The first Historic West Main Street Art Festival showcased local artists Saturday along the 1600 and 1700 blocks of West Main Street.
“Ultimately, we wanted to bring people down to West Main Street,” said Nebraska Neighborhood Association president Chris Shatto, “and to be able to show local artists to the city.”
About 41 local artists set up stands displaying and selling various forms of art including paintings, pottery, clothing and furniture.
Antiques dealers Lori Ehler and Chris Mackey, from Culver, offered “salvaged art,” pieces of art turned into furniture, through their company, the Collectors.
“We need people to start enjoying our city,” said Ehler, who formerly lived in Fort Wayne. “We have a lot of local artists in Fort Wayne, and the little markets like this are good for the artists and the public. It's a festival where people can come out and enjoy local artists, and hopefully we can bring back a little to Fort Wayne."
The festival provided refreshments, hands-on demonstrations, kids activities and entertainment.
“We wanted to get some exposure for the neighborhood and to help gain exposure to the local artists who came out for the festival,” Shatto said.
All the registration costs from the festival went to the Nebraska Neighborhood Association to help improve the West Main Street area.
By Michael Horan
Posted By: Daniel Moss
Tuesday, June 23rd 2009 at 3:59PM
You can also
click
here to view all posts by this author...
