Booth volunteers are needed for this weekends Westport Fine Arts Festival 

Booth volunteers are needed for this weekend’s Westport Fine Arts Festival! Click here to sign up.

THE WESTPORT FINE ARTS FESTIVAL CELEBRATES 50 YEARS THIS MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

With over 150 juried Fine Artists, an expanded children’s area, community mural projects, a performing arts stage, an immersive art installation experience and so much more for the whole family!

WESTPORT, CT, MAY 27TH + 28TH – The Westport Downtown Association is excited to present the 50th Westport Fine Arts Festival, on Memorial Day Weekend – Saturday, May 27th and Sunday, May 28th. The Festival will run from 10 AM to 5 PM daily in the downtown section of Main Street and Elm Street and is free to the public. This year the festival is introducing an expanded children’s area, a performing art stage as well as a large, immersive art installation project.

In this 50th Anniversary Festival the event will celebrate the rich history of art in the community, the many talented artists in and around the area and many different art forms. In addition to the incredible national and international fine artists who join us to exhibit, we are excited to announce a large art installation project entitled “The Hive” which can be found on Elm Street during the festival. The installation, standing approximately 19 ft tall and 30 ft long, is large enough to invite visitors to join in The Hive, walking through the honeycomb passages and scaled-up floral elements. This installation artwork is a collaboration between former Norwalk Art Space resident artists, Lily Morgan and Emily Teall, and Norwalk Art Space high-school students who partook in Morgan’s Installation and Public Art course. 

The Hive imagines a fantastical, larger-than-life pollinator garden to celebrate the 50th anniversary, or “Golden Anniversary,” of the Westport Fine Arts Festival. They began with techniques and materials from each of their own personal art practices, then allowed the piece to lead them to new forms of expression. The hive of bees jump from flower to flower, referencing the dynamic nature of collaboration within the local arts community. This attraction is not to be missed. This art installation is being designed and built specifically for this festival and will be built onsite to be enjoyed and experienced over the course of the weekend and disassembled on Sunday night. Pieces of the exhibit will be available for purchase. 

Festival visitors will enjoy live music both days in several locations on the footprint of the festival in addition to a new performing arts stage on Elm Street this year. 

New this year, a performing art stage will have 2 full days of musicians, dancers and other performing artists to further celebrate the arts in the community. The Win Waste Performing Arts Stage will be located on Elm Street with performances by members of the following groups: School of Rock New Canaan, School of Rock Fairfield House Band, Triple Threat, Songs on the Sound and Suzuki Music Schools and more! 

Families can participate in a large paint-by-number community Mural Project from 10 AM – 5 PM on Saturday in the children’s area, sponsored by Gault, which is located on Elm Street. This project is in collaboration with the Artist Collective of Westport and David Adam Realty who has graciously offered up their building downtown so that this mural may be installed permanently for all visitors of Downtown Westport to enjoy for years to come. 

On Sunday from 10 AM – 5 PM in the children’s area please join Westport muralist, Jana Ireijo, to participate in the “Vanishing Whale Youth Mural Project.” Kids attending the festival will be invited to create a larger-than-life sized vanishing mural of a sperm whale (the Connecticut State animal). Drawn on the street with non-permanent colored chalk, the mural is not meant to last. As it is exposed to the elements and traffic, the whale will start to wash away. The mural emphasizes the fragility of the natural world, and what we can achieve when we contribute our talents to a common goal. The young artists are encouraged to visit the mural site after the festival – as the art is vanishing, to reflect on their experience and what it means to protect what you love.

The Suzuki School will be bringing down a real piano for kids to paint and play on! One River School will have a “Ways to Create with Paper” project and The Guild of Fine Arts will be on site decorating kites and fans with children. Fancy Faces Face Painting will be on site painting children’s faces.

The Fine Arts Festival is a free event for all to visit, and all art will be available for purchase at a wide range of price points. There will be on-site food vending, live music and hands on art projects and demonstrations for children and adults. There will be three entry points to the festival. One on Elm Street, one on Main + Avery, and one on Post + Main.

This festival is notable as a highlight for collectors and residents from the Tri-State region, New England and beyond. A top twenty nationally ranked, juried festival features a premier roster of regional, national and international fine artists exhibiting in a variety of media categories – including painting, photography, sculpture, fiber, printmaking, mixed media, glass, ceramics, jewelry, wood, graphics and printmaking. All artwork is available for purchase in a wide variety of price ranges, subject matter and style. 

Popular local food trucks, including Little Pub, Walrus Alley, Lobster Craft, and Los Poblanos will be onsite in addition to Nate’s Lemonade. Bar drink stations sponsored by Nintety9Bottles of Westport will also be available with Canteen Spirits, Tuck Gin cocktails, and more.  

The Westport Fine Arts Festival would not be possible without the support of our generous sponsors, WIN Waste, Randel Law Offices, David Adam Realty, Renewal by Anderson, Fairfield Theatre Company, Huntington Learning Center, Advanced Window Systems, Daigle & Travers, Ninety9Bottles, Canteen Spirits, Tuck Gin, John Videler Photography, Rye Ridge Deli, Westport Moms, Rings End of Wilton, The Artists Collective of Westport, One River School, Suzuki School, Fancy Faces Face Painting, The Guild of Fine Arts, Mural Ethos:Vanishing Murals, and Gault Family Companies.

The 50th Westport Fine Arts Festival is presented and produced by The Westport Downtown Association, with Artist Direction by Sue Brown Gordon of Gordon Fine Arts. If artists have any questions, they can reach Sue at fafdirector@westportdowntown.com or directly at (518) 852-6478.

On-site and supporting sponsor positions are available by contacting Jill Dunn at events@westportdowntown.com . Press inquiries to Micaela Marshall at marketing@westportdowntown.com

The Westport Downtown Association (WDA) is a non-profit  501c.3 advocacy organization of merchants, business owners, and landlords working together to improve the commerce and culture of downtown Westport, Connecticut, for the benefit of our community and commercial constituents. In addition to supporting the maintenance and beautification of our district, the WDA runs consumer events to draw attention and visitation to the area. Enhancing the downtown experience for shoppers, diners, and other visitors, with the goal of building business for our primary constituency, our downtown merchants.

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