Festival of the Arts 2011 Opened Tonight at Studios on the Park

The artists reception for the juried exhibit “The Colors of Water” was the opening event for the 2011 Festival of the Arts. Since the local TV station was there reporting, I’m not going to try to cover the details. I will say it was a very well-attended event and everyone I saw appeared to be having a great time. I wish I had known who the winners in the juried exhibit would be when I got there, early, before the crowds showed up. I would have shown you the winners. I was not surprised when Heidi Franscioni took the grand prize. I tried to get a picture, but it was simply too crowded to get one unblocked by people. You will have to go and see the exhibit for yourself. I intend to go back when it isn’t quite so crowded.

While I was waiting for the artists reception that opened this year’s Festival of the Arts to begin, I decided to see what was going on at the Paso Robles Art Association Gallery, since I haven’t had a chance to get to the openings lately. “Wine, Women, and Song” opened on May 19 and will remain until June 19, so you still have a chance to see it. It was a juried exhibit with some wonderful paintings and photographs. I will show you the first and second place winners in a minute. But first I want to share my special find. It seems every one of these exhibits has a surprise — something totally out of the ordinary. Nancy Vest and Kathy Batdorf usually provide these 3-D surprises that mix media. This time I didn’t see any of their work. But I did find this treasure by Hellie Blythe, the mixed media “Pistachio Sextet.”

Here’s a bit of it close-up.

So, now you know what to do with those pistachio shells when you finish with them. Think like an artist.  I think this should have won something! Here’s what did win:

First place went to Carolyn Braun for “Pinot.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jeanne Wolfe won second place with “Five O’Clock Somewhere.

 

There was plenty to contemplate in this exhibit, and there were many excellent pieces that did not place. I’m glad I did not have to judge these. So many different media are represented that it’s like comparing apples to oranges.

Besides the paintings and sculptures, there were some lovely jewelry creations in the glass case — easy to overlook because it’s below eye level. Do take a look, though, if you are there.

 

 

 

After I left the gallery and entered the hallway gallery again, people had arrived. I made my way to the table that held sandwiches and other temptations and selected a veggie sandwich that was delicious. At other tables, they were pouring wine. Since the reception began at 5:50, we appreciated having healthy (as well as tasty) food available.

 

 

Toward the end of the reception, Anne Laddon spoke to us about the purpose of Studios on the Park and its mission and introduced those who had been busily planning the 2011 Festival of the Arts. Barbara Partridge continued this theme and introduced some of the major sponsors of the event.  I did get a video of this, but the light wasn’t right and I decided not to use it. The winners of the juried exhibit were also announced. Things were happening so fast it was hard for me to take it all in. I expect I’ll go back this week and see everything without the accompanying crowds.

Laure Carlisle was one of the happy recipients of recognition tonight, and you can see her standing outside her studio, just to the left of her sign, talking with friends.

There were still people milling about when I left, but it was getting rather warm and my husband was already sitting in the park waiting for me to leave. I did take a look at the park first, and saw the preparations for the main event tomorrow. Here is the park partially dressed for the Festival of the Arts, which begins at 10 A.M. tomorrow, Saturday, May 28. Don’t miss it. It’s a family event and there are plenty of art experiences available for your children and you. You’ve got until 6 P.M. before it closes.