popular exhibitors was Jennifer Woflin, a tie-dye artist from Columbia, Tennessee, who runs Dyeworks2.
“I’m a second-generation tie dyer; it’s been in my family for 40 years, my parents inspired me and it makes me happy,” said Woflin. She uses bind-and-resist methods and permanent dyes to create unique, high-quality clothing pieces. Sundresses and T-shirts are her most popular items.
Sisters Juliette and Olivia Lara, along with their mother Anissa Lara, sold handmade jewelry that grew out of Juliette’s need for non-metal accessories.
“I can’t wear metal or gold earrings, so I made plastic earrings,” Juliette said, “they worked really well…so I decided to sell them because I’m sure there are other people out there who can’t wear normal earrings.”
Their booth featured everything from $2 rings to $65 outdoor decor.
Another artist drawing crowds was Gainesville resident Alfred Phillips, this year’s poster artist and award-winning acrylic painter. He describes his work as “contemporary realism,” a term he coined to combine realistic imagery with abstract elements and shape.
“My career was in graphic design and advertising, and I incorporate those shapes, blocks of colors, textures, and interesting things,” Phillips said, “at the core of everything I do, there is some element of realism; how much of it depends on the day and all that.”
Phillips tailors his offerings at each festival to what resonates locally, as “Gainesville is a little more traditional, they lean toward more traditional things with birds, clouds and trees.”
He typically sells between 25 and 30 paintings a year, and often reworks pieces if it doesn’t sell after three showings.
“I almost always sell everything eventually, and it’s kind of unusual for me to hold on to something too long,” Phillips said.
He moved away from gallery representation to art fairs because of the personal interaction and affordability.
“I get to talk directly to the people who are buying my work, and I get to sell it for a reasonable price; that’s the part that’s fun to me,” Phillips said.
Phillips “massively imparts” how proud he is of Gainesville’s commitment to the arts, as “there’s a great number of really, really top-notch artists that live here,” he said.
After an estimated $85,000 spent and 10 months of planning, seeing families fill downtown’s streets each fall for this festival makes it all worth it, Tzou said.
“I think it’s become a tradition,” she said, “people love coming out to experience downtown in a way that doesn’t happen every day of the year, and it’s a really nice weekend in the fall for people to come out with their families.”