This year, it is being held Friday, July 4 through Sunday, July 6, from 10 am to 6 pm each of those days. It is a juried arts festival with exhibits from 100+ artists of local, regional, and national origin. Initially an arts festival, music performances held throughout each day have been added. Food and drink vendors offer a wide variety of options for meals or snacks.
Portable pizza oven!
There was also lots of good barbeque, mexican food, smoothies, etc.
Families with children and pets brought chairs, blankets, and coolers to enjoy the beautiful (albeit hot) weather. Many gathered at the music performance area and/or the beautiful sculpture fountain, Continuum.
We enjoyed the performance of the US Air Force Academy Blue Steele band.
The art exhibits were fabulous, as has been our experience in previous events (like the Cedar Key [FL] Arts Festival). Beautiful paintings, photography, jewelry, pottery, wooden furniture, and even Tesla Lamps could be found.
Wooden furniture (www.logfurniturehowto.com)
We loved the jewelry by Don McCoy (www.donmccoyjewelry.com). His bracelets (14k gold or silver) inlaid with opals and other interesting gems were fabulous. But when we downsized from the sale of our house in February, I unloaded thousands of dollars worth of jewelry. The gold bracelet that I loved was $4,800 and, honestly, I DO NOT need it! The silver ones were in the $400-$500 range, but still... You know John, he says, "Get it if you like it." I am proud to say I didn't!
We did pick up a few lovely pottery pieces for gifts and for us. We have to be careful as we really do not have room for a lot of extra stuff in the motor coach. I do really enjoy shopping for gifts though. I have already started our Christmas shopping (yes, I am one of those crazy people).
My favorite discovery in the American the Beautiful park is the very impressive sculpture fountain made possible through the El Pomar Foundation (the Spencer and Julie Penrose philanthropic organization founded in 1937).
Named Continuum it represents the life-giving movement of water between the atmosphere and the earth.
It is made from 24 tons of steel, features 366 spray jets, and is over 4 stories tall. Additionally, it rotates four revolutions per hour and creates a wall of water when the spray jets are engaged. It is striking and kids (and adults alike) enjoy wading in the fountain on a hot summer day.
John and Sadie enjoying some shade.
It was an enjoyable afternoon for us. We frequently check out local events and usually find them to be fun and interesting. There are no admission or parking fees.
Check out their website for a listing of artists, music performances, and food vendors for next year's July 4 event.
Website: www.pikespeakartsfestive.com
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